Quartz is an Alternative to Granite and Marble
Quartz is the second most abundant
mineral in the
Earth‘s
continental crust, after
feldspar. It is made up of a continuous framework of SiO
silicon–
oxygen tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tetrahedra, giving an overall formula
SiO2.
There are many different varieties of quartz, several of which are semi-precious
gemstones. Especially in Europe and the Middle East, varieties of quartz have been since antiquity the most commonly used minerals in the making of
jewelry and
hardstone carvings.