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Rock Tumblers » Gemstones » Tiger Eye
Tiger Eye Gemstones
Also known as "Tigers Eye" and "Tiger's Eye"
What is Tiger Eye?
Tiger’s eye, also known as tiger-eye, is a very popular gemstone that displays a chatoyancy (cat’s eye) when a polished stone is moved back and forth in incident light. It is a quartz gemstone, usually amber to brown in color that forms when fibers of the mineral crocidolite are replaced by silica. This structure of parallel fibers is preserved in the stone and the chatoyant “eye” crosses the parallel fibers at right angles. The best specimens of tiger’s eye are usually cut en cabochon in an orientation that yields the best display of chatoyancy.
Tiger Eye Gemstones:
Tiger’s eye cabochons are very popular ring stones. They are one of the most common stones used in men’s rings and cufflinks. It is also frequently cut into beads for use in necklaces and earrings. Tiger’s eye cabochons are used in pins, earrings, pendants and many other jewelry items. Stones with a light honey color are especially popular. Tiger’s eye is frequently used for small sculptures and for producing tumbled stones. It is considered a semiprecious stone.
Tumbled Tiger Eye:
Tiger’s eye is frequently used as a tumbling rough. It has a hardness of 7 and tumbles well with other quartz gemstones and with agates or jaspers. It easily takes a high polish and is suitable for beginning to experienced tumblers.
| Rough tiger’s eye. © iStockphoto / Robert Ellis. |
More About Tiger's Eye:
Most tiger’s eye used as a gemstone is brown in color. A similar material with a gray-blue color is known as “hawk’s eye”. Red, blue and green tiger’s eye is often sold as finished stones. These colored stones are usually dyed.
| Brown tiger’s eye beads. © iStockphoto / Sohfian Mohamed Kamari. |
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| Tumbled tiger’s eye with the typical brown color. © iStockphoto / Arpad Benedek. |
| Tumbled tiger’s eye with a dyed red color. © iStockphoto / Arpad Benedek. |
| Brown banded tiger's eye cut into an oval cabochon. Image © Geology.com. |
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