Epidote crystals from Alchuri, Skardu, Pakistan (Faden/Tabular)

Faden Epidote crystals from Alchuri, Skardu, Pakistan

Small gemmy, lustrous Epidote from the classic faden minerals locality outside of Alchuri Village.

It is rather difficult to distinguish Epidote from Zoisite without chemical analysis, so these have been labelled Zoisite & Epidote by the wholesaler. I'm afraid I don't have the capacity to determine the difference.

These pieces have good transparency and colour, and should be considered a good thumbnail mineral from the locale. They are nice and complex, with lots of fine strands coming off them. Some pieces may have inclusions, too.

In minerals, 'faden' refers to an unusual formation which seems to originate from a single long 'thread' seed crystal. This is more visible in faden Quartz, though.