Drusy quartz refers to a coating of fine, microscopic quartz crystals on a rock surface or inside a cavity. It is highly prized by collectors and jewelry designers for its sugary, sparkling texture and uniform glitter. It is most commonly found as a lining within geodes or lining the walls of mineral-rich volcanic voids.
Is this drusy quartz?
5-step field checkRun through these checks against the specimen in your hand. The more boxes tick, the more confident the ID.
- 1Test the hardnessTry to scratch drusy quartz with a known reference. Drusy Quartz sits at Mohs 7, softer than the next harder reference, harder than the previous one.
- 2Check the streakDrag the specimen across an unglazed porcelain plate. Drusy Quartz leaves a white streak.
- 3Read the lusterHold the specimen under a strong light. Drusy Quartz typically shows a vitreous luster.
- 4Match the color rangeCompare against the expected color range: colorless, white, gray, brown, blue, green.
- 5Look at form & habitCrystal system: trigonal. Typical habit: druzy.
Often confused with
Drusy Quartz vs. its common look-alikes, and how to tell them apart in the field.
Often found alongside drusy quartz
Minerals reported to co-occur with drusy quartz. Spotting these in float or country rock is a strong cue you are in the right ground.
All properties
- Chemical formula
- SiO₂
- Mohs hardness
- 7
- Density
- 2.65 g/cm³
- Streak
- White
- Luster
- Vitreous
- Transparency
- Translucent
- Crystal system
- Trigonal
- Crystal habit
- Druzy
- Cleavage
- None
- Rarity
- Common
- Uses
- Collector, Decorative, Jewelry
- Host rock
- Geodes, Vugs, And Hydrothermal Veins
- Typical price
- $5-50 for small specimens, $50-300 for decorative cabinet pieces
Where rockhounds find drusy quartz
1 mapped spotsClassic worldwide localities
- Brazil
- USA
- India
- Morocco
- Namibia
Field-hunting tip
Look in geodes, vugs, and hydrothermal veins country, the host setting where drusy quartz typically forms. If you start seeing calcite, chalcedony, agate in float, you are in the right ground. Field specimens usually show a druzy habit, so train your eye for that shape before scanning the outcrop. In the U.S., the densest reported localities are in Oregon. Start trip planning there.
More drusy quartz photos
Common questions
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Find drusy quartz on the map
RockHoundR shows mapped rockhounding spots, access rules, and lets you log every find.
