What Color Is Obsidian? Black and Many More
What color is black obsidian? It is black, right? But wait, that is not the only black obsidian color. It is the most common out of all the available colors. Apart from that, you may find a stone that shows a swirl of brown and black, a stone that flashes gold when you tilt it, or one that looks dusted with white snowflakes. These are all types of black obsidian too.
Obsidian can also be available in brown, red, green, and a few rarer shades. This guide covers every natural color of obsidian, what causes them, which ones are actually rare, how to spot a fake (blue is the big one), and how to pick a color for jewelry. Let's start!
What Color Is Obsidian?
Obsidian is most often black, but it also occurs naturally in brown, red, green, and in patterned or shimmering forms like snowflake, sheen, and rainbow obsidian. Red, orange, yellow, and natural blue are the rare ones.
|
Color |
What you'll see |
How easy to find |
|
Black |
Deep, glossy black |
Most common |
|
Brown and mahogany |
Warm brown, often swirled with black |
Easy to find |
|
Green |
Olive to bottle green, sometimes with a golden glow |
Less common |
|
Snowflake |
Black with white blotches |
Less common |
|
Gold and silver sheen |
Dark stone that flashes gold or silver when tilted |
Less common |
|
Rainbow and fire |
Bands or flashes of several colors |
Less common |
|
Red, orange, yellow, blue |
Solid, unusual colors |
Rare |
Why Is Obsidian Black?

Leave the color aside for a while. First, understand how it is made. Obsidian is not actually a gemstone; it is a type of dark volcanic glass. It is formed when silica-rich lava cools so quickly that its atoms never get enough time to line up into crystals. So, what you end up with is natural glass.
That is also why obsidian has curved, razor-sharp edges, just like the ones shown in the popular TV series Game of Thrones. Its black color is due to the presence of iron. Obsidian is full of microscopic specks of magnetite, an iron oxide. Each one is smaller than five thousandths of a millimeter.
You can't see them individually, but together, they make the glass look black. Without them, you would get something close to colorless, and a few nearly colorless samples do exist.
What Changes the Color
Black is the default obsidian color, but small inclusions of other elements can make it look like it has different colors or even attractive patterns. Those elements can be:
-
The state of the iron: Iron that has oxidized, basically rusted, gives red and brown colors, thanks to hematite. Iron in a different chemical state can give obsidian a green color.
-
Inclusions: Snowflake obsidian gets its white blotches from tiny clusters of a mineral called cristobalite sitting inside the black glass.
-
Bubbles: When gas bubbles get stretched flat along the layers of flowing lava, they catch light and create a gold or silver sheen.
-
Microscopic crystals that bend light: Rainbow and fire obsidian get their colors the way a soap bubble or an oil slick does, from light bouncing off ultra-thin layers. Researchers point to different tiny crystals depending on where the stone came from.
-
Flow: As lava moves, it folds and forms layers, which is how black and brown can end up swirled together.
Every Color of Obsidian, by Color Family
Now you know how obsidian is made, why it is black, and how it can change color and develop different patterns from its usual black appearance. But now, let's go deeper into the world of the different obsidian colors and patterns that this volcanic glass can show.
Brown, Mahogany, and Red Obsidian

Mahogany obsidian is a mixture of brown and black swirled together, and it is one of the most common two-color combinations of obsidian. The rusty, reddish-brown tones come from iron oxide. Apart from this, solid red obsidian is very rare. It requires highly oxidized glass to form.
Green Obsidian

The obsidian from Sierra de las Navajas in Hidalgo, Mexico, is known for its green color and golden shine. Its green color is caused by the high amount of iron in the stone. Even in the same area, the color can look different. More tiny bubbles make the obsidian look lighter green, while fewer bubbles make it look darker green.
Snowflake Obsidian

