Quartz and chalcedony materials
The quartz and chalcedony family covers predominantly macrocrystalline quartz such as amethyst, microcrystalline quartz and chalcedony, and their aggregates. Agate, jasper and included quartz are not distinct mineral species.
On this page
What this family is
Structure, not appearance, draws this line: macrocrystalline quartz such as amethyst and the microcrystalline chalcedony that agate and jasper belong to sit in one family, since neither agate nor jasper is a distinct mineral species. Quartzite jade, and aventurine traded as "Indian jade", also belong here.
A bead sold as rainbow crystal may be quartz, a coating or glass until testing says which.
Scope of this family
Predominantly macrocrystalline quartz, microcrystalline quartz/chalcedony, or their aggregates; agate, jasper and included quartz are not distinct mineral species.
Representative members (18)
The standard materials in this family: mineral species, varieties, rocks and other materials whose name identifies what they are. Trade names are listed separately below.
Common confusions
Names in this family that do not by themselves say what the material is, and man-made or assembled products recorded against its materials. Each line says what the item actually is.
Trade names in this family
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| Name | Type of name | What it actually is |
|---|---|---|
| Alashan Yu | Commercial / trade name | A quartzose jade trade name, “Alashan Yu”, listed in Table A.1 of Annex A of GB/T 34098-2017. The table puts it in one merged cell with other trade names and does not map it to a single basic name: quartzose jade, quartzite jade, chalcedony, agate or jasper. The name contains the place name Alashan; GB/T 34098 does not say whether it implies origin. |
| Aventurine Quartz / Green Aventurine | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | A market trade name for Aventurine Quartz; the material is still quartzite and has nothing to do with Jadeite or Nephrite, so it must not be sold as a type of jade. |
| Banded Agate | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | A pattern-based trade name for banded Chalcedony; it is not a separate mineral species, and there is no unified grading standard for its band patterns. |
| Black Agate | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | A commercial colour name for dark chalcedony or agate; much of it on the market is dyed, so it should not be described as naturally black by default. |
| Bloodstone / Heliotrope | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | Green chalcedony with red iron-oxide spots, also known in English as heliotrope; occasionally heat-treated. |
| Blue Lace Agate | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | A trade name for pale blue banded Chalcedony; the name describes only colour and pattern, and origin and any dyeing must be tested separately. |
| Carnelian | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | Orange-red Chalcedony; heating to alter colour is common and can deepen the red tone, so natural colour should be confirmed by a certificate. |
| Chrome Chalcedony | Commercial / trade name | Chalcedony coloured green by chromium. This is a different cause of colour from chrysoprase, whose green comes from nickel-bearing clay inclusions. |
| Chrysocolla Chalcedony | Commercial / trade name | Green to blue, translucent Chalcedony coloured by copper or by fine Chrysocolla inclusions. The bulk is Chalcedony (Quartz), not Chrysocolla itself. |
| Coated Quartz | Commercial / trade name | Quartz whose surface carries a thin film of metal or metal oxide, applied for example by vapour deposition, so that it shows colour or iridescence; it is sold under names such as aura quartz and Aqua Aura. Coating is a treatment: under GB/T 16552 the name is formed as coated quartz, and the treatment must be stated rather than replaced by a trade name. |
| Colourless to White Quartz (brand name: Azeztulite) | Trade name: cultural / brand designation | Quartz sold under brand and spiritual-market terms; the material and trademark status must be verified with supplier documents, and it is not a mineral species name. |
| Crazy Lace Agate | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | A trade variety name for banded chalcedony; the Chinese name is often applied loosely to agates with various patterns, and it does not guarantee origin. |
| Dabieshan Yu | Commercial / trade name | A quartzose jade trade name in GB/T 34098-2017 Annex A Table A.1, grouped in one merged cell with other trade names and not matched to any single basic name (quartzose jade, quartzite jade, chalcedony, agate or jasper). It contains the place name Dabieshan; GB/T 34098 does not say whether this implies origin. |
| Dendritic Agate | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | Chalcedony containing tree-like inclusions of manganese and iron oxides; the "branches" are an inclusion pattern, not plant fossils. |
