Description
Amazonite takes its name from the Amazon river in Brazil, although there is no real
link between the two. Explorers learned that the Amazon Indians gave green stones to
visitors, so it was named Amazonite, although the stone in question was almost certainly
nephrite. Colours range from pale aqua to a deep, rich blue green, with a vitreous lustre.
Transparency varies from opaque to translucent, and very rarely, transparent.
The Science
Amazonite is a potassium aluminosilicate mineral, a variety of microcline feldspar.
Authorities vary as to the source of its colour - some believe it is due to traces of
copper, some to traces of lead and hydroxyl radicals, and there are even some that believe
the colour is imparted by vegetable matter. The last is unlikely, as feldspars form as
part of the process of cooling granite magma beneath the earth's crust. When the magma has
cooled very slowly, Amazonite crystals, which have a rhomboidal shape, up to a foot long
may have formed.
6.0 to 6.5 to on the Moh's Hardness Scale
Care and Cleaning
Soft polishing cloth, plain water rinse or mild solution of soap and water.
History
Ancient Egyptians used Amazonite extensively in jewellery and carvings. It seems to
have disappeared from the historical record after that, and is now more often used a a
mineral specimen than in jewellery.