When Amelia Rude, from Bloomington, Indiana, shared a photo of a crystal that perfectly emulates a piece of fried chicken, it caused a storm on social media. An overwhelming majority of netizens agree that the delicious-looking stone looks good enough to take a bite from.
Alluding to the mouth-watering piece, the gemstone aficionado said, “It’s a calcium carbonate cluster.”
She further added: “There are two varieties: calcite and aragonite. A simple vinegar or HCl test would determine which one it is, but I’m hesitant to erode its natural, crispy beauty.”
However, according to Amelia, crystals that resemble food are not as rare as people might think. She admitted she had never seen a crystal that so closely resembled a chicken tender before but explained that “slices of rhodochrosite can look like both ham and grapefruit, and dark pink rose quartz plays a good raw meat.”
“Ever since I was a little girl, I would always pick up rocks that I found enticing,” she explained. Amelia started collecting larger pieces in September 2019, and her collection quickly grew from around 100 crystals and gemstones to over 700.
“It’s almost impossible for me to fathom that something so brightly colored and intricately detailed can be found in the earth growing naturally,” she reflected, adding, “I think that rocks and minerals are some of the most beautiful things nature has to offer.”
The jewelry maker advises others to look for a calcium carbonate mixture of calcite and aragonite if they want to own a chunk of imitation fried chicken for themselves. The most chicken-like of all the calcites, she added, hails from Mexico.
Despite a plethora of offers, Amelia’s own piece of inedible chicken tender is not for sale.
