Clear Quartz

Clear quartz, also called rock crystal, is probably the most familiar crystal of all. It is common, durable and often beautiful, and it has been picked up and admired by people across many continents.

What it is

Quartz is silicon dioxide and one of the most abundant minerals in the Earth’s crust. Clear quartz is the colourless, transparent form, with a hardness of 7 on the Mohs scale. It forms six-sided prisms ending in points, often in clusters, in veins and cavities in many kinds of rock. It is found worldwide, including Brazil, Madagascar, the Alps, Arkansas in the United States and Himalayan regions.

Quartz is piezoelectric, meaning that squeezing it produces a small electric charge, and this is the basis of its real technological use. Watches and many electronic devices rely on quartz oscillators, though these use synthetic crystals grown in laboratories rather than natural ones.

History and culture

The word crystal comes from the Greek krystallos, which meant ice. Ancient writers including Pliny the Elder described rock crystal as water frozen so hard it could never thaw. That explanation is wrong, but it tells us how people understood a clear, cold-feeling stone.

Rock crystal has been carved into beads, vessels and seals for thousands of years. Polished crystal balls appear in European and Asian traditions; in Japan, rock crystal is associated with purity and appears in Shinto and Buddhist contexts. In many cultures clear crystal has been used as a focus for scrying, which is the practice of gazing into a surface to reflect and imagine. Whether or not anyone believes scrying reveals anything, it has been a part of folk practice for centuries.

Rock crystal is also on the traditional United Kingdom birthstone list for April, alongside diamond. See the April birthstone page.

What crystal traditions associate with it

In many crystal traditions, clear quartz is called the master stone, because it is seen as a blank that can take on whatever meaning its owner gives it. It is often linked with clarity, focus and amplification of intention. In the chakra system used in modern crystal practice it is connected with the crown. Because it has no colour to fix its meaning, it is used in place of any other stone in many layouts.

How people use it

Many people keep a point or cluster on a desk as a simple object for attention. Others hold a stone during meditation, arrange crystals in a grid while setting an intention, or use a sphere as a scrying focus. Quartz points and beads are widely worn as jewellery. Because it is inexpensive and common, clear quartz is often the first crystal people acquire.

Care and safety

• Quartz is stable in water and can be rinsed with lukewarm water and dried with a soft cloth, though check for glued bases or wrapped wire.
• Crystal spheres can focus sunlight like a lens. Never leave a sphere on a windowsill or where sun can fall on it, as it can set fabric or paper alight. This is a genuine fire risk and the most important safety note for clear quartz.
• Points are sharp. Keep them away from young children.
• Do not swallow stones or place them in drinks.

Natural, glass and synthetic

Clear quartz is often confused with glass. Glass tends to show round bubbles, while quartz often has small internal fractures, feathers or rainbow flaws. Laboratory-grown quartz exists and is chemically the same as natural quartz, so ask a seller what you are being offered.

Sourcing

Large volumes of quartz come from mining operations of widely varying standards. A seller who can say where the stone was mined is usually a good sign.

A note on health. Crystals are valued for beauty, meaning and ritual. There is no scientific evidence that they treat health conditions. If you are struggling with your health or mood, please speak to a doctor.

Frequently asked questions