Quartz var: Amethyst (''Cactus'' / ''Spirit'' Quartz)

Item Description

A lovely miniature sized example these distinctive Quartz specimens from South Africa which carry the nicknames "Cactus Amethyst" or "Spirit Quartz". Quartz is a diverse species, and occurs in a wide variety of styles, colors and habits, and these pieces certainly stand out as unique when compared to other Quartz specimens. These piece first hit the market in the mid 2000s, and really made a splash with collectors, especially Quartz enthusiasts. This particular specimen features beautiful, lustrous, drusy, translucent, light purple color crystals of Amethyst sitting on an earlier generation of Amethyst. The earlier Amethyst crystals have pronounced pyramidal isolated terminations, while the body of the crystal has a prickly, "cactus" appearance with an overgrowth of smaller crystals along the prism. The largest composite group measures about 2.5 cm. Boekenhoutshoek is the true source for the Amethystine Quartz, erroneously marketed at first as being from the Magaliesberg Range.