RAINBOW OBSIDIAN FREEFORM. ...

Description

RAINBOW OBSIDIAN FREEFORM
Mexico
Caused by the swift cooling of volcanic lava, obsidian is not in fact a mineral but a form of glass, with no true crystals. The cooling of the lava is so rapid - even from the typical temperatures between 780 and 820 Celsius - that true crystals have insufficient time to form, but in some instances the similarly-structured crystallites, or grains, form parallel to the flow structure creating the ghostly colored banding suggestive of a rainbow. Shimmering seemingly just below the surface of this highly polished freeform are visible shades of green, blue, yellow and purple, and the rock has been artfully carved to highlight their ethereal patterning in this specimen, measuring 7½ x 4½ inches.

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