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Tiger's eye

Tiger's eye (also Tigers Eye, Tiger Eye) is a chatoyant gemstone that is usually yellow- to red-brown, with a silky lustre. It is a fibrous silicified crocidolite (in the quartz family). The gems are usually cut en cabochon in order to best display their chatoyancy. Red stones are brought about through heat treatment. Honey-coloured stones have been used to imitate the much higher valued cat's eye chrysoberyl (cymophane), but the overall effect is unconvincing. An incompletely silicified blue variant is called Hawk's eye.

Mohs Hardness: 7

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