Specifications
Description
Locality: South Africa
Description: Tigers Eye is a unique and popular variety of chalcedony, which is a cryptocrystalline form of quartz. Tiger's eye forms through a process called pseudomorphism, which involves the replacement of one mineral by another while retaining the original mineral's shape. The process begins with a rock rich in crocidolite, a type of asbestos composed of fibrous crystals of the mineral riebeckite. Over time, geological processes introduce silica-rich fluids into the rock where crocidolite is present. These silica-rich fluids slowly infiltrate the rock, depositing quartz (silicon dioxide, SiO2) in place of the crocidolite fibers. As the quartz infiltrates the crocidolite-rich rock, it replaces the original mineral while preserving the fibrous structure of the crocidolite. This new quartz formation maintains the fibrous structure and parallel alignment of the crocidolite fibers, creating the unique chatoyant effect observed in tiger's eye. When light interacts with these fibers, it reflects off them, producing a luminous band of light that moves across the surface of the stone when it is rotated or tilted.
The red color of these tumbles comes from heating regular golden tigers eye to high temperatures, which causes it to turn a bright red color. All red tigers eye sold by Rubble Rock and Gem is heat treated.
Chemical Composition: SiO2
Approximate Size of 1 piece: 26mm x 18mm x 10mm
Approximate Weight of 1 piece: 6g
Approximate Size of 1lb Bag: 17cm x 9cm x 4cm
Approximate Weight of 1lb Bag: 460g
Quantity: 1pc or 1lb (70-80 pcs)
We do our best to buy quality products- although not every rock is the same. If you choose to purchase the "staff pick option", we will select the best of the batch for you. Otherwise, it will be at random from the larger batch we have in stock.