Amethyst earrings

Amethyst

— a variety of quartz, the value of which may vary depending on the transparency: transparent amethyst is considered a semi-precious stone, opaque — ornamental. However, the first option is predominantly found in earrings, and we will consider it.

The main difference between amethyst and "ordinary" quartz (see the relevant paragraph) is the hue — blue, sometimes with a pinkish or purple slant. In addition, the shade of the stone may vary somewhat depending on the direction of view and lighting. In addition to natural, there are also artificial varieties of this stone; in most cases, they, in fact, are cubic zirkonia (see the relevant paragraph), but outwardly they are indistinguishable from ordinary amethysts, due to which they are often sold under this name.