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Crystal Trade Names Decoded: What the Mineral Really Is Behind the Label

By Digital Towns Crystals ยท Last reviewed October 8, 2026

Short answer: a trade name is a selling name invented for a stone, not a mineral species. Some are harmless labels for a real rock or mineral (indigo gabbro sold as "mystic merlinite", fluorite-rich nodules sold as Tiffany stone). Some borrow another stone's name for a different material ("white turquoise" magnesite, "Mexican onyx" calcite). And some cover man-made products (goldstone, opalite, hematine). Before you buy, find the mineral or rock name behind the label and judge the piece on that.

Why do crystals get trade names at all?

Mineral names are fixed by science; a species name like fluorite or anhydrite describes a chemistry and a crystal structure. Rocks are mixtures of minerals and have broader names: gabbro, marble, rhyolite. Neither sells well on a shelf. A seller with a bin of speckled igneous rock earns more as "mystic merlinite" than as gabbro, and a new deposit with a distinctive look gets a name so buyers can ask for it again.

None of that is wrong in itself. The trouble starts when the invented name implies a different, more valuable material, or hides a treatment or a factory origin. In the United States, the FTC Guides for the Jewelry Industry draw the line clearly. It is unfair or deceptive to use the name of a precious or semi-precious stone, unqualified, for any product that is not in fact a mined stone of the type described, and equally unfair to describe a product with the incorrect varietal name. The Guides give their own examples: "yellow emerald" for golden beryl or heliodor, and "green amethyst" for prasiolite.

What kinds of trade names are there?

Kind Example What it actually is Buyer risk
Fancy name for a real rock "Mystic merlinite" Indigo gabbro, an igneous rock Low; price it as gabbro
Fancy name for a real mineral mix Tiffany stone Fluorite-rich nodules with opal and other minerals Low; genuinely scarce
Borrowed name for a different stone "White turquoise", "Mexican onyx" Magnesite; banded calcite Medium; wrong expectations of hardness and value
Name for a man-made product Goldstone, opalite, "magnetic hematite" Glass; glass or plastic; manufactured material High if sold as natural

Two further labels sit outside the table because they describe a shape or a selection, not a material: a "Vogel" is a cut, and "Lemurian" is a marketing category of quartz crystal.

Fancy names for real rocks and minerals

Indigo gabbro, sold as "mystic merlinite"

Gabbro is a coarse-grained, dark, intrusive igneous rock made mainly of plagioclase and augite, and it is the most abundant rock in the deep oceanic crust (Geology.com). The plagioclase in gabbro is calcium-rich, usually labradorite or bytownite. "Indigo gabbro" is a trade name for a dark, blue-black variety with white and gray mineral patches, and "mystic merlinite" is a second marketing name layered on top of that. Both refer to the same rock. Judge it as gabbro: a hard, durable igneous stone whose value lies in a strong contrast between dark and light minerals and a clean polish.

Tiffany stone

Geology.com describes "Tiffany stone" as a trade name for a purple, blue and white material that is geologically a rock made mostly of fluorite, with smaller amounts of opal, calcite, dolomite, quartz, chalcedony, bertrandite and other minerals (Geology.com). It is mined at one location worldwide, a beryllium operation at Spor Mountain in western Utah, where the nodules typically hold between one and two percent beryllium by weight, and almost all of it is crushed to produce beryllium. Geology.com adds that calling it "bertrandite" is incorrect, since that mineral makes up only a few percent of the rock; "opalized fluorite" is the more accurate name. Here the trade name hides nothing of concern: it is a scarce natural material, and the fluorite content means it is soft and should be handled with care.

Pinolith

Pinolith is a useful counterexample: a coined name that describes accurately. Geology.com explains that it is a black and white metamorphic rock of dolomite, magnesite and graphite, named because its white magnesite crystals look like pine nuts, and that the most famous locality is near Hohentauern, Austria (Geology.com). Most pinolith rates only 4 to 4.5 on the Mohs scale. A good trade name, like this one, tells you something real.

Which trade names borrow another stone's name?

This is where buyers lose money or damage a piece by caring for it as the wrong thing.

