onyx

The name draws its origin from the word, onyx which in Greek language means fingernails. The outstanding beauty of the material justifies its name as "the princess of marbles". Technically onyx is quartz crystals fused together by nature into translucent layers of stone, revealing a rainbow of colors ranging from creamy whites, gold and ambers; to orange, reds, browns, deep greens and grays. Onyx is formed in the gas cavities of lava. Onyx is not a new stone; it is actually millions of years old! A natural process of heat and pressure creates a crystalline stone so rich in color and pattern that light reaches well below the surface to reveal a truly unparalleled inner warmth, depth and opalescence. Because of its translucence, backlit onyx makes for quite a striking and dramatic effect