Natural Stones

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The basics of telling stones apart, understanding their value and guarding against misinformation. Short guides with sources.

  1. 01How are stones classified? Precious, semi-precious, mineral, rockScience sorts stones into minerals, rocks, organic gems and meteorites; the trade into precious and semi-precious; folk lists by birth month and belief.Read →
  2. 02The Mohs hardness scale: how is the hardness of stones measured?The Mohs scale ranks hardness from 1 (talc) to 10 (diamond) by which mineral scratches which. Home tests, uneven steps and common mistakes.Read →
  3. 03The rock cycle: how do rocks form and turn into one another?Igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks turn into one another over millions of years. The rock cycle explained with examples from Türkiye.Read →
  4. 04Mineral or rock? The basic difference between stonesA mineral is a natural substance with a set composition and crystal structure; a rock is a mix of minerals. Plus mineraloids, organic gems and meteorites.Read →
  5. 05How to identify a stone: simple tests you can do at homeColour deceives; streak, hardness, lustre, cleavage, heft, a magnet and a drop of vinegar tell you far more. A step-by-step, safe guide to identifying stones.Read →
  6. 06What is a gemstone? The truth about “precious” and “semi-precious”A gemstone is a natural material used in jewellery for its beauty, rarity and durability. The semi-precious myth, 4Cs, treatments, synthetics, Türkiye's gems.Read →
  7. 07Healing crystals: what does science say?Amethyst, rose quartz, citrine… Where crystal healing beliefs come from, what experiments found, and which practices can do real harm. An honest guide.Read →
  8. 08Fake gemstones guide: how to tell imitation, synthetic and treated stones apartGlass imitations, dyed stones, glass-filled ruby, synthetics, the “onyx” name, fake Oltu stone and certificates: what to check at home, when to use a lab.Read →
  9. 09Is my stone valuable? Rocks mistaken for gold, diamonds and meteoritesMost stones people find have no sale value. Pyrite or gold, quartz or diamond, slag or meteorite: simple tests, where to get a stone checked, and scam warnings.Read →
  10. 10Is collecting stones legal? Rocks, minerals and fossils in TürkiyeMining, heritage, national park and coastal laws: the limits on collecting rocks, minerals and fossils in Türkiye. General information, not legal advice.Read →
  11. 11Stones of Türkiye: from Oltu stone and boron to Cappadocian tuff and KulaOltu stone, meerschaum, zultanite, boron, chromium, Afyon marble, Denizli travertine, Cappadocian tuff, Ahlat stone and the Kula geopark: Türkiye's key stones.Read →
  12. A–ZGlossaryFrom cleavage to the Widmanstätten pattern: the terms used on the stone pages, explained.Read →