Quartz with Epidote inclusions
Image: <bdi><a href="https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q56247090" class="extiw" title="d:Q56247090"><span title="mineral collector and dealer">Robert M. Lavinsky</span></a></bdi> (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Description
This specimen features a cluster of well-formed quartz crystals, exhibiting pinkish-red phantom zones and clear areas, with dark, blade-like epidote crystals embedded within and attached to the quartz surfaces. The quartz is identified as a variety of Amethyst in the metadata, despite its unusual pinkish-red hue.
Geological Context
Quartz forms in various geological settings, often in hydrothermal veins or pegmatites. Epidote is a common product of regional or contact metamorphism and hydrothermal alteration, frequently found in calcium-rich metamorphic rocks. Their association here suggests a hydrothermal environment.
