At a glance
-
Natural fire agate — iridescent chalcedony
- 0.75" x 0.5" x 1"
-
9 g — a hand specimen, not a display piece
- Sold individually
- Ships within 3 business days
How to use it
Fire agate needs a point light source and movement. Under flat, diffuse room light it looks like an unremarkable brown chalcedony; under a single lamp, tilted slowly in the hand, the iridescent layers light up. This is a stone you look at rather than one you place and forget.
Because it is small, it works best in a specimen case, a printer's tray or a shallow dish where it can be picked up. Keep it away from anything harder that could scuff the domed surfaces — the iridescence lives in the outermost layers and a scratch takes it away permanently.
Specifications
| Detail |
This piece |
| Stone |
Fire agate |
| Dimensions |
0.75" x 0.5" x 1" |
| Weight |
9 g |
| Character |
Iridescent play of colour, botryoidal surface |
| Listing |
Sold individually |
✨ Temple Tip
Judge it in your hand, under one lamp, tilting slowly. Fire agate is the least photogenic stone in mineralogy — every photograph either undersells the flash or overstates it, because the effect depends entirely on the angle between the light, the stone and your eye.
Questions we get asked
Where does fire agate come from?
Rare Earth Gallery do not state an origin for this specimen, so we will not guess at one. Fire agate is found in a small number of localities worldwide; if provenance matters to your collection, ask us and we will put the question to the supplier.
Why is such a small piece priced like this?
Fire agate is scarce, and pieces with genuine play of colour are scarcer still. Value in this material tracks the quality and coverage of the iridescence rather than the weight.
How do I see the fire?
One point light source, and tilt it. Overhead or diffuse lighting flattens the effect almost completely.
Is it durable?
Agate is a hard chalcedony and will not chip easily, but the iridescent layers sit at the very surface. Avoid abrasives and do not let it rattle around loose with other specimens.
Will my piece look like the photographs?
This is natural stone and each fire agate is individual. This is natural stone, so no two pieces are identical. Colour, banding and internal inclusions vary from the photographs — that variation is the point of buying a natural specimen rather than a manufactured object.
Nine grams of stone that only makes sense once you have turned it in the light.
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