| Dyed Agate | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | Chalcedony or agate that has been dyed. Most blue, green, pink and purple agate on the market falls into this category, and the name must state that it is dyed. |
| Elestial Quartz / Skeletal Quartz | Commercial / trade name | Quartz with a skeletal, etched-looking growth habit; the Chinese name, meaning “skeleton”, describes the crystal habit rather than a mineral species, and neither CIBJO nor GB/T lists this name. |
| Eye Agate | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | Banded chalcedony with concentric, eye-like patterns; "eye" (literally "heavenly eye") is a pattern name with no standing as a separate mineral. |
| Fire Agate | Commercial / trade name | A mostly opaque agate that shows iridescence over a brown body color. It is a chalcedony (quartz) material, not the same material as the orange-red Fire Opal. |
| Flower Agate / Cherry Blossom Agate | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | A trade name for chalcedony with feathery inclusions; "cherry blossom" is a marketing description of the pattern, not a fixed mineral species. |
| Green Quartz | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | A name listed in GB/T 16552-2017 Appendix A Table A.1 for green Quartz; the cause of colour and any treatment must be identified, and it cannot automatically be equated with Prasiolite. |
| Hawk’s Eye | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | Silicified asbestos dominated by blue tones such as grey-blue or green-blue; GB/T 34098-2017 clause 5.5 permits the name “hawk’s eye”, but the basic name remains silicified asbestos. |
| Hezhou Yu | Commercial / trade name | A quartzose jade trade name, “Hezhou Yu”, listed in Table A.1 of Annex A of GB/T 34098-2017. The table puts it in one merged cell with other trade names and does not map it to a single basic name: quartzose jade, quartzite jade, chalcedony, agate or jasper. The name contains the place name Hezhou; GB/T 34098 does not say whether it implies origin. |
| High-clarity quartz with golden needle-like inclusions | Trade name: inclusion / visual-effect descriptor | A Chinese quality-based trade name for fairly clean quartz with golden needle-like inclusions; the “titanium” in the Chinese name does not indicate composition, and there is no unified international grading standard. |
| Huanglong Yu | Commercial / trade name | A quartzose jade trade name, “Huanglong Yu”, listed in Table A.1 of Annex A of GB/T 34098-2017. The table puts it in one merged cell with other trade names and does not map it to a single basic name: quartzose jade, quartzite jade, chalcedony, agate or jasper. Huanglong Yu is listed first in the table. |
| Included Quartz | Trade name: inclusion / visual-effect descriptor | A Chinese market umbrella term for quartz with all kinds of inclusions, such as landscapes, phantoms or hair-like needles. It is not a separate variety, and the specific inclusions must be identified. |
| Jinsi Yu | Commercial / trade name | A quartzose jade trade name, “Jinsi Yu”, listed in Table A.1 of Annex A of GB/T 34098-2017. The table puts it in one merged cell with other trade names and does not map it to a single basic name: quartzose jade, quartzite jade, chalcedony, agate or jasper. According to table note a, the trade names listed are not exhaustive. |
| Jixue Yu | Commercial / trade name | A quartzose jade trade name, “Jixue Yu”, listed in Table A.1 of Annex A of GB/T 34098-2017. The table puts it in one merged cell with other trade names and does not map it to a single basic name: quartzose jade, quartzite jade, chalcedony, agate or jasper. It is not the same material as “chicken-blood stone” (GB/T 16553 §5.2.30.2). |
| Madeira Citrine | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | A trade variety name for deep orange-red to reddish-brown citrine, mostly produced by heating amethyst; “Madeira” does not indicate origin. |
| Malachite Agate | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | An ambiguous market name: the material may be green Chalcedony, dyed material or an aggregate of copper minerals, so the main material must be identified first. |
| Mi Yu | Commercial / trade name | A quartzose jade trade name in GB/T 34098-2017 Annex A Table A.1, grouped in one merged cell with other trade names and not matched to any single basic name (quartzose jade, quartzite jade, chalcedony, agate or jasper). The standard does not mention the name outside Table A.1. |
| Morion / very dark Smoky Quartz | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | Traditionally very dark smoky quartz (morion), but market goods sold under the same Chinese name may also be obsidian or glass, so testing is needed. |
| Moss Agate | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | Chalcedony containing tree-like mineral inclusions, often without banding. Strictly in mineralogy it is not necessarily agate, but the trade still calls it that. |
| Moss Chalcedony | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | Chalcedony with moss-like inclusions; it is a neighbouring concept to Moss Agate, and the naming boundary between the two varies by market. |
