Quartz (irradiated)

specimen number:
2062946

location:
Hot Springs area, Arkansas, USA

description:
Attractive cluster of light smoky glassy gemmy quartz crystals. These have been irradiated to cause the light smoky in color. From the early 1970s. A previous label comes with the specimen from the collection of Ray DeMark.

The Ouachita Mountains near Hot Springs, Arkansas, feature rich hydrothermal vein systems where quartz crystals developed within ancient folded sedimentary rock over hundreds of millions of years. Commercial and recreational mining here has flourished for over a century, drawing collectors to unearth prized specimens. Because natural smoky quartz is scarce in this region, some clear crystals are artificially treated using laboratory irradiation to create a light smoky color by interacting with trace aluminum impurities in the crystal lattice.

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