Rock Identifier

Rock & Mineral Encyclopedia

Search and identify 1,000+ rocks, minerals, crystals, and gemstones — with properties, formation, colors, hardness, and how to tell them apart.

Hells Canyon Jasper

Hells Canyon Jasper

A warm earth-toned jasper from the Hells Canyon region of the Oregon-Idaho border, prized for brecciated browns, reds, and creams.

gemstone
Mustard Tourmaline

Mustard Tourmaline

A warm mustard to brownish-yellow tourmaline, colored by iron or manganese, sitting between yellow and brown dravite tones.

gemstone
Montana Moss Agate

Montana Moss Agate

A translucent chalcedony from Montana filled with black and red dendritic inclusions that look like moss, ferns, or scenic landscapes.

gemstone
Montana Garnet

Montana Garnet

Montana Garnet is red almandine recovered from Montana placer gravels, often alongside the state's famous sapphires.

gemstone
Danburite

Danburite

A glassy calcium borosilicate forming wedge-tipped prismatic crystals, usually colorless to pale yellow or pink, sometimes faceted as a gem.

crystal
Butterstone Jasper

Butterstone Jasper

A soft-toned cream-to-butterscotch jasper colored by iron oxides, prized by lapidaries for its smooth, even, opaque finish.

gemstone
Deschutes Jasper

Deschutes Jasper

A prized Oregon picture jasper from the Deschutes region known for soft scenic landscapes in cream, tan, and blue-gray.

mineral
Canary Tourmaline

Canary Tourmaline

The vivid, pure yellow tourmaline marketed as canary, a rare manganese-rich variety from Zambia and Malawi.

gemstone
Lemon Tourmaline

Lemon Tourmaline

A bright lemon-to-canary yellow tourmaline colored by manganese, among the more cheerful and uncommon hues in the tourmaline family.

gemstone
Lemon Opal

Lemon Opal

A bright lemon-yellow opal, usually common opal, valued for its cheerful citrus color and translucent glow.

gemstone
Tintenbar Opal

Tintenbar Opal

Rare precious opal from Tintenbar in northern New South Wales, Australia, occurring in volcanic basalt rather than sedimentary rock.

gemstone
Jaspillite

Jaspillite

A banded, metamorphosed iron formation in which bright red jasper alternates with silvery hematite or magnetite layers.

metamorphic
Golden Beryl

Golden Beryl

The pure golden-yellow gem variety of beryl, colored by iron and valued for its clarity, brilliance, and durability.

gemstone
Gondite

Gondite

A metamorphic rock made chiefly of manganese-rich spessartine garnet and quartz, formed from ancient manganese-bearing sediments.

metamorphic
Golden Emerald

Golden Emerald

A trade name occasionally used for golden-yellow beryl (golden beryl or heliodor), the iron-colored yellow variety of the emerald mineral.

gemstone
Topazolite Garnet

Topazolite Garnet

A rare yellow to golden variety of andradite garnet, the topaz-colored cousin of green demantoid, prized for high dispersion and brilliance.

gemstone
Limonite

Limonite

Limonite is an amorphous brown iron oxide ore, the rust-colored material behind ochre pigments and bog iron.

mineral
Septarian Concretion

Septarian Concretion

A rounded sedimentary nodule cracked internally and filled with veins of yellow calcite, prized for its striking dragon-skin patterning.

sedimentary
Sandstone

Sandstone

A clastic sedimentary rock made of cemented sand grains, often quartz, recording ancient beaches, deserts, and rivers.

sedimentary
Heliodor

Heliodor

The golden-yellow gem variety of beryl, colored by iron, prized for its bright sunshine hue and excellent durability.

gemstone
Carnotite

Carnotite

A bright yellow, radioactive potassium uranyl vanadate that is a major ore of both uranium and vanadium.

mineral
Calaverite

Calaverite

A brass- to silver-yellow gold telluride that is a major gold ore, famous from Cripple Creek and Kalgoorlie.

mineral
Wulfenite

Wulfenite

A lead molybdate mineral famous for thin, brilliant orange to yellow tabular crystals, prized by collectors and an ore of molybdenum.

mineral
Bumblebee Jasper

Bumblebee Jasper

A vivid yellow-and-black banded stone from Indonesian volcanic vents, colored by sulfur, arsenic minerals and iron oxides, not true jasper.

sedimentary