Gem Profile- What's Druze

by Judy Ellis

I think I've already let you know how much I love rocks. I think what I love most about rocks is the processes that create them. There are so many varieties, colors, structures and types of rocks it's almost mind-boggling. Even more amazing though are the sometimes violent and sometimes quiet ways rocks can be formed or changed over time.

One process that I love the outcome of is the formation of Druse on or in rock. Druse, pronounced drooz , is the small sugar-looking crystals that form on the outside of some rock and on the inside of others either through a sedimentary or volcanic process.

Saxon miners called small crystals lining rock cavities "drusa" as early as the 1750s.

Drusy, Druzy, Druse, and Druze are all spellings for the same thing.

Druse and drusy are more common in geology.

Druze refers to a religious sect in Syria, so its members are called Druzys.

How Druse Forms

Druse on rock exteriors forms from precipitation in sedimentary processes.

Groundwater saturated with silicates or carbonates floods areas.

Crystals slowly grow on rock surfaces.

This can also create geodes in cavities or stumps filled with saturated water.

Druse inside volcanic rocks forms as lava cools and gases create bubbles.

These fill with groundwater or hydrothermal solutions rich in silicates or carbonates.

Crystals grow in the vugs.

Weathering exposes the geodes.

Jelena Louie netted this blue druzy in wire for a necklace.

She won the 2012 Druzy Contest on Wirejewelry.com.

Types of Druse

Quartz druse creates clear crystals like sugar-coated jelly candy.

Other types include purple amethyst, green uvarovite, and rainbow pyrite druse.

Heat treating changes druse colors to bright pinks or fluorescent purple.

It may alter just the host rock, leaving druse natural.

Metallic coatings like titanium, platinum, or gold use vapor deposition in vacuum chambers, like mystic topaz.

These enhancements make fun, beautiful druzys.

Jewelry drusies are often cut geodes calibrated as cabochons to show the crystal beauty.

Titanium druzy wrapped by Joan Madouse.

Druse and the metaphysical

Druse crystals enhance the properties of the stone they form on or in.

They help rid negative feelings or thoughts.

Druzy crystals heal worry, self-doubt, pessimism, and other negative emotions.

Place a drusy crystal in your home to bring happiness and joie de vivre.

Caramel-brown druzy pendant wrapped by Joan Madouse

Where is Druzy found?

Druzy and geodes appear worldwide.

Common mining areas include the United States, Brazil, Australia, China, Russia, and Africa.

Geode Road Trip: Hauser geode beds near Blythe, California, offer ancient volcanic ash beds with blue agate hues in gray stones and defined banding.

Utah's Dugway geode beds yield white quartz, amethyst, and colorful agate from volcanic processes.

Keokuk region in Missouri, Iowa, and Illinois produces chalcedony, calcite, quartz, and rainbow banded agate from sedimentary processes.

Kentucky's Dannville and Hall's Gap areas give light pink amethyst and banded agate.

Mississippi River valley limestone holds quartz, calcite, and chalcedony.

Emilie Jefferson wrapped this druzy angel, named Gabriel.

Caring for Druzies

Drusys are beautiful, dynamic stones with fun heritage.

Use care in jewelry: they suit pendants best, not rings or bracelets.

Clean with a soft brush gently.

The crystal matrix is sturdy, but avoid heavy scrubbing or ultrasonic baths.

Geodes take about 240 million years to form, a wonder of our planet.

Gem Profile- What's Druze

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