Quartz with Chlorite

specimen number:
1052444

location:
Val Giuv, Tujetsch, Surselva Region, Grisons, Switzerland

description:
A slightly smoky to almost colorless glassy and gemmy quartz gwindel grouping without matrix. Some damage present as seen, this mainly on the backside of the piece. Small crystallized chlorite scattered throughout.

Quartz gwindels are a distinctive type of quartz crystal aggregate characterized by a curved, twisted, or slightly fanned growth of parallel crystals that appear to bend in one direction. They are most commonly found in Alpine cleft deposits where quartz crystallized in open fractures under conditions of slow growth and deformation. The curved form is thought to result from a combination of crystallographic control and slight mechanical stress or differential growth rates during formation. Gwindels are typically smoky or clear quartz and are valued by collectors for their unusual shape and association with classic Alpine mineral localities.

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