| Multi-inclusion Quartz | Trade name: inclusion / visual-effect descriptor | Quartz containing several visually distinguishable kinds of inclusions, sold under the non-standard trade name Super Seven; the name does not prove a fixed mineral combination. |
| Onyx (banded chalcedony) | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | Chalcedony with straight, parallel black and white bands; CIBJO Gemmological Laboratories Book 2024 §7.2.1.160 narrows the term to this meaning, and the black goods it lists are all dyed. |
| Phantom Quartz | Trade name: inclusion / visual-effect descriptor | Quartz in which an interruption in growth is outlined inside the crystal by inclusions or a coating; "phantom" refers to this growth outline, not to a mineral species. |
| Picture Jasper | Commercial / trade name | A commercial appearance name for Jasper whose iron oxide and clay bands form landscape-like patterns; it is not a GB/T variety name. |
| Pietersite | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | A trade name for a brecciated quartz aggregate with a cat's-eye effect; its definition, structure and origin are used inconsistently on the market. |
| Prasiolite / Green Quartz | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | A trade name for green Quartz, given in CIBJO Annex 8 as "Prasiolite, or Green Quartz"; most is coloured by heating or irradiating Amethyst, and FTC 16 CFR §23.26(a) prohibits calling it "green amethyst". |
| Quartz claimed to be from the Himalayas | Trade name: cultural / brand designation | Quartz sold with a claim of Himalayan origin. The origin is a claim, not a mineral variety, and sources such as Nepal, India and Pakistan must not be lumped together. |
| Quartz Crystal | Trade name: cultural / brand designation | Quartz sold under a trade name ("Lemurian") tied to a spiritual story, usually recognised by growth striations on its surface; the name appears in neither the IMA nor the CIBJO lists. |
| Quartz with dark needle-like inclusions | Trade name: inclusion / visual-effect descriptor | A trade name for quartz with black needle-like inclusions, which may be black tourmaline, rutile or actinolite; it cannot be named without identification. |
| Quartz with fine fibrous inclusions | Trade name: inclusion / visual-effect descriptor | A trade name for Quartz with fine, hair-like inclusions. The inclusion mineral and whether the stone is treated vary from piece to piece, and a colour word in the name does not prove what the inclusions are. |
| Quartz with flower-like inclusions | Trade name: inclusion / visual-effect descriptor | A Chinese trade name for Quartz with flower-like or cloudy internal features; the type of inclusions and whether fractures have been filled must be tested. |
| Quartz with golden needle-like inclusions | Trade name: inclusion / visual-effect descriptor | Quartz with golden needle-like inclusions; whether the inclusions are rutile must be confirmed by testing, and synthetics or treatments such as dyeing or filling must be disclosed. |
| Quartz with green needle-like inclusions | Trade name: inclusion / visual-effect descriptor | A trade name for Quartz containing green needle-like inclusions; it is not a fixed mineral variety, and without identification the inclusions cannot be assumed to be Actinolite or Rutile. |
| Red Agate | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | A trade colour name for red-orange Agate; goods on the market are often dyed, so without testing it must not be described as natural colour. |
| Rock Crystal | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | A basic name listed in GB/T 16552-2017 Table A.1. It originally means colorless transparent quartz and is also used as the parent name for the various quartz varieties. |
| Rutilated Quartz | Trade name: inclusion / visual-effect descriptor | Quartz containing rutile inclusions. GB/T 16552-2017 Table A.1 lists "rutilated quartz" by name, but the name only describes the needle-like look; whether the needles are rutile still needs confirming. |
| Sard | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | Chalcedony with a brownish-red tone. Most on the market has been heated to change its color, and natural color must be confirmed by an identification certificate. |
| Silicified Asbestos | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | A cryptocrystalline to crystalline quartz aggregate formed when silica replaces asbestos fibers. Yellowish material may be called Tiger’s Eye, and bluish material may be called Hawk’s Eye. |
| Smoky Quartz (brown variety) | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | A Chinese trade colour name for the browner kinds of Smoky Quartz, usually lighter-toned Smoky Quartz; there is no unified standard for the boundary between light and dark. |
| Strawberry Quartz | Trade name: inclusion / visual-effect descriptor | A trade name for Quartz containing red to pink inclusions; the type of inclusion varies with the source, and there is no single fixed mineralogical definition. |
