GEM KNOWLEDGE · LABORATORY NOTES
Strawberry Quartz (India)
Indian quartz with extremely thin hematite plates showing a distinctive cherry-red color.
Sample: 1235. Completed: April 11, 2025.
What the testing found
The 2.64-carat specimen tested as quartz with hematite inclusions. The researcher explicitly describes these thin red hematite plates as characteristic of material typically called strawberry quartz.
Soul Body Gems sourced this small pocket find from India. According to our background notes, the researcher, who also studied our Kazakhstani strawberry quartz, recognized a similar plate-like hematite growth. This comparison does not imply that every material sold as strawberry quartz has this composition.
Also listed as: Strawberry Quartz (India)
View the original test results
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These results are the property of Soul Body Gems, Alexander Falster, and the Maine Mineral & Gem Museum. Any mention requires full acknowledgment.
Understanding the report figures
Use this guide alongside the written findings and the original report transcript. It explains the purpose of each analytical figure and preserves the laboratory’s own figure labels. The interpretations apply to the tested specimen; signals alone do not establish the identity of every similar-looking stone.
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Electron microscope image: This view shows small-scale regions selected for analysis. Its brightness contrast helps distinguish regions with different compositions; it is not a photograph of their natural colors. Numbered spots connect this view to the analyses listed in the report.
Laboratory figure caption: Fig.2: Backscattered electron image of an area of the specimen in Fig. 1.
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Elemental spectrum: The peaks record characteristic X-ray signals from elements in the analyzed spot or area. This is an analysis of that location, not automatically of the entire specimen. Any mineral identification or uncertainty named in the laboratory caption is retained below.
Laboratory figure caption: Fig. 3: Energy dispersive spectrum of spot 1 in Fig. 2. (quartz)
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Elemental spectrum: The peaks record characteristic X-ray signals from elements in the analyzed spot or area. This is an analysis of that location, not automatically of the entire specimen. Any mineral identification or uncertainty named in the laboratory caption is retained below.
Laboratory figure caption: Fig. 4: Energy dispersive spectrum of spot 5 in Fig. 2. (hematite)
Read the complete report as text
Analytical Result Report
Sample id: 1235 (#2 strawberry quartz)
Submitted by: Soul Body Gems
Date completed: 4-11-2025
Operating conditions: An AMRAY 1830 SEM operated at 25 kV acceleration potential, 24 mm working distance, 0 degrees sample tilt, coated with 250 Å carbon, and also using the attached XRF unit operated at 30 kV.
Fig. 1: Photograph of the specimens. 2.64 carats . A close-up is shown on the right.
Fig.2: Backscattered electron image of an area of the specimen in Fig. 1.
Fig. 3: Energy dispersive spectrum of spot 1 in Fig. 2. (quartz)
Fig. 4: Energy dispersive spectrum of spot 5 in Fig. 2. (hematite)
Summary:
This specimen (Fig. 1) is indeed quartz (Figs. 2 and 3) and the inclusions are hematite plates so thin that they show the distinctive cherry-red color. This is what is typically referred to as ‘strawberry quartz”.
Date: 4-11-2025 Signature
Read the original laboratory report as text
The following text and tables are transcribed from the original laboratory document. Figure captions identify the report images; the laboratory interpretations and limitations are preserved.
Laboratory report 1
Analytical Result Report
Sample id: 1235 (#2 strawberry quartz)
Submitted by: Soul Body Gems
Date completed: 4-11-2025
Operating conditions: An AMRAY 1830 SEM operated at 25 kV acceleration potential, 24 mm working distance, 0 degrees sample tilt, coated with 250 Å carbon, and also using the attached XRF unit operated at 30 kV.
Fig. 1: Photograph of the specimens. 2.64 carats . A close-up is shown on the right.
Fig.2: Backscattered electron image of an area of the specimen in Fig. 1.
Fig. 3: Energy dispersive spectrum of spot 1 in Fig. 2. (quartz)
Fig. 4: Energy dispersive spectrum of spot 5 in Fig. 2. (hematite)
Summary:
This specimen (Fig. 1) is indeed quartz (Figs. 2 and 3) and the inclusions are hematite plates so thin that they show the distinctive cherry-red color. This is what is typically referred to as ‘strawberry quartz”.
Date: 4-11-2025 Signature