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Carnelian

Last updated: April 2026

Orange-red to red-brown translucent chalcedony; color from iron oxide (hematite/goethite). Carnelian is lighter and more orange than sard (darker brown-red). Heat treatment of brown agate to produce carnelian is a traditional and accepted practice. Dyeing is also common; color concentrated in surface fissures under loupe is a detection indicator. Modern commercial carnelian is often dyed agate.

Carnelian has a specific gravity of 2.61 and a refractive index of 1.530–1.543, with a Mohs hardness of 6.5–7.0. It is aggregate.

Physical & Optical Properties

RI Range1.530–1.543
SG Range2.58–2.64
SG Typical2.61
Hardness (Mohs)6.5–7
Crystal SystemTrigonal
Optic CharacterAggregate
Dispersion0.013
Fluorescence LWWeak white/cream
Fluorescence SWInert
Chelsea FilterInert
PleochroismNone
ColorsRed Pink, Yellow Orange
SpeciesQuartz
Red PinkYellow Orange

Measured with a polariscope, a refractometer, a hydrostatic balance, a Chelsea filter, a UV torch, a loupe, a darkfield loupe and a spectroscope — step-by-step for each.

Through the refractometer

Carnelian varies 1.530 – 1.543 1.40 1.45 1.50 1.55 1.60 1.65 1.70 1.75 1.80 REFRACTIVE INDEX DORotate the stone through a full 360°, watching the boundary. SEEOne boundary that does not move as you rotate — and it isoften vague rather than crisp. Where it sits is not fixedfor this species: published at 1.530 – 1.543, and the stonedrawn here reads 1.536, between the dashed marks. MEANSThis is an aggregate — a mass of microscopic crystals — andon this instrument it looks exactly like a singly refractivestone. The refractometer cannot tell the two apart. Thepolariscope can: an aggregate stays light through a fullrotation, where a singly refractive stone stays dark. Computed from gems.json — edge positions are arithmetic, not drawn. RI increases upward; the field above the boundary is the dark one.

Drawn from the refractive index above, on a 1.40–1.81 scale. How to take this reading.

Through the polariscope

Carnelian Light throughout (AGG) 0° 45° 90° 135° ROTATION BETWEEN CROSSED POLARS Carnelian stays light in every position. Light crosses many randomly oriented grains, so some component always reaches the analyser. On a refractometer an aggregate is indistinguishable from a singly refractive stone; this is the test that separates them. Computed from optic character and transparency in gems.json. A polariscope separates singly refractive, doubly refractive and aggregate — it does not show the optic sign.

Drawn from the optic character and transparency above. A polariscope separates singly refractive, doubly refractive and aggregate; the optic sign needs a conoscope. How to take this reading.

Specific gravity, and what it rules out

Carnelian SG 2.58–2.64 WHERE IT SITS, AND WHAT ELSE IS THERE 1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 SPECIFIC GRAVITY 30 other species in the table overlap this range, so a reading here narrows the field to 31 rather than naming the stone. This is the crowded part of the scale — the same careful measurement is worth far more higher up. Computed from the specific-gravity range in gems.json. Hydrostatic weighing — the bench method this site recommends; heavy liquids are toxic and regulated. Faint ticks are the other species in the table.

Drawn from the specific-gravity range above, against every other species in the table. How to take this reading.

Through the dichroscope

Carnelian One colour (no pleochroism) IDENTICAL AT EVERY ANGLE Carnelian shows no pleochroism, so both windows match at every orientation — turning the instrument changes nothing. That is a real negative result, and the reason it is worth knowing is below. Computed from pleochroism and pleochroic colours in gems.json. Window tints are derived mechanically from the colour words, not chosen; a neutral pair depicts no colour at all.

Drawn from the pleochroism above. Two windows that match mean either no pleochroism or the wrong angle — turn the instrument to tell. How the dichroscope compares.

AgateAmethystAmetrineAventurineBloodstoneChalcedonyChrysopraseCitrineHawk's EyeOnyxPrasioliteRock CrystalRose QuartzSmoky QuartzTiger's EyeChrysocolla Chalcedony

Key Differentiators

Common Simulants

Treatments

Measurement Guides

How to Identify a GemstoneHow to Measure Specific GravityHow to Use a RefractometerUV Fluorescence Testing

Identifying a carnelian? Loupewise walks through these tests in order — RI, SG, fluorescence, and more.

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Studying for the GIA, FGA, or FEEG practical? Carnelian is one of the 132 species in Loupewise’s drill and exam pool — practice identifying it from its measured properties under timed exam conditions.

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