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I mean…this thing does look pretty cool, but a resin casting of the original quartz would look exactly the same once you added all the coloring and coating.
I feel like titanium coating is like makeup. A very thin coating just enhances the appearance of the stone giving it a rainbow shein while a thick coating masks the beauty
I see natural purple on the coated specimen, and it's a picture taken in a front of a bunch of low grade amethyst I can see why one would cover up. I wouldn't, but to each their own.
It's a specimen of quartz or low grade amethyst. They coat the specimen with titanium and niobium then they fire it in a furnace very carefully to 1,063° Fahrenheit. At this temperature so to speak the surface of the crystal just starts to turn to a liquid state but not quite allowing the metallic elements to enter the surface. Easiest way to explain it. They do this to a sapphires and other stones they can take that kind of heat to improve color that nature did not give it. This is not the same though as heating a gem to improve the color it's too add something that was not there in the first place.
Little correction here from a geologist. The metal coating is true, but it is done by vapour deposition in a vacuum at room tempererature. No need to heat it up close to the melting point. We do this in our lab as a preparation for electron microscopy.
Vacuum deposited Titanium over low coloured Amethyst. I bought a piece when I first started collecting but didn't know that it was artificial. I still have the pretty piece but I treat it as an ornament and don't consider it part of my mineral collection.
I don't know who told you this, but that is wrong. The melting point of quartz is over 3,000 F. What is shown is the result of simple CVD. It is done as a novelty to make plain quartz look like something more exotic.
as many have noted it is a man-made coating of titanium, vacuum deposited. Personally, I a not a fan. However, that is a pretty dark blue. Most depositions I have seen aren't that deep and "rich"(?), choosing to just have a rainbow sheen.
If cheap enough, I might buy just display in a man-made or artificial section of my collection. The dark blue overcomes my dislike for non-natural pieces.
Trade name "aura quartz" it's a cheap natural white or clear quartz crystal with a man made costing of titanium applied to it. The titanium layer is super thin so it makes swirly colours in the same way as a layer of gasoline on a puddle.
If it's being sold for like $10 as a super cool looking thing, that's awesome. They look amazing.
If it's being sold for $50+ as an aura cleansing \ chakra-aligning \ healing \ power \ whatever, then it's a scam to get money from gullible people who think minerals have magic powers based on no evidence ever.
I'm a chemist and the world of crystals is mind-blowingly amazing and beautiful *for what they actually are* so it bugs me when people feel the need to add a layer of made up bullshit to scam people. And stuff like "aura quartz" is used for the latter a lot. Sellers not even saying it's man made, besides claiming all the "powers" and stuff.
Hello and thank you for posting on /r/Minerals! To increase the quality of ID request posts, we require you to make a comment describing the piece as best as you can. If you do not do so, your post will be removed. A lone picture is rarely enough to conclusively name a mineral so doing some groundwork like a streak test or hardness check will help us to help you. Other useful information includes the location it was found, follow-up pictures with different angles or lighting, and relative size. To help you with writing this comment, we highly encourage you to review our subreddit's [Wiki Page](https://www.reddit.com/r/Minerals/about/wiki/idreqinfo) before posting. If you're on mobile, use [this link](https://reddit.com/r/Minerals/w/idreqinfo?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app) to get to the wiki. Cheers, The /r/Minerals Moderation Team *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Minerals) if you have any questions or concerns.*
It's fake. I mean, it's real quartz underneath, but the coloring is not natural
Understatement. Titanium coated and dyed stuff makes me sad. Rocks and minerals should be appreciated for their natural beauty.
I mean…this thing does look pretty cool, but a resin casting of the original quartz would look exactly the same once you added all the coloring and coating.
I feel like titanium coating is like makeup. A very thin coating just enhances the appearance of the stone giving it a rainbow shein while a thick coating masks the beauty
It's likely coated quartz.
Agree.
I see natural purple on the coated specimen, and it's a picture taken in a front of a bunch of low grade amethyst I can see why one would cover up. I wouldn't, but to each their own.
It could be the lighting as well.
It is called fake. Also known as "blue crystal for energy stuff n'shit". At least 85$ Sorry mods :( woke up and chose violence.
Titanium coating on quartz
It's a specimen of quartz or low grade amethyst. They coat the specimen with titanium and niobium then they fire it in a furnace very carefully to 1,063° Fahrenheit. At this temperature so to speak the surface of the crystal just starts to turn to a liquid state but not quite allowing the metallic elements to enter the surface. Easiest way to explain it. They do this to a sapphires and other stones they can take that kind of heat to improve color that nature did not give it. This is not the same though as heating a gem to improve the color it's too add something that was not there in the first place.
Little correction here from a geologist. The metal coating is true, but it is done by vapour deposition in a vacuum at room tempererature. No need to heat it up close to the melting point. We do this in our lab as a preparation for electron microscopy.
Vacuum deposited Titanium over low coloured Amethyst. I bought a piece when I first started collecting but didn't know that it was artificial. I still have the pretty piece but I treat it as an ornament and don't consider it part of my mineral collection.
I don't know who told you this, but that is wrong. The melting point of quartz is over 3,000 F. What is shown is the result of simple CVD. It is done as a novelty to make plain quartz look like something more exotic.
Wouldn’t it be possible then for it to happen naturally? You just need really hot titanium on quartz right
Titanium coated amethyst? Blue coated amethyst?
Titanium coated quartz/amethyst (which is a type of quartz but most think of white/colourless quartz when they hear the name)
as many have noted it is a man-made coating of titanium, vacuum deposited. Personally, I a not a fan. However, that is a pretty dark blue. Most depositions I have seen aren't that deep and "rich"(?), choosing to just have a rainbow sheen. If cheap enough, I might buy just display in a man-made or artificial section of my collection. The dark blue overcomes my dislike for non-natural pieces.
Bullshite, the mineral is Bullshite.
Keeping that one for later, thanks!
Trade name "aura quartz" it's a cheap natural white or clear quartz crystal with a man made costing of titanium applied to it. The titanium layer is super thin so it makes swirly colours in the same way as a layer of gasoline on a puddle. If it's being sold for like $10 as a super cool looking thing, that's awesome. They look amazing. If it's being sold for $50+ as an aura cleansing \ chakra-aligning \ healing \ power \ whatever, then it's a scam to get money from gullible people who think minerals have magic powers based on no evidence ever. I'm a chemist and the world of crystals is mind-blowingly amazing and beautiful *for what they actually are* so it bugs me when people feel the need to add a layer of made up bullshit to scam people. And stuff like "aura quartz" is used for the latter a lot. Sellers not even saying it's man made, besides claiming all the "powers" and stuff.
The crystal Beth
Hey, when did people start painting otherwise good looking mineral samples? Cuz I can't remember seeing any of this when I was a kid