Nellite is a trade name, not an official mineral. Sellers use it for golden-brown, silky quartz with blue swirls, a cousin of tiger's eye and pietersite. The dealer accounts vary, and we do not carry it.
Quartz (fibrous quartz rock; trade name) · Quartz (tiger's eye family)
Nellite
Nellita
- Palette
- Brown Yellow Blue
- Mined in
- Namibia, South Africa
- Hardness
- Mohs 7.0 ?
- See-through
- opaque
- Known since
- no formal date (bead-trade name)
- Named for
- not documented: no page read explains the name (dealer pages describe the stone but not the word); one alias reads "Nel's tiger eye" but no page says who or what Nel is
- Also sold as
- Nel's tiger eye, African pietersite
- Intention
- Strength Protection
- Looking for
- Courage Grounding
- Water
- Fine with water and mild soap
- Dye or finish
- Nellite is a trade name and sellers do not say whether it is dyed or heated; blue and red tiger's eye in the same family are often heated or dyed, so look at the drill hole before calling it natural.
Not in our pieces now
2003
A 2003 Penn State study found that tiger's eye still holds its original crocidolite fibers inside the quartz, not a complete quartz replacement.
HAWK'S EYE
Hawk's eye, the blue relative of tiger's eye, gets its sheen from quartz grown through altered fibers of an amphibole mineral that has mostly turned to limonite.
What it is
A trade name for a golden-brown, silky quartz with swirling bands of gold, honey and smoky blue. Sellers describe it as tiger's eye mixed with blue hawk's eye, and it is a smoother, less shattered cousin of pietersite. It is polished into spheres, cabochons and beads.
What gives it its color
Nellite is a trade name for a shimmering stone in the tiger's eye family: iron-rich blue fibers (crocidolite) that turned to quartz, stained gold-brown by iron, giving gold, honey and smoky-blue bands.
What's said about it
In crystal lore, tiger's eye stones are kept for courage and steadiness, and nellite is usually grouped with them. People reach for it when they want a firm footing.
It is polished into beads, spheres and cabochons. People wear it on the wrist or keep it on a desk.
How people wear or keep it: On the wrist, on a desk, or in a pocket.
In crystal practice
In the crystal tradition, nellite is paired with the solar plexus and third eye chakras, so practitioners rest it there during meditation or lie down with it in place for a few quiet minutes. Day to day, the same tradition suggests keeping it close: on the wrist, on a desk, in a pocket. People reach for it when they want courage, grounding, and many set an intention when they put it on. Most practitioners cleanse a new stone first (running water only if the stone can take it, otherwise smoke or moonlight) and set it aside now and then to rest.
These are beliefs people have held and still hold about the stone, reported as such. Nothing here is a promise or a medical claim. We sell stones as jewelry, not for these effects.
Associations
The chakra and star sign this stone is usually matched with. These are popular traditions, not facts about the stone.
ChakraSolar Plexus, Third Eye
ZodiacCapricorn, Leo
ElementEarth
Also calledNel's tiger eye, African pietersite
Care
- Quartz is hard, but the silky fibers can show scratches, so keep it away from rougher stones.
- Wipe with a soft damp cloth and dry it; avoid harsh cleaners.
- Keep it out of long sun and heat, which can fade bright color in some tiger's eye types.
- Store it in a pouch.
How to tell what you have
- Sold under this name, a bead may be a golden-brown and blue swirled tiger's eye (the usual meaning), a mix of tiger's eye and hawk's eye, or a pietersite look-alike, and it varies by lot.
- Look for dye at the drill hole and cracks, perfectly even bright blue, or a plain-looking bead with no silky shimmer, which would not be tiger's eye; weigh and compare to quartz and ask the supplier for the lot's name.
Rules and sourcing
Nellite is fibrous quartz rock containing crocidolite, an asbestos mineral under US law. Finished beads are sold as jewelry, but do not grind, sand, drill or cut them without dust protection.
Questions people ask at our table
What is nellite?
A trade name, not an official mineral. Sellers use it for golden-brown, silky quartz with blue streaks, related to tiger's eye and pietersite.
Is it the same as pietersite?
Not quite. Pietersite looks shattered and swirled, while nellite is sold as smoother banding. Sellers do not all agree on the names, so ask what a piece really is.
Is it natural or dyed?
Dealers describe it as natural. As with any trade name, ask a seller whether the color has been enhanced.
Where is it from?
Dealers name Namibia and South Africa, the same region as pietersite and tiger's eye.
Do you carry it?
No. Our golden tiger eye and blue tiger eye are the nearest stones.
Not in our pieces right now
Stones we do carry that are close to it are listed under related stones.
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