3.1" Faden Quartz Crystal Cluster - Pakistan

Faden quartz is typically found in mountainous regions. Quetta and Northern Pakistan produce the most well-known deposits of these beautiful specimens. These quartz formations occurs between cracks in a host rock. The cracks in the rock expand with the crystals, occasionally causing ruptures within the crystal from pressure. This causes the healing process to begin, giving rise to the branching of parallel faden quartz crystals seen in the majority of our listed specimens.

About Quartz

Quartz is the name given to silicon dioxide (SiO2) and is the second most abundant mineral in the Earth's crust. Quartz crystals generally grow in silica-rich environments--usually igneous rocks or hydrothermal environments like geothermal waters--at temperatures between 100°C and 450°C, and usually under very high pressure. In either case, crystals will precipitate as temperatures cool, just as ice gradually forms when water freezes. Quartz veins are formed when open fissures are filled with hot water during the closing stages of mountain formation: these veins can be hundreds of millions of years old.