61 ct topaz

[Rific]

Pretty beat up but it's my first gem so I'll take it!

 

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[Rific]

At least I think its topaz...it scratched quartz so I wouldnt think it was citrine but you can still see some of the shapes of the triangles

It looks rhombohedral

 

[DDancer]

Quartz can scratch quartz, Rific, undermost circumstances. Its especially true if the quartz doing the scratching has fine crystals in differing orientations~ for the sake of argument I'll call it sugar quartz as that is what the compacted crystals would look like. Thing about topaz is it has perfect cleavage. Well water worn bits or tumbled material will take on a smooth roundness, often retaining some flat facet of the original crystal. Unfortunately I'm seeing a grainy structure and the crevasse on picture three is not something one would see with topaz. Also the bulge of white in the stone~ again not an effect one usually see's in tumbled topaz.
Another way to test topaz is to put it in water. Its refractive index is simular and in clear pieces the topaz would seem to disappear. In you case it would probably take on a somewhat translucent view.
Not busting on ya just not seeing what you are. Aside from the hardness what else makes you think its topaz Rific?

 

[Rific]

When I was in the field I actually mostly thought topaz becuase I read a post you commented on a while back about topaz dissapearing and that's the first thing I noticed about the stone. Only after that did I perform the hardness test

 

[DDancer]

Hrm, and it does? Interesting. Think you can do a water shot? I'll dig out some topaz I have in storage tomorrow and try to do a water shot. Just happen to be near my stash just now.

 

[Rific]

Here are some wet pics...maybe I'll try some different ones too..in person I can see it plain as day..the whole stone gets translucent and one part of it gets crystal clear. I was assuming it was just a low quality topaz with the partial wet translucency.


Surely you can at least see the bottom of the glass? The stone is foggy and maybe seems to have pressure cracks, but when wet it illuminates a little bit

 

[Rific]

Is it swimmin?

 

[Rific]

Not the kind od translucency were lookin for? Maybe the cloudyness threw me off

 

[IAMZIM]

DDancer is right about quartz scratching quartz. Keep in mind that some quartz can be harder than other pieces as well, a case in point, I took a piece to the mineral museum here where I lived, and all the field tests I did on the stone told me topaz. Even the hardness tests the geologists did was showing a hardness of 8, so we are all thinking topaz right? Well, the determined was a refraction test, which we did in the lab. Did it 3 times, all three times it came back quartz. So we tried the hardness test again. Still an 8! Lol! So the geologists decided it had to be a very hard piece of citririne, which is quartz. If you can, I would take it to a geolgyst to test it, if you think it is topaz. Sometimes that can be the only way to know!

 

[Rific]

I am happy with citrine if it is that...can u guys see the triangles at least?

 

[Eu_citzen]

Topaz does feel "heavier" in hand, compared to a piece of quartz. Get a known piece of quartz and compare.

 

[DDancer]

I have to apologize Rific, I've not been able to locate my stash.... its some where safe *that means I have it but cant find it*. I'll keep digging and will eventually get it posted up here.
Appreciate the photo's. IAMZIM makes a good point on consulting a geologist. So does EU when it comes to the weight of topaz~ its pretty noticeable in larger pieces. For me, just looking at the photo's, I can see what your seeing however I'm going to have to call it a citrine mix. The glass photo's are the best and show the mixed structure of quartz. Same as the little triangles in the previous pictures. In topaz's case its seldom cloudy internally and in water it stands out. Another aspect is that topaz generally does not bond or mix with other crystals in a homogeneous manner. It tends to form distinct boundaries on borders and with other inclusive minerals. That has to do with topaz's crystal structure.
I'll get a pic up eventually, sorry I'm unable to now~ I was so sure I knew where that stuff was.... but I found a few other things I'd near forgot about as well.

 

[Rific]

It's okay DD! If you do come across it, though, please post it! I've googled for pictures and I may have found just 1. But, you're saying it's not a full on citrine? While forming, some of the crystals formed the citrine pattern and some just regular quartz pattern?

 

[DDancer]

I would not call it a full on citrine mostly because of coloration. Bear in mind citrine is quartz of a yellow or golden nature and has all the same characteristics of any other quartz. True citrine is colored by iron in the matrix however some citrine is smoky quartz of a light nature or iron stained quartz~ the iron being present thinly between compact crystal boarders. Quartz is funny that way so I try not to be a snob about its definition. The graduation of colors from clear to citrine to the opaque white suggests different crystal structures with differing amounts of whatever mineral is coloring it. I'd be happy calling it a full citrine if the coloration was more uniform. You call it as you wish and I'll be happy for ya Rific

 

[smokeythecat]

DD, all I have missing is a coin my dad found 50 years I want to find and a $5 US gold coin. I put it someplace "safe" when the carpet guys came, and it's still safe! I know your pain.