| Taishan Yu | Commercial / trade name | A quartzose jade trade name in GB/T 34098-2017 Annex A Table A.1, grouped in one merged cell with other trade names and not matched to any single basic name (quartzose jade, quartzite jade, chalcedony, agate or jasper). It contains the place name Taishan; GB/T 34098 does not say whether this implies origin. |
| Tongtian Yu | Commercial / trade name | A quartzose jade trade name, “Tongtian Yu”, listed in Table A.1 of Annex A of GB/T 34098-2017. The table puts it in one merged cell with other trade names and does not map it to a single basic name: quartzose jade, quartzite jade, chalcedony, agate or jasper. Outside Table A.1, the standard does not mention this name again. |
| Yellow-green Quartz | Trade name: colour / appearance variety | A trade name for yellow to yellow-green quartz. It must not automatically be treated as natural Citrine, and its color may involve irradiation or heat treatment. |
Member entries (74)
- Agate
- Alashan Yu
- Amethyst
- Ametrine
- Aventurine Quartz
- Aventurine Quartz / Green Aventurine
- Banded Agate
- Black Agate
- Bloodstone / Heliotrope
- Blue Lace Agate
- Carnelian
- Chalcedony
- Chrome Chalcedony
- Chrysocolla Chalcedony
- Chrysoprase
- Citrine
- Clear Quartz / Rock Crystal
- Coated Quartz
- Colourless to White Quartz (brand name: Azeztulite)
- Crazy Lace Agate
- Dabieshan Yu
- Dendritic Agate
- Dyed Agate
- Elestial Quartz / Skeletal Quartz
- Eye Agate
- Fire Agate
- Flower Agate / Cherry Blossom Agate
- Green Quartz
- Hawk’s Eye
- Hezhou Yu
- High-clarity quartz with golden needle-like inclusions
- Huanglong Yu
- Included Quartz
- Jasper
- Jinsi Yu
- Jixue Yu
- Madeira Citrine
- Malachite Agate
- Mi Yu
- Morion / very dark Smoky Quartz
- Moss Agate
- Moss Chalcedony
- Multi-inclusion Quartz
- Onyx (banded chalcedony)
- Phantom Quartz
- Picture Jasper
- Pietersite
- Prase
- Prasiolite / Green Quartz
- Quartz
- Quartz Cat’s-eye
- Quartz claimed to be from the Himalayas
- Quartz Crystal
- Quartz with dark needle-like inclusions
- Quartz with fine fibrous inclusions
- Quartz with flower-like inclusions
- Quartz with golden needle-like inclusions
- Quartz with green needle-like inclusions
- Quartzite Jade
- Quartzose Jade
- Red Agate
- Rock Crystal
- Rose Quartz
- Rutilated Quartz
- Sard
- Sardonyx
- Silicified Asbestos
- Smoky Quartz
- Smoky Quartz (brown variety)
- Strawberry Quartz
- Taishan Yu
- Tiger’s Eye
- Tongtian Yu
- Yellow-green Quartz
Market names not to be used as a product name
Recorded on member entries of this family. Each name links to the entry whose page explains the ruling and its source.
All misleading and prohibited trade names across the site: Misleading and prohibited trade names
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| Market name | Recorded on | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Indian jade | Aventurine Quartz / Green Aventurine | Not to be used in any position |
| topaz quartz | Citrine | Not to be used in any position |
| citrine topaz | Citrine | Not to be used in any position |
| topaz citrine | Citrine | Not to be used in any position |
| Titanium quartz | High-clarity quartz with golden needle-like inclusions | Not to be used in any position |
| golden silk jade | Jinsi Yu | Not to be used in any position |
| Green Amethyst | Prasiolite / Green Quartz | Not to be used in any position |
| Greened Amethyst | Prasiolite / Green Quartz | Annotation only, never as the product name |
| Black hair quartz | Quartz with dark needle-like inclusions | Not to be used in any position |
| Green hair quartz | Quartz with green needle-like inclusions | Not to be used in any position |
| hair quartz | Rutilated Quartz | Not to be used in any position |
| Lemon Citrine | Yellow-green Quartz | Not to be used in any position |
Treatments recorded on member entries
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Care codes on member entries
Member entries cite these CIBJO special-care codes: special-care code c, special-care code f, special-care code j, special-care code k. General gem care gives the full wording of every code.
Where members are recorded
Some member entries record the localities where their materials are found; Recorded localities shows them on a sketch map and lists them by continent.
Names
- 简体中文
- 石英与玉髓材料
- 繁體中文
- 石英與玉髓材料
- English
- Quartz and chalcedony materials
- 日本語
- 石英・玉髄質材料
Authority source
- Authority source
- Review status
- Reviewed against CIBJO, GB/T and IMA boundaries.
Distribution across the other axes
All 74 members share these values:
- Origin class
- Natural materials
- Material domain
- Natural inorganic gem materials
- Mineral chemical class
- Silicates
Identity level
- Trade name: colour / appearance variety (27)
- Commercial / trade name (15)
- Trade name: inclusion / visual-effect descriptor (11)
- Mineral / gemstone variety (11)
- Rock / mineral aggregate (6)
- Trade name: cultural / brand designation (3)
- Mineral species (1)
Construction or treatment status
- Natural identity; treatment status unknown (70)
- Natural; common industry optimization (verify with certificate) (3)
- Treated: dyed (1)