Calcite cluster, pale yellow–honey colour — Loralai, Pakistan (55 g)

Description

This is a hand-sized cluster of pale yellow to honey-coloured translucent calcite exhibiting multiple sharp, angular crystal faces. The crystals show a soft glassy to silky lustre, with occasional faint frosted or satiny surfaces, and areas of drusy, sparkly texture. The specimen measures 6 × 4 × 2 cm and weighs 55 g, resting on a dark contrasting base visible along one side and the back. Crystal habit is dense and intergrown, producing compact crystal massing with several large crystal points and crisp angular faces. Calcite is calcium carbonate (CaCO3) and forms in a wide range of crystal habits in sedimentary, metamorphic and hydrothermal settings. The pale yellow to honey tones seen here are a straightforward colour variation within calcite rather than an implication of any specific treatment.