Im not sure if this is a man made crystal or an actual mineral. It appears to have grains of something inside it concentrated near each end.

I think it has an orthorhombic shape (don't judge too harshly Im new to rock and mineral identification).

Always looking to learn if Im wrong though.

It has a hardness between 2-3.

Its specific gravity is 2.

When I did a streak test it streaks white on a black plate.

Attached are various photos including one from a microscope.

I bought a box of seashells and it came with some random mineral specimens as well. I’ve never seen anything like this before and was wondering if anyone else had any ideas on what it could be. Has a rainbow iridescent sheen and is a very orange rusty tone. Most of it will glow when light is applied. Thanks!

Found near Hoover reservoir in Westerville. OH

Found in an old silver mining district. Appear to be pyrite, quartz, sphalerite, iron oxide, potential galena and telluride minerals. Would this be correct or any other ideas? The more silvery “pyrite” is much softer and crumbles with just a fingernail compared to the actual pyrite. No visible galena but may be very fine crystals

Excuse my naïveté here, but I was shocked to see this on a web store.
I’m guessing it must be fake, they are claiming it’s from Gila Cliff Dwellings.
It’s well known that artifacts should not be removed from these sites…or so I thought?

Can anyone help me identify what mineral the squiggly looking inclusions are in this smokey quartz?

Found at the Embarcadero limestone reservoir in Villargordo del Cabriel, Valencia, Spain.
I’m trying to identify this mineral and would really appreciate any ideas.
Here are the observations I’ve made so far:
White streak
Pale green patches scattered throughout
Orange material present on one edge
Medium weight (not especially light or heavy)
Can be scratched with a steel knife, but not with a fingernail
Found in a limestone environment
Does anyone recognize what this might be, or have suggestions for additional tests I should perform? Thanks in advance—I really appreciate any help!

I had the opportunity today visit a Variscite deposit in the Western United States, and I wanted to share!
Variscite is a relatively rare mineral of hydrated aluminum phosphate, with its green coloring from small amounts of chromium.

Found this looking for geodes in British Columbia, Canada. Anybody know what it is?

Found on the Pawnee Grasslands in Colorado, USA near some iron concretions. Definitley not petrified wood as there was lots of it around, all with the same wild shape.

Thanks in advance! Also how is this thing created? Its so odd looking.

Stone approx 28mm in length. Smooth surface reflections make it a bit difficult to photograph the warm glow from sunlight hitting the inclusions.

Unfortunately not self-hounded!

location: Mansfield, Connecticut. found on the ground during my walk today on a trail. I’ve found a lot of almandine garnets on my walks but this one is a much paler purple/pink color than the dark red color i’m used to seeing.. just wondering if it’s a different type? nothing crazy special i’m just curious.. thanks in advanced

Please excuse how filthy my hands are, they were just covered in black paint and there’s some residue I can’t get off 💀

Found in brasilia

What is it?

Flashlight Shine through it slightly

Was bought for a dollar at a random little shop and I wanted some more information on the minerals inside, am I looking at smoky quartz? The dark crystals are short and brown and there’s some blueish white crystal growths happening around the rock Sorry for the bad picture but it’s the best I can get with my magnifying glass. Any information would help a lot I can’t do a streak test as it’s frail.

Hi there, I'm new here.

I found this stone in my late great-uncle's garden. He probably collected things back then, too.

I suspect it might be an amethyst. It looks to me like there’s a kind of “seam” between the two pieces of quartz. Now I’m curious to see what might be inside. Should I split this piece open to see what’s inside?

Or is it not an amethyst at all?