  • "White turquoise." Geology.com notes that white magnesite cabochons with a gray to brown matrix are often called "white turquoise", a misnomer, and that magnesite dyed to look like turquoise has been a disclosed and undisclosed substitute for nearly 100 years (Geology.com). Magnesite is magnesium carbonate, MgCO3, with a hardness of 3.5 to 5.
  • Dyed howlite as turquoise. The International Gem Society notes that howlite is frequently dyed blue to resemble turquoise, and makes a most convincing simulant (International Gem Society). Our planned guide to dyed howlite and turquoise covers the tests.
  • "Mexican onyx." Minerals.net lists Limestone Onyx, Mexican Onyx and Onyx Marble as false names for banded travertine or tufa (Minerals.net). It is banded calcite or aragonite, far softer than chalcedony onyx. See our onyx guide.
  • Angelite. A trade name for blue anhydrite that is often wrongly sold as a form of celestite; our angelite guide explains the weight test.

Which trade names hide a man-made material?

Goldstone. Geology.com describes goldstone as a man-made colored glass with abundant, flat-faced, highly reflective inclusions (Geology.com). The sparkle is not "copper filings": copper oxide is dissolved in molten glass, which is cooled very slowly so that octahedral copper crystals grow inside it. Modern production began in Murano, Italy, in the 17th century. It is an honest material with a long history, but it is glass.

Opalite. Geology.com notes that "opalite" has two meanings: a synonym for natural common opal, defined in glossaries as early as 1945, and a marketing term for man-made glasses and plastics with an opal-like look, first used that way in the 1980s (Geology.com). The milky blue glass sold as opalite in most shops is the second kind.

Hematine. Magnetic beads sold as "magnetic hematite" are a manufactured material. Our guide to magnetic hematite shows how a fridge magnet exposes them.

Shape and selection names: Vogel and Lemurian

Vogel is a cutting style, not a stone. It refers to a faceted, usually double-terminated wand form associated with Marcel Vogel, and the material is whatever the wand is cut from. A "Vogel wand" in clear quartz is quartz; judge it on clarity, symmetry of facets and the crispness of the points.

Lemurian is a marketing category for quartz crystals, usually sold for pronounced horizontal grooves across the prism faces and a frosted or pinkish skin. The mineral is ordinary quartz, silicon dioxide, hardness 7. Price it on the crystal in front of you: damage to the termination, clarity, size and the quality of the surface features.

Que Sera and orca agate are two more invented names for patterned stones. With no agreed definition behind them, the only safe approach is to ask the seller what the rock is made of and check hardness and translucency yourself.

How to decode a trade name before you buy

  1. Ask for the mineral or rock name. A seller who cannot give one is selling a label.
  2. Search the name with "trade name" or "what is". Reputable references such as Geology.com, the International Gem Society and Minerals.net explain most common names.
  3. Check hardness against the claim. A "jasper" or "agate" should resist a steel knife; carbonate stones such as magnesite, calcite and pinolith will not.
  4. Look for factory signs. Perfect uniformity across a strand, bubbles, swirl marks or identical sparkle suggest glass or plastic.
  5. Ask about treatment. Dye, resin bonding and coatings must be disclosed when they affect value or care, under the FTC Guides.
  6. Price the material, not the name. A fancy name adds nothing to the stone's mineral value.

Choosing trade-name stones we stock

Every product below carries a trade name, and each is a fair buy once you know what the material is. Use the names as a guide to look, not as a description of the mineral.

Digital Towns Market

Trade-name stones in stock

See all crystals and minerals

Frequently asked questions

Are trade-name crystals fake?

Usually not. Most trade names are new labels for real rocks or minerals, such as gabbro sold as mystic merlinite. A few cover man-made materials, like goldstone and opalite glass. The name only becomes a problem when it implies a different mineral or hides a treatment or factory origin.

What is mystic merlinite?

Mystic merlinite is a marketing name for indigo gabbro, a dark, coarse-grained igneous rock made mainly of plagioclase feldspar and pyroxene. It is a natural rock. Price and judge it as gabbro, on pattern contrast, polish and freedom from chips.

Is Lemurian quartz a different mineral?

No. Lemurian quartz is ordinary quartz, silicon dioxide, sold under a marketing name for crystals with prominent horizontal grooves on the prism faces. It has the same hardness and properties as any other quartz crystal.

Is opalite a real stone?

The word has two uses. In geology it once meant natural common opal without play-of-color. In most shops today it means a man-made glass or plastic with a milky, opal-like glow. If it is clear blue-white and very uniform, it is the glass.

Is it legal to sell stones under trade names?

Yes, as long as the name does not mislead. Under the FTC Guides, using a gem's name for a product that is not that mined stone, or using the wrong varietal name, is unfair or deceptive. Honest sellers pair a trade name with the real material.

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