Onyx is a banded variety of chalcedony. Agate and onyx are both varieties of layered chalcedony that differ only in the form of the bands: agate has curved bands and onyx has parallel bands. The colors of its bands range from white to almost every colour (save some shades, such as purple or blue). Commonly, specimens of onyx contain bands of black and/or white.
Onyx is formed of bands of chalcedony in alternating colours. It is cryptocrystalline, consisting of fine intergrowths of the silica minerals quartz and moganite. Its bands are parallel to one another, as opposed to the more chaotic banding that often occurs in agates. Sardonyx is a variant in which the coloured bands are sard (shades of red) rather than black.
Black onyx is perhaps the most famous variety, but is not as common as onyx with coloured bands. Artificial treatments have been used since ancient times to produce both the black colour in “black onyx” and the reds and yellows in sardonyx. Most “black onyx” on the market is artificially colored.
Onyx is an ancient gemstone, having been used in jewelry and as an ornamental gemstone for carvings since antiquity. Onyx has traditionally been one of the most important engraving and cameo gemstones, where its most common form was a black base with a white upper layer.
It can be used in a variety of interior and exterior applications kitchens worktops, bathroom, bench tops, bath surrounds, vanity tops, countertops, table tops, splash backs, up-stands, cupboard tops, bar tops, retail counter tops, restaurant counter and servery tops, hotel and reception foyer, staircases -treads and risers- and other surfaces.
Available Colours for Onyx Worktops
As stone is a natural material and subject to variations in colour, pattern and texture from block to block, this samples are indicative only.
