Crystal stone amblygonite is an excellent collector’s stone, particularly in larger sizes and deeper colors. It is from phosphate class and triclinic crystal system. It is composed by lithium aluminum hydroxyphosphate or fluorphosphate. Crystal stone amblygonite was first discovered in 1817, in Saxony, Germany, and was described by August Breithaupt. He gave this gem the name crystal stone amblygonite, from the Greek words amblys (meaning “blunt”) and goni (meaning “angle”), which refers to the mineral’s four directions of cleavage. It has been discovered in considerable quantities in California, Australia, Germany, Canada, Namibia, Spain, Burma (Myanmar), and Brazilv. Crystal stone amblygonite is in the crystal stone amblygonite mineral group, along with the related minerals griphite, montebrasite, natromontebrasite, tancoite, and tavorite.
The best examples of crystal stone amblygonite’s yellow variety are cut as gemstones, and some samples are clean enough to be faceted. Brilliant or mixed cut are most common. It has vitreous to pearly luster and the fracture is irregular or uneven, also subconchoidal. Gems range from 1 to 15 carats. However, crystal stone amblygonite is too soft to be popular for jewelry. Its habit is crude equant crystals and usually massive. The cleavage is in four directions all with varying quality, one direction perfect, two good, one distinct. The dispersion is 0.018-0.019 and the hardness finished at 6.
This gem is easily confused with similar rockforming minerals, such as quartz and albite, however, its high lithium content and unusual cleavage set it apart. With 1.611-1.637 refractive index and a 0.026 birefringence, the structure is solid, and it has a higher specific gravity than both quartz and albite. Crystal stone amblygonite occurs in a wide range of colors, including milky white, taupe, peachy pink, and light or greenish yellow, through to blue, gray, darker pinks, and greens, and even brown. Crystal stone amblygonite is transparent to translucent, and is composed of about 10 percent lithium, which makes it an economical source of this element. The specific gravity is about 3.01-3.03. This unique natural gemstones, Crystal stone amblygonite is also popular as an ingredient in porcelain enamels, and increases opacity in glass dinnerware. Available colors of crystal stone amblygonite are in white or creamy, but can also be colorless or pale yellow, green, blue, beige, gray, or pink.
