This substantial polished freeform fire agate gemstone from Deer Creek, Arizona, weighs 37.3 carats and measures 36.1 x 29.2 x 4.8 mm. It features a rich palette of earthy hues including copper, bronze, gold, orange, green and a bright fiery red center. Ideal for collectors, it also offers potential for innovative jewelry designs or can be recut to emphasize the vivid red interior, which exhibits a significantly higher fire refraction level than other areas of the stone.
This gemstone hails from Deer Creek, Arizona, a region renowned for its premium fire agates exhibiting striking red, orange, green, purple, and blue color variations. Images were captured both indoors under artificial lighting and outdoors in direct sunlight with the stone dry, to best showcase its vibrant fire and color play.
The vibrant colors in fire agates result from the Schiller effect, similar to that seen in mother-of-pearl and opals. This phenomenon arises from alternating layers of silica and iron oxide that diffract light, creating the interference colors recognized as fire. Optimal lighting is essential to reveal the gem’s full fire display, as in dimmer conditions the stone tends to appear darker and more brownish.
Deer Creek is well known for producing exceptionally vibrant fire agate gemstones, celebrated for their mesmerizing play of color and intricate internal banding. The fire agates from Deer Creek are a treasure trove of beauty for collectors and carvers which prize this locality for its mesmerizing gemstones, high quality rough and exquisite mineral specimens. The fire agate often display brillant vivid flashes of bright red, orange, green, purple, and blue colors. The uncut rough specimens often feature opal formations created during the geologic formation process. Many Deer Creek pieces have a protective chalcedony cap which preserves the vivid fire layers beneath and enhances the carving potential. These natural features make Deer Creek fire agate ideal for lapidary artists who seek material that allows for deep carving and a high contrast polish which reveals the stone’s full spectrum of fiery brilliance.
