In Part I we'll look at compiled synthetic quartz clusters coming out of Chinese labs, one of the most prolific phonies currently on the market.

If you've fallen for this one, rest assured I did too—and I had every reason to know better! I have regularly seen other people disappointed to learn their specimen is not natural in the years since. Here's how to recognize this popular fake.

Ghost or phantom quartz

'Ghost' or 'phantom' quartz is a trade name for a compiled synthetic (lab-grown) quartz clusters using a second-generation growth technique. The specimens are believed to originate from labs in China, but more often than not this remains undisclosed and pieces are sold as "natural." If locale information is available, the specimens may be advertised as "Tibetan quartz" or a "new find" from inner China.

The trade name 'phantom' quartz is confusing and perhaps misleading because it refers to a natural phenomenon: a 'phantom' is when a ghost-like outline of the crystal form is visible inside a crystal, preserving a slight shift in growing conditions such as the introduction of trace elements. The example at right is a NATURAL phantom quartz cluster from India, included with hematite. The lab-made version typically features chunky bright-colored phantoms, not at all like the subtle veil-like version that nature produces.

Why China?

The Chinese have long been masters of the art of counterfeiting, and the world of gems and minerals is no exception. Many of the more advanced synthetics, simulants, and treatments (what's the difference?) on the market originate from labs in China.

As an example, back when China hosted the 2008 Summer Olympics they sold an official souvenir gemstone: a vivid red faceted sunstone (andesine feldspar), laser-engraved with "Beijing 2008" and the Olympic rings. The unusually saturated color had raised suspicions when the material first hit the market in the early 2000s. Years of investigation, debate, and testing seem to have concluded the color comes from a copper diffusion treatment.

Experienced mineral collectors know to proceed with caution around mysterious "new finds" from China. The market has evolved accordingly. From what I have observed, it seems like Chinese phonies are now frequently "laundered" through vendors in other regions to obfuscate this origin so it doesn't raise red flags. It is unclear to me how often the vendors themselves are aware the item is human-made. I suspect that a lot of vendors have themselves been duped—especially as many sellers without expertise or a developed eye for minerals have been wading into the market.

How it's made

People have cut open synthetic quartz specimens to better understand the creation process. The method starts with arranging broken natural quartz points in a cluster, held together at the base with a cement. This was something it took me a while to put my finger on: on the final product, the quartz points look too evenly sized and oddly spaced compared to a natural quartz cluster. This is because the points were compiled side-by-side, whereas points can (and often do) intersect on a natural quartz cluster.

This "specimen" is placed in a hydrothermal autoclave in a laboratory to grow it into a larger, flashier cluster using synthetic quartz. Synthetic quartz is grown from a solution of natural quartz: it is effectively low quality material melted down, then put in an environment that replicates the heat and pressure conditions in which natural quartz begins to crystallize. The final product is chemically identical to quartz.

Quartz grows a hexagonal (six-sided) crystal, and the synthetic growth process typically produces the growth habit pictured: points tipped with three dominant faces. This is also common in natural quartz so that's not diagnostic, it's more that you'll notice this habit predominates in synthetic "ghost quartz" clusters. Overall the synthetic process is advancing but still produces fairly rough specimens. Many points will have poorly-formed tips with random faces, and messy surfaces.

People commonly say these are dyed, but I suspect the quartz is removed from the autoclave part way through the process and given a color treatment. Putting two and two together, the green variety is often called "chromium quartz" because chromium allegedly causes the coloration, and chromium is a known surface treatment to color quartz green.

After color is added, the specimen would be placed back into the autoclave to encase the color layer within more colorless quartz, roughly mimicking the phantom effect.

⚠️ An odd signature of these quartz clusters is that they often have a single crystal of a distinctly different color placed in the middle, frequently a golden yellow crystal in a green cluster as seen in my piece. Some have two crystals of different colors. From a mineralogical perspective how this would grow defies explanation which is a warning sign that the piece was compiled.

Finally, small needle-like crystals are grown around the base and sides of the points. The coverage is thick and crust-like with tiny needles pointing in all directions, easily broken with handling. This coating hides the cement base and the fact the larger quartz points do not have natural joins.

On the underside of my piece, the crystals give way to a porous honeycomb-like texture that is a dead giveaway the material is synthetic. I have seen examples where the base has a light grid pattern indented into it, left behind from resting on a rack during the synthetic growth process.

In the trade

These lab-made quartz specimens were much cruder when they initially hit the market earlier in the 2000s. Many were sold as synthetics, a novelty for mineral collectors.

By the 2020s, uniform clusters seemed to be the variety most frequently produced, with evenly-spaced points sticking out in a ring like the examples above. There are also single quartz points and tall stacked tower formations (think Marge's hair) for sale in this same style.

These days I find many examples are so darkly colored or heavily coated with needle crystals that no phantom effect is visible, but the trade name persists.

⚠️ In my observation green seems to be the most common color. That in itself should raise alarm bells!

Quartz comes in many colors, and it can appear green due to inclusions (as in the case of aventurine quartz, or chlorite-included quartz). But natural green crystal quartz is exceedingly rare. Prasiolite, the variety of green quartz found on the jewelry market, is actually treated amethyst.

This is why I knew something wasn't right about the specimen I bought; at the time I even asked the vendor if it was real and they said yes. The fact I asked should have been my first sign to walk away, I usually don't have that doubt about specimens! An unscrupulous vendor will say "yes," the subtext being "yes it is 'real' (lab-grown) quartz." An even more unscrupulous vendor will simply lie to your face. I'm not so sure this seller was lying to me; I think some of the success of this fake is from the authenticity of response from sellers who didn't realize they were peddling a fake.

Red flags 🚩

• Sold as "ghost quartz," or "Tibetan quartz," with the green version often called "chromium quartz."
• "Natural," "new find" commonly also find their way into the product title 
• The cluster is too uniform with points evenly/widely spaced
• Points have three dominant faces making a sharp pyramid-like tip.
  
• Signature accent crystal of a different color. Or, two accent crystals of different colors.
• Fine needles of second-generation quartz heavily coating the bottom 3/4, with crystals pointed outwards in a shaggy layer. Disordered and messy, wrapping around the base.
• No attachment point. Natural specimens usually have rock matrix or some broken "point of attachment" where they were removed from a pocket. Instead, these are stand-alone clusters. The base may be entirely covered with needle crystals, or a melted porous honeycomb-like texture, and it may have lines or a grid pattern from resting on a rack.
• Color fades over time. Sun can fade the color in natural quartz, but my synthetic chromium quartz faded an unusual amount over several years despite limited exposure to light or the elements. I suspect many of the synthetics are being produced with coloring agents that are not stable over long periods, and sun could accelerate the fading process.