Mila'sExotic Plants & CuriositiesA living collection by Luminary OdditiesThe mineral atlas
Compare feldspar gems and a wider assortment of green stones, including jade and serpentine. This practical directory groups familiar shop materials while each guide preserves its separate geological identity.
10 specimens · Geology, history, and attributed traditions
The turquoise lattice
Green to blue-green microcline feldspar.
Amazonite is green-to-blue-green microcline, a potassium feldspar. Blocky fragments and pale streaks give it a different architecture from green chalcedony. Its color does not identify jade or turquoise, even when a polished shape resembles those stones.
Read the specimen guide
A flash beneath gray
A plagioclase feldspar variety known for labradorescence.
Labradorite is plagioclase feldspar, frequently with a gray body and a blue, green or gold flash. The broad flash changes with angle and lighting. A motionless photograph can show a vivid view or a subdued one without either representing the entire appearance.
Read the specimen guide
A floating sheen
Adularescent feldspar material, classically intergrown alkali feldspars.
Moonstone is a gem designation for feldspar with a floating, billowing sheen called adularescence. White, peach, gray and dark trade forms share a luminous appearance but require material-specific identification. The sheen is an optical structure, not light emitted by the stone.
Read the specimen guide
Copper light
Feldspar gem material with reflective inclusions, sometimes showing aventurescence.
Sunstone is a feldspar gem with reflective inclusions producing glitter or a warm shimmering appearance. A bright orange body is not its only form. The inclusion type and feldspar composition vary among documented sources.
Read the specimen guide
Silver in the dark
Norwegian igneous rock rich in feldspar that can show blue-silver iridescence.
Larvikite is a dark coarse-grained igneous rock whose feldspar grains can flash silver-blue. A polished piece contains intergrown minerals; it is not one large labradorite crystal. Architectural slabs make the whole-rock texture especially easy to see.
Read the specimen guide
Striated towers
Borosilicate mineral supergroup / black tourmaline focus
Tourmaline is a chemically diverse borosilicate supergroup. Black striated prisms provide a familiar crystal-shop silhouette, but pink, green, blue and multicolored gems show a much wider range. Color names and mineral species answer different questions.
Read the specimen guide
Two mineral traditions
Jadeite jade and nephrite / a material umbrella
Jade is a gem-material name encompassing distinct tough aggregates, principally jadeite jade and nephrite. It is not defined simply by green color. White, lavender, dark and differently colored jade can all occur, and the mineral type should remain explicit whenever an example is identified.
Read the specimen guide
A veined green landscape
Serpentine-group minerals and serpentine-rich rock
Serpentine names a mineral group, while serpentinite is a rock dominated by serpentine minerals. Green carving material can include antigorite or lizardite, but a decorative photograph cannot establish its precise components. The group also includes fibrous chrysotile, making a species-level distinction consequential.
Read the specimen guide
The many faced seed
A group of related silicate minerals.
Garnet is a mineral group, not only a red gemstone. Equant crystals, massive material and orange or green gems show its breadth. Shared crystal structure links compositions that can differ substantially in chemistry and appearance.
Read the specimen guide
Olive light
Gem-quality olivine, usually magnesium-rich.
Peridot is gem-quality olivine, usually yellow-green through olive green. Rough can occur as grains in a darker volcanic host rather than a long pointed crystal. Its green appearance differs from many gems whose color chiefly depends on trace components.
Read the specimen guide