Tektite vs Moldavite: Which is More Valuable?

• Why is moldavite popular?
• Do tektites come from outer space?
• How can you tell if it's a fake moldavite?

Main Differences between Tektite and Moldavite

• Tektite is a type of natural glass, whereas moldavite is a type of tektite.
• Most black tektite and other common colors are usually natural, whereas moldavite has many fakes on the market. 
• Tektites have various types and colors, whereas moldavite is almost always green.
• Tektites may have iron, magnesium, or manganese trace elements, whereas moldavite has high magnesium content.

What are Tektites?

A tektite is a piece of natural glass that has formed under geological conditions as a result of meteorite impact in the earth and weird tektites debris flying all over strewn fields. They don't have any type of crystal structure, just like other types of natural glass. heir formation comes in various shapes naturally like teardrops, spheres, discs, and even dumbbell shapes.

When a meteorite impact happens, the heat and pressure surrounding the meteorite comes into contact with the surrounding rocks and minerals on the surface of the earth. The heat and pressure vaporizes the rocks into molten rock. The pieces that fly into air among impact cools very quickly before they hit the ground.

The result is a bunch of glassy shapes and droplets fling themselves over a strewn field in various places.

To be honest, scientists are still observing tektite specimens and their origin to understand it more. There are some things we don't know for sure, but can confidently deduce. The same things can be said for pink diamonds and red diamonds.

Read also: What Are Red Diamonds?

Where are Tektites Found?

Tektites are found in various parts of the world where meteor impacts have happened. Tektites have been known to come out of Ries Crater in Germany and the Chesapeake Bay Crater in the United States. Locations where tektites have formed and been mined from include:

• Australia
• Cambodia
• China
• Czech Republic
• Germany
• Laos
• Philippines
• Thailand
• United States
• Vietnam

Physical Properties of Tektite

Most pieces of tektites are very small. Tektites also come in a variety of colors due to the trace elements within the rock and glass. The elements that affect the colors of tektites have traces of iron, manganese, and magnesium. The most common colors of tektites are:

• Black tektite
• Brown Tektites
• Green Tektite
• Gray Tektite

Black tektites are the most common variety formed and are the result of iron content. Green tektites are rare, found in limited locations in Australia and Southeast Asia. They have a noticeable bottle green to olive green coloring that many are attracted to. The green color is a result of magnesium content.

Brown tektites are usually found in the United States and Europe. Their brown color is a result of high manganese content. Gray tektites are more common and found with high contents of both iron and magnesium.

Other colors like red, yellow, and blue tektites have been found, but they're very rare and specimens are usually only found in very small quantities in the ground.

You won't find tektites at your fine jewelry retailers, so many people don't consider its use for jewelry. Glass doesn't reflect the way diamonds and gemstones do. Tektites are often worn as a talisman or wire wrapped pendants for its healing properties.

Metaphysical Uses of Tektite

Tektites are believed to have many healing properties and uses that go back thousands of years. As an "extraterrestrial stone", many of its properties are associated with the astral plane and connection to the spiritual world. Here are some of the healing properties associated with tektites:

• Energy Booster (due to the magnetic energy of the meteorites)
• Increase vitality and endurance
• Increase Spiritual Awareness
• Stimulate creativity and fresh ideas
• Aids in communication with the spiritual plane and spirit guides
• Protection stone from evil spirits
• Promote astral traveling
• Promotes lucid dreaming

Are Tektites Expensive?

Though relatively rare and found in small quantities, tektites have a wide price range depending on rarity and color. It's rare to find faceted tektites and there are many fakes and imitations in the seller's market.

Unlike diamonds and colored stones, tektites aren't usually sold by the piece. Most people selling tektites will be a single piece of tektite jewelry or measured by the gram.

• Common black tektites go for around $1-10 per gram
• Green tektites (moldavite) go for around $5-20 per gram
• Brown tektites $10-50 per gram
• Best quality for rarer colors may go for $50-500 per gram.

What is Moldavite?

Moldavite is one of the rarer types of silica glass tektites, but not as rare as the blues, reds, or yellows. The interest in moldavites have increase exponentially in the last 5 years, mainly due to healing property claims of many moldavite users on Tiktok.

Moldavite is composed of silicon dioxide and aluminum oxide with no crystal structure, just like tektites.

Where is Moldavite Found?

Moldavite is mined in different places, but notably in the Czech Republic, where it has believed to be the result of a meteorite impact that happened about 15 million years ago. Other moldavite pieces have been found in different strewn fields in:

• Germany
• Austria
• Poland
• Malaysia
• Ivory Coast
• Indonesia
• Philippines
• United States

Bohemian Moldavite

Bohemian moldavite is moldavite pieces that have been recovered from southern Bohemia as a result of the Ries Crater impact. Additionally, more moldavite from this impact have had pieces found in different strewn fields in western Moravia, Germany, and Austria.

Fake Rough Moldavite vs Real Moldavite

With the influx of healing claims Tiktok users have attached to pieces of moldavite skyrocketed the demand for these rare-ish stones. Typically, faceted glass is neither valuable nor in demand. But the fascination with the stones due to social media trends fired up the market.

So much so, there are many fake moldavites in the market. You can type moldavite for sale in Etsy and are flooded with fakes. It can be difficult to tell the difference between fake moldavite and real moldavite. Never mind that the costs of these have been driven up.

It's important to have some kind of certification or know the direct origin of your moldavite piece. Know that that real moldavite is more rare and comes in smaller pieces. Fake moldavite is likely to look wet and in rounder shapes, where as natural moldavite looks like glassy sprays. 

Physical Properties of Moldavite

There's a few factors that set moldavites apart from other varieties of tektites. Moldavite is a distinctive bottle green color, at fine quality, Most moldavite is dark green brown rather than the pure green color. Some moldavites are more brown than green as a result of potent iron content.

Olive green moldavites are considered the rarest type of moldavite. Yellow green colored moldavites are also rare and valuable. These types of moldavite are thought to have stronger spiritual properties than other colors of moldavite. Most olive green moldavite is found in Southern Moravia.

Read also: Moldavite vs Malachite

Being glass, moldavite is easily scratched. It rates a 5.5 on the Mohs scale, making it unsuitable for daily wear. Wearing moldavite rings and such are okay on occasion, or if you have rough moldavite in low impact jewelry. These are pieces like moldavite necklaces or earrings as opposed to rings or bracelets.

Healing Properties of Moldavite

You've heard that moldavite is a powerful and popular extraterrestrial stone. It adopts many of the same properties as other tektites, plus some additional ones. Moldavite is believed to aid the wearer/user by:

• Promoting Transformation and Growth
• Accessing Higher States of Consciousness
• Clearing Energy Blockages
• Increase Vitality and Stamina
• Alleviate Allergies
• Help with Respiratory Issues
• Healing the Immune System

How Much Does Moldavite Cost?

Common, small pieces of moldavite usually run around $10-$20 a piece. Bigger, high quality, and rarer color greens can cost hundreds and even thousands.

Conclusion

Tektite and moldavite happen as a result of meteorites hitting the earth. Moldavites are a rare and popular type of tektite, but not the rarest. Tektites aren't usually high in demand, but moldavite is due to viral videos on social media of claims of the healing powers of moldavite. 

You should be careful when purchasing moldavite as there are many fakes moldavites on the market. Make sure to compare pictures of real and fake moldavite online to get a grasp on the difference. 

Read also: How to Tell if Moldavite is Real

Neither of these stones are often turned into faceted gemstones, but moldavites and tektites have been used in jewelry for years. Just not the fancy type of jewelry you see in stores!