Yellow Chalcedony is a cryptocrystalline variety of quartz typically colored by iron impurities. It is highly valued by lapidary artists for its waxy luster and ability to take a high polish, often appearing in botryoidal or banded habits.
Is this yellow chalcedony?
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 yellow chalcedony with a known reference. Yellow Chalcedony sits at Mohs 6.5-7, softer than the next harder reference, harder than the previous one.
- 2Check the streakDrag the specimen across an unglazed porcelain plate. Yellow Chalcedony leaves a white streak.
- 3Read the lusterHold the specimen under a strong light. Yellow Chalcedony typically shows a waxy luster.
- 4Match the color rangeCompare against the expected color range: yellow, golden yellow, mustard yellow.
- 5Look at form & habitCrystal system: trigonal. Typical habit: massive, botryoidal, crusts, or cavity linings.
Often confused with
Yellow Chalcedony vs. its common look-alikes, and how to tell them apart in the field.
Often found alongside yellow chalcedony
Minerals reported to co-occur with yellow chalcedony. Spotting these in float or country rock is a strong cue you are in the right ground.
All properties
- Chemical formula
- SiO₂
- Mohs hardness
- 6.5-7
- Density
- 2.6 g/cm³
- Streak
- White
- Luster
- Waxy
- Transparency
- Translucent
- Crystal system
- Trigonal
- Crystal habit
- Massive, Botryoidal, Crusts, Or Cavity Linings
- Cleavage
- None
- Rarity
- Common
- Uses
- Lapidary, Collector, Decorative
- Host rock
- Hydrothermal Veins, Geodes, Volcanic Cavities
- Typical price
- $5-30 for small cabochons or rough specimens
Where rockhounds find yellow chalcedony
1 mapped spotsClassic worldwide localities
- Mexico
- USA
- Madagascar
- Namibia
- Brazil
Field-hunting tip
Look in hydrothermal veins, geodes, volcanic cavities country, the host setting where yellow chalcedony typically forms. If you start seeing quartz, calcite, goethite in float, you are in the right ground. Field specimens usually show a massive, botryoidal, crusts, or cavity linings habit, so train your eye for that shape before scanning the outcrop. In the U.S., the densest reported localities are in North Carolina. Start trip planning there.
Common questions
How do you identify yellow chalcedony?+
Where is yellow chalcedony found?+
Can I find yellow chalcedony in the United States?+
How much is yellow chalcedony worth?+
What rocks look like yellow chalcedony?+
What minerals are found with yellow chalcedony?+
What kind of rock does yellow chalcedony form in?+
What is yellow chalcedony used for?+
Find yellow chalcedony on the map
RockHoundR shows mapped rockhounding spots, access rules, and lets you log every find.
