The hardest natural material — pure carbon locked in a cubic lattice

The structure inside every grain of table salt

One of Earth's most abundant minerals — the crystal in your watch and your windowsill

The mineral family that gives us emerald, aquamarine, and morganite

The crystal structure powering next-generation solar cells

The glittering iron sulfide crystal that fooled gold prospectors for centuries

The glassy, vividly coloured mineral that gave fluorescence its name

The everyday crystal that covers polar caps and fills your glass

Earth's most magnetic mineral — the original compass needle

A brilliant gemstone prized for its golden and blue hues

The oldest mineral on Earth — crystals found in Australia are over 4 billion years old

The deep red garnet — a classic gemstone worn since ancient times

The sky-blue gemstone treasured by ancient Egyptians and Native Americans

The soft, layered form of carbon in every pencil — and a cousin of diamond

The soft, layered form of carbon in every pencil — and a cousin of diamond

The precious mineral at the heart of Imperial Jade, prized for millennia in East Asia

A vivid deep-blue copper mineral used as a pigment by Renaissance painters

The crystal behind marble, limestone, and the shells of sea creatures

A diamond-like form of carbon found inside meteorites — rarer than diamond itself

The mineral family that gives us rubies and sapphires — pure aluminium oxide

A green-to-orange garnet gemstone — January's birthstone in crystalline form

The deep red iron ore that has coloured pigments and jewellery for millennia

The vivid green copper mineral prized as a gemstone and pigment for thousands of years

The deep red garnet variety found in volcanic rocks and some meteorites