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Amethyst is a lavender-to-purple-colored natural quartz crystal. Crystals are symbols of perfection, transparency and clarity. They are solid substances in which atoms arrange themselves in geometric patterns with smooth planes, called faces.  The word "crystal" is derived from the Greek word, krystallos, which is derived from kryos, meaning icy cold. Thousands of years ago, people thought crystals were ice that had frozen so hard that it could not melt.

Color, habit and cleavage define the properties of crystals. Amethyst is transparent in color, meaning it reflects nearly all light. It is prismatic in habit, meaning the crystals are longer in one direction than the other. Crystals do not cleave easily but show a rounded, concentric fracture known as conchoidal.  Amethyst mineral specimens are most often found in geodes (cavities in volcanic rock). Finding amethyst is lots of fun! Look for an agate base lined with colorless quartz, with the amethyst crystals on top.

Amethyst is a variety of Quartz, which is in the Silicates group, where silicon and oxygen form a tetrahedral silica radical that combines with various metals or semi-metals. Amethyst’s violet, purple, red-purple hue comes from iron.

The the United States, Amethyst is found in Colorado, also famous for its gold and sterling silver jewelry.