[Rockhounds] Chinese Crystals on E-Bay

[Pmodreski at aol.com]

I've been trying to catch up and read all these posts about fake quartz  
crystals, etc.
 
I agree that quartz crystals that have been polished and "improved" that  way 
are what one is most likely to see.  Synthetic quartz crystals tend to  be 
shaped quite a bit different, and "casting" crystals out of molten silica is,  I 
think, not a feasible or likely procedure--fused quartz requires an  
inconveniently high temperature, and molten silica would be very viscous,  not at all 
easy to pour and mold; fused silica laboratory ware is  made, but it is quite 
expensive.
 
I think that most collectors have little trouble distinguishing natural  
crystals from ones that have been shaped & polished.  "Beginners" may  not, but I 
suppose they will learn quickly, and I suppose that much of the  market for 
"enhanced" crystals is probably for people who really don't care if  it's a 
natural crystal or not, they just want "a crystal" for their own  aesthetic or 
metaphysical interests...
 
I know the Chinese? sunstone question has been debated on this list  before.  
It seems that there's been no positive information about whether  or not 
there really is a producing sunstone locality in China; but, there also  seems to 
be no knowledge of whether there is any possible way to treat Oregon or  
Mexican sunstone to enhance the color.  Given the nature & properties  of 
plagioclase feldspar, I rather doubt that there's any way to turn  straw-colored 
feldspar to orange-red; so that any deep-colored stones, really  are likely to be 
natural ones, from China.
 
[Hope I haven't missed any key posts that relate to any of this!]
 
Pete Modreski
 



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