Tiffany stone

Where it forms, where it's found

Geological setting: Hydrothermally altered low grade beryllium deposit

2recorded occurrences

Source · OpenStreetMap

Physical

Hardness: 1Talc
2Gypsum
3Calcite
4Fluorite
5Apatite
6Orthoclase
7Quartz
8Topaz
9Corundum
10Diamond
Transparency: Translucent · Opaque
Colour: Purple · blue purple
May be variegated
Streak: White
Tenacity: brittle
Cleavage: Perfect
(111), Usually not observed due to fine-grained nature
Fracture: Irregular/Uneven · Sub-Conchoidal

Optical

UV response: The essential mineral in tiffany stone, fluorite, is not fluorescent, but impurities such as opal, etc. many fluoresce green or other colors.

Crystallography

Type-locality form: Fine-grained dark to light purple translucent to opaque massive material

Chemical composition

Constituent elements: Mass composition breakdown
Element Atoms At. mass g/mol Mass g/mol Mass share
20CaCalcium Calcium 1 40.078 40.078
51.33%
9FFluorine Fluorine 2 18.998 37.996
48.67%
Total 78.074 100.00%
Mass share = atoms × atomic mass ÷ molar mass × 100
From Mindat formula

Mass composition breakdown
Element	Atoms	At. mass g/mol	Mass g/mol	Mass share
20CaCalcium	Calcium	1	40.078	40.078	51.33%
9FFluorine	Fluorine	2	18.998	37.996	48.67%
	Total	78.074	100.00%

Literature, links & citation

Cite this entry

@misc{mineral2026,
  author    = {Mineral Index editorial board},
  title     = {Tiffany stone — Mineral Index},
  year      = {2026},
  url       = {https://mineralindex.org/minerals/tiffany-stone-46089},
  note      = {Accessed 2026-05-11}
}