Minerals and Metals in Ancient India v2.c43.s3.t7.24

v2.c43.s3.t7.24

Chrysoprase is known to be a fine-grained moderately translucent quartz having a beautiful apple-green colour. The colour arises due to a small percentage of hydrated nickel silicate. Heating causes dehydration and concomitant decolourisation of the mineral. The leek-green colour could also be due to enclosed fine fibres of actinolite. Bauer (1968:498) wrote that ‘some very fine stones come from India, but exactly where they are found does not seem to be known’. On the other hand, the reference to gold (cāmīkara and svarṇāṅgi) could mean that the material was at least partly citrine quartz of a saffrine yellow colour.