Named after G. F. Kunz who first described it in 1902. Colors can fade. Is often found in large crystal. It's brittleness, due to it's perfect cleavage, makes it difficult to work with. It's also sensitive to pressure. It occures in pegmatites; main deposits are in the Malagasy Republic, the U.S. (California and Main), Brazil and Burma.

• Color : Pink-violet, light violet
• Color of streak : White
• Mohs' hardness : 6 - 7
• Specific gravity : 3.16 - 3.20
• Cleavage : perfect
• Fracture : Uneven
• Crystal system : Monoclinic; prismatic,
  tabular
• Chemical composition : LiAl(Si2O6)
  lithium aluminium silicate
• Transparency : Transparent
• Refractive index : 1.655 - 1.680
• Double refraction : +0.015
• Dispersion : 0.017
• Pleochroism : Definate; amethyst-
  color, pale red, colorless
• Absorption spectrum : Negligible
• Fluorescence: Very weakl red-yellow