Minerals
1. Mesolite
The needle-like crystals of this mesolite deposit from India give it a dandelion’s form. Its crystalline structure formed inside a bubble of volcanic gas as igneous rock cooled. Mesolite’s many striking crystal formations make it a popular mineral for collectors.
2. Azurite
Azurite crystals from Arizona seem to pulse with color. The mineral azurite—a copper ore—consists of blue basic carbonate. Azurite’s brilliant color adds to its popularity in creating semiprecious stones.
3. Pink Chalcedony
A pink chalcedony shows off its beauty. Chalcedonies include many types of cryptocrystalline quartz gems and feature a number of different colors. Geologists can tell a chalcedony from the arrangement and structure of its crystals.
4. Malachite
Malachite from a Zambian mine seems to take the form of rounded peas. Found in deposits of copper ore, malachite gets its name from the Greek word for its leafy green color, which can range from light to dark green. The mineral malachite contains the elements copper, hydrogen, carbon, and oxygen.
That chalcedony/agate/quartz slice is clearly dyed. Seriously, National Geographic? Yes, chalcedony can come in a variety of naturally different colours, but those hues in the photo above have been artificially dyed to achieve that strong of a saturation/colour. There are strong colours in agate/chalcedony (I own a ton of them!), but that slice looks like every other bloody artificially dyed mineral I’ve unfortunately seen in museums (and other shops) all over the world.
No chalcedony exterior is dyed that kind of pink as well. If it was, then I’d have a much easier time picking them out of all the other rocks and cliffs around me when I’m searching for minerals. If Nat Geo can prove this is a natural slice and hasn’t been tampered with in any way (colour-wise), then I’ll be damned. (Yes, I have contacted them to find out).
To sum this up so as not to cause confusion: Yes, minerals like chalcedony, agate, and quartz can be very colourful, but the colours above in that particular chalcedony slice have been enhanced (dyed) to bring out the ‘detail’ - at least that’s how it looks in that photo.
