mineral

Quartz Pebble

Silicon Dioxide (SiO2)

Hardness: 7 (Mohs scale); Color: White, translucent, or cloudy with possible green inclusions or algae; Luster: Vitreous to waxy when wet; Crystal structure: Hexagonal; Cleavage: None (conchoidal fracture); Specific gravity: 2.65

Hardness: 7 (Mohs scale)
Luster: Vitreous to waxy when wet

Identified June 19, 2026More mineral →

Identify your own rocks.

Get a report just like this from any photo, free.

App Store Google Play

Physical properties

Formation & geological history

Formed from cooling magma or hydrothermal veins. This specimen shows significant rounding and smoothing due to fluvial (river) or coastal erosion over centuries.

Uses & applications

Used in construction as aggregate, in glass manufacturing, for filtration, as a landscape decorative stone, and occasionally in lapidary work for tumbling.

Geological facts

Quartz is the second most abundant mineral in Earth's continental crust. Its high hardness makes it extremely resistant to physical weathering, allowing it to survive as pebbles long after other minerals have eroded.

Field identification & locations

Identify by its inability to be scratched by a steel knife (hardness) and lack of cleavage. Often found in riverbeds, beaches, and glacial deposits globally.