How to identify Tiger's Eye

To correctly identify Tiger's Eye (Tiger's Eye (a variety of Chalcedony)), check each of these features in order. Many rocks and minerals look alike, so cross-reference multiple properties before deciding.

Step-by-step identification

1. 1

   Color

   Overall color and any zoning or banding

   Golden-yellow to reddish-brown, often with iridescent bands.

2. 2

   Luster

   How the surface reflects light: metallic, vitreous, dull

   Silky to vitreous.

3. 3

   Texture

   Grain size and surface feel: coarse, fine, glassy

   Fibrous appearance, often visible on polished surfaces.

4. 4

   Crystal Form

   Shape of visible crystals or crystal faces

   Cryptocrystalline, typically massive with a fibrous structure.

5. 5

   Cleavage

   How it breaks: flat cleavage planes vs irregular fracture

   None, due to its cryptocrystalline nature.

6. 6

   Geological Environment

   The rock formation and setting where it occurs

   Typically found in low-grade metamorphic rocks, often associated with serpentinites or other ultramafic rocks where crocidolite forms. It occurs in veins or seams within these host rocks.

Key Facts

Hardness

6.5-7 on the Mohs scale.

Specific Gravity

2.64-2.71.

Crystal System

Trigonal (cryptocrystalline aggregates of quartz).

Color

Golden-yellow, golden-brown, reddish-brown.

Luster

Silky to vitreous.

Transparency

Opaque to translucent.

Fracture

Conchoidal to splintery.

Cleavage

None.

Composition

Silicon dioxide (SiO2) with inclusions of iron oxides.

Physical characteristics

• Crystal Habit: Massive, fibrous aggregates.
• Cleavage Type: None.
• Fracture Type: Conchoidal to splintery.
• Tenacity: Brittle.
• Luster Type: Silky (due to fibrous structure) to vitreous (on broken surfaces).

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