Look carefully at a collection of fine quartz crystals. Could you mistake them for diamonds? Obviously not, but there are some similarities, and I’m not talking of intrinsic value, of course! Like diamonds, quartz crystals are much harder than glass, like diamonds they have natural flaws, or inclusions, and like diamonds they come in a variety of colors!

Amazingly enough, there is one area though in which quartz crystals are naturally superior to diamonds! Many people on seeing a natural quartz crystal for the first time are convinced that the amazing shape and formation of the front terminations is not natural, but is the result of a man-made polishing process. Because of the atomic structure and crystalline properties of quartz, the crystal usually comes straight out of the ground with an amazingly polished appearance and shape, which is never the case with a rough diamond. The diamond on the other hand, in its finished form, requires much human effort and expertise to attain the shape, form and luster for which it is so highly valued. Rough diamonds may be wonderfully valuable because of their potential, but they are not going to impress the casual viewer with their natural rough and often shapeless appearance!

The value of a collector’s quartz crystal specimen is affected by the perfection of its surfaces and terminations, as much as by its color or other features, but minute surface chips are almost always present. In fact the typical lateral surface striations, which all quartz crystals have, impart a luster and sheen which a polished crystal can never emulate, however perfect the terminations may appear to the untrained eye. The wonderful natural etchings, patterns and surface variations of a truly great crystal are never found in one which has  been polished up by man to remove surface dings and imperfections.

So when choosing your quartz crystal, don’t be fooled by comparing it to a diamond, at least insofar as the quality of the surface planes and facets are concerned. Quartz has it’s own intrinsic and unique beauty that can never be equalled by man-made polishing.