Citrine
Description
A pale yellow to red-orange quartz gemstone that contains trace iron impurities. Citrine is found in western Europe, Scotland, Brazil, Uruguay, Africa, Malagasy Republic, Madagascar, Sri Lanka, the Urals, and the United States. Many ancient citrines have been incorrectly identified as topaz. Currently, most gems sold as citrin are actually heat-treated amethysts.
Synonyms and Related Terms
Madeira topaz; ametrine; false topaz; Spanish topaz; Occidental topaz; topaz quartz; Citrin (Deut.); citrine (Fr.); cytryn (Pol.); citrino (Esp., Port.); citrien (Ned.)
Other Properties
Trigonal crystal system. Low birefringence. Low thermal expansion.
Fracture = conchoidal. Luster = vitreous to greasy. Streak = white.
| Composition | SiO2 |
|---|---|
| Mohs Hardness | 7.0 |
| Density | 2.65 |
Additional Information
Mineralogy Database: Quartz
Comparisons
Properties of Common Gemstones
Authority
- G.S.Brady, G.S.Brady, Materials Handbook, McGraw-Hill Book Co., New York, 1971 Comment: p. 646
- Dictionary of Building Preservation, Ward Bucher, ed., John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York City, 1996
- Encyclopedia Britannica, http://www.britannica.com Comment: "citrine." Encyclopdia Britannica. 2005. Encyclopdia Britannica Premium Service 7 Apr. 2005 .
- C.W.Chesterman, K.E.Lowe, C.W.Chesterman, K.E.Lowe, Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Rocks and Minerals, Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 1979
- Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, at http://www.wikipedia.com Comment: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citrine (Accessed Sept. 7, 2005)
- Thomas Gregory, Thomas Gregory, The Condensed Chemical Dictionary, Reinhold Publishing, New York, 3rd ed., 1942
- Van Nostrand's Scientific Encyclopedia, Douglas M. Considine (ed.), Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York, 1976
- Random House, Random House, Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language, Grammercy Book, New York, 1997
- The American Heritage Dictionary or Encarta, via Microsoft Bookshelf 98, Microsoft Corp., 1998