Apr 20, 2020 · Penn State’s researchers discovered that tiger’s eye forms when veins of quartz fill in breaks that form in crocidolite asbestos. Rather than replacing crocidolite, the quartz forms a vein alongside it.

So, to answer the original question, does tigers' eye contain asbestos? Yes, it does, but because it's encapsulated within the quartz, dust or fibres cannot escape into the atmosphere.

This article delves into the complex relationship between tigers eye and asbestos, providing a comprehensive overview of their nature, risks, and possible alternatives.

Jul 1, 2024 · The fibrous inclusions in Tiger’s Eye are typically composed of mineral fibers such as crocidolite, which is a form of asbestos. These fibers are naturally occurring and can be found embedded in the quartz.

Apr 11, 2003 · But when researchers at Pennsylvania State University, University Park, reexamined the structure of tiger's eye, they found instead that the rock's beautiful reflecting bands are not created by the slow replacement of crocidolite (a blue form of asbestos) with chalcedony (a fibrous form of quartz).

Apr 4, 2003 · Writing in 1873, Wibel concluded that tiger's eye forms when crocidolite (a blue form of asbestos) in a rock is replaced with fibrous crystals of chalcedony, a form of quartz. Wibel thought it was these fibrous crystals that gave the gem its shimmer.

May 18, 2020 · The gemstones known to contain asbestos are tiger’s eye, cat’s eye, hawk’s eye, silkstone, pietersite, binghamite, grossular garnet, brucite, and more. Despite everything known about asbestos, scientists did not discover the fiber in semiprecious stones until 2003.

Since the 1870’s, geologists believed that tiger's eye was a pseudomorph where quartz replaced crocidolite - a blue form of asbestos. They believed that quartz replaced most of the crocidolite, and the remaining asbestos provided the bluish color.

Crocidolite, (blue asbestos,) alters to quartz, but while retaining its fibrous structure. This material is frequently stained by iron, giving it a golden brown color.

Tiger’s eye is found in many countries, such as South Africa, Australia, and the United States. It comes from a process called pseudomorphism, when blue asbestos turns into quartz under the right conditions.