Properties (Chem. & Phys.)
The hardness of Amethyst on the Mohs Hardness Scale is.
What is seven?
Amethyst is often used to make a variety of _____ (Name one use or more).
Building supplies, Ceramics, Plastic, Glass, & or Jewelry
The word amethyst comes from the Greek word amethystos, meaning this.
What is “not drunken” and or “not intoxicating”?
Amethyst forms from silica-rich magma rising through the Earth in this type of activity.
What is magmatic activity?
Most of the citrine sold today is actually this gemstone that has been heat-treated.
What is amethyst?
Amethyst’s luster is often described as this quality.
What is glassy (vitreous)?
Heat-treating amethyst at temperatures above 440 °C can transform it into this yellow gemstone.
What is citrine?
Amethyst was first discovered and used in Paris roughly this many years ago?
What is 25,000 years ago?
Amethyst grows in cavities within volcanic rocks, fractures, or these spherical mineral-filled hollows.
What are geodes?
Today, the largest producer of amethyst is this country, processing up to 3,000 tons annually.
What is Brazil?
Amethyst belongs to this mineral class, which is characterized by a silicon-oxygen framework.
What are silicates?
Amethyst has supposedly been linked with preventing drunkenness, enhancing the spirit, and helping manage this common emotional condition.
What is anxiety?
The finest crystals in the world once came from mines in this infamously icy region of Russia.
What is Siberia?
During crystallization, amethyst incorporates iron into this repeating, organized 3D structure.
What is the quartz/crystal lattice?
Amethyst is the rarest member of this mineral family.
What is quartz?
The chemical makeup of amethyst is this formula, with trace amounts of a certain element.
What is SiO₂ with iron impurities?
Unlike regular quartz, amethyst is rarely used for this purpose because it’s more expensive.
What is industrial use?
During history, amethyst was so rare that it was associated with this certain social class.
What is royalty?
Radiation from surrounding rocks enhances amethyst’s purple color by altering these atomic components.
What are chromophores?
The once world-famous mines of this region, which produced the finest amethyst, have been completely depleted.
What is Siberia?
Amethyst breaks with this type of fracture, which produces smooth curved surfaces that don't follow any natural planes of separation.
What is conchoidal fracture?
Amethyst’s value once made it helpful as an investment, especially in times of this economic problem.
What is currency depreciation/economic uncertainty?
Supplies discovered in this South American country in the 1800s made amethyst more affordable.
What is Brazil?
Amethyst owes its purple color mainly to radiation from this radioactive isotope commonly found in rocks.
What is potassium-40?
A "cosmic" amethyst was found inside a dying star located this many light-years from Earth.
What is 7,800 light-years?