Snowflake obsidian has a black base with white or gray blotches resembling snowflakes. This is the type of obsidian where the pattern can matter more than the color. Each piece of snowflake obsidian has a different pattern because the cristobalite clusters form in different places inside the glass.
Sheen and Rainbow Obsidian

Gold sheen and silver sheen obsidian can look completely dark until you tilt the stone. Rainbow obsidian, on the other hand, can show rainbow-like bands, while fire obsidian can display shifting, colorful flashes. Layers and tiny structures inside the glass cause these effects. Because of this, the colors and patterns you see can change depending on the angle you look at the stone.
Apache Tears Obsidian

Apache Tears obsidian looks like small, smooth black pebbles. But if you hold one up to a bright light, its black color seems to disappear. Instead, it can glow in shades of smoky gray, brown, or amber.
Obsidian Bombs
It's quite a strange name, right? But it actually makes sense when you know what it means. A volcanic bomb is a chunk of molten lava that is thrown out during a volcanic eruption. An obsidian bomb is a volcanic bomb that cools and turns into glass.
Natural vs Man-Made Obsidian
But these differences are easier to spot in solid-colored obsidian. What about obsidian with beautiful patterns and different colors? Can those be man-made too? Yes, they can. So, how can you tell the difference between natural and man-made pieces?
Well, uniformity plays a role here too. Natural obsidian does not usually have perfectly regular patterns. The patterns can be scattered, stretched, broken, or uneven because they form naturally as the lava flows and cools.
Man-made glass, on the other hand, can have patterns that look too perfect or evenly repeated. If the pattern looks very regular and almost perfect throughout the whole piece, it could be a sign that it is man-made.
How Cut, Thickness, and Light Change Obsidian's Color
Whatever we have talked about so far was regarding the color of rough obsidian. But rough obsidian will probably not go directly into jewelry. You might have it polished or given a matte finish, and this matters because the cut and finish of the stone can completely change its appearance and the way it plays with light.
A polished surface looks deep and mirror-like, while a matte finish looks softer and flatter. The thickness of the stone matters too, because thin edges of dark obsidian can look smoky gray or brown instead of black.
And with sheen and rainbow obsidian, the color can change depending on the angle of the light. So, how the stone is cut in relation to its internal layers affects how much shimmer you see. A smooth, domed cut, called a cabochon, lets the surface and its natural patterns do the talking and is the usual choice for obsidian jewelry.
Choosing an Obsidian Color for Jewelry
|
Color |
Good for |
Pairs with |
Notes |
|
Black |
Everyday wear, minimalist and men's pieces |
Silver, white metals, or gold |
The most versatile |
|
Mahogany |
Warm, earthy outfits |
Yellow or rose gold |
Warm tones need warm metal |
|
Snowflake |
Statement pendants |
Silver |
Keep the setting simple, the pattern is the star |
|
Gold or silver sheen |
Pieces that catch light |
Gold or silver to match the sheen |
Best in a cabochon |
|
Rainbow |
A single focal piece |
A simple metal setting |
Let it lead |
While having any kind of obsidian in jewelry, take note of its durability because you will want your stone to stay fine and polished for a long time. For durability, we consider its Mohs hardness. Obsidian scores around 5 to 5.5 on the Mohs scale, which honestly is not a very high number for jewelry.
It can scratch and chip more easily than some other black gemstones, such as black tourmaline, which has a higher hardness. That is why obsidian is not the most perfect choice for jewelry that may face more stress, such as rings and bracelets.
Obsidian as a Color Name: Hex, Paint, and Fashion
"Obsidian" is also a color name, used for very dark shades, and there's no single standard for it. One color reference lists it as #0B0C0C, a near-black with a slight gray tone. Paint brands each define their own version, and the undertones differ: some lean greenish, others warmer and reddish. Sneaker brands have used "Obsidian" for a dark navy, like the Air Jordan 1 Retro High OG colorway.
So if you're matching a shade, copy the code from the specific brand's swatch rather than from a general "obsidian" value.
Also Read About Other Gestones:
