Tiger's Eye

What is Tiger's Eye?

Tiger's Eye is a variety of quartz-rich ornamental material with a distinctive cat's-eye effect, called chatoyancy. The golden to brown appearance comes from closely aligned fibres and iron-rich alteration products that reflect light in a narrow moving band.

Structure and appearance

Colours range from honey yellow and gold to red-brown and deep brown. The strongest effect appears when the material is cut across the direction of the fibres and polished smoothly. Natural variation may produce bands, patches and transitions into blue-grey hawk's eye.

Formation and localities

Tiger's Eye is associated with metamorphosed iron formations, especially in the Northern Cape of South Africa and related geological environments. The exact origin of the chatoyant texture is discussed in mineralogical literature, so the guide treats it as a quartz-rich material with altered amphibole-related fibres rather than relying on one simplified formation story.

Use in mosaic

In mosaic and inlay, Tiger's Eye is chosen for its directional flash. Small plates can create flowing lines, wood-like textures or warm highlights, but the orientation of each cut affects the visible effect.