Rock On! Rock Off! Trivia Quiz

Answer: Strontium

Celestine occurs in light blue to white tabular crystals. It can be found in many locations around the world. Celestine is not usually used to make jewelry but is commonly used in fireworks manufacturing. It is also the primary source of the element known as strontium.

Answer: Tanzanite

Tanzanite is the violet-blue gem quality variety of zoisite. Discovered in Tanzania in 1967, is has become a very popular gemstone. Its name is a reflection of the fact that forty years after its discovery, it was yet to be found anywhere else on the planet. Tanzanite is always heat-treated as its normal appearance is usually a brownish-gray color.

Answer: Lithium

Spodumene is one of the leading sources of the chemical element known as lithium. Lithium is used to make many types of batteries, ceramics, and to make a variety of medications. When used as a gemstone, the pink to lavender color crystals are known as kunzite.

This color is due to trace amounts of manganese. When used in jewelry, this mineral is usually heat-treated to enhance the color.

Answer: It is radioactive.

Autunite is one of the more attractive and popular radioactive minerals. It is usually found in varying shades of green-greenish yellow. This mineral is fluorescent and glows brightly under a black-light. Because this mineral is radioactive, keep it away from the rocks in your collection, and limit your contact with the mineral.

It is found in a variety of places in Europe and North America.

Answer: Geode

Most geodes have interiors made of either quartz or calcite. Geodes are formed when a hollow bubble forms inside a layer of rock. This often occurs explosive volcanic rock or sometimes because of tree roots or animal burrows which make a hollow in the ground.

After millions of years of mineral water running through the hollow, crystals start to form. The crystals formed depend on the minerals found in the water flowing through. This amethyst geode is a lovely example of the treasures that can be found when you cut a geode in half.

Answer: Paint pigment

In ancient times, lapis lazuli was a highly priced stone. Its beautiful blue color made it a popular choice when making jewelry or other valuable objects. One of the most famous artefacts made using lapis is the funeral mask of Tutankhamen. For centuries, lapis was ground up and used as a dye known as ultramarine.

This valuable pigment was used in oil painting and the dying of cloth for nobility. There are a few lapis mines in Egypt that have been mined for over 5,000 years.

Answer: False

Sorry to disappoint you, but siderite is not a type of fossilized dinosaur poop. Instead, it is a type of iron carbonate and is usually found in colors of yellow, brown, and black. Like many minerals, the color of siderite depends on the quantity of trace metals such as magnesium and zinc. Siderite is rarely transparent and rates low on the Mohs scale.

This rock is rarely used as a gemstone, but is sometimes used in steel production.

Answer: Arsenic

Arsenic is a naturally occurring metalloid that can be found all over the planet. It usually appears gray in color with a metallic sheen. Arsenic is usually found with other minerals, but does occasionally appear as a pure crystal. Highly toxic, this is not a rock I would recommend for your collection. The other three options are poisons derived from plants.

Answer: Sandstone

This is sandstone, one of the most common types of sedimentary rock. It is found all over the planet and has been mined as a construction material for many centuries. Sandstone, while in the ground, often serves as an aquifer for groundwater. Most sandstone is a reddish-brown and most sandstone is actually made of sand that has compacted into a rock.

The most abundant type of sand grain found in sandstone is usually quartz.

Answer: Aluminum

Almost all the aluminum ever produced has been made from bauxite. It is also used as an abrasive and for sandblasting. Bauxite is found in many locations around the world. At the turn of the 21st century the biggest producers of bauxite were Australia and China.