Hardness
from the Antique Jewelry University
Hardness in jewelry terms (and gemology) means the ability of a subject to withstand abbrassion by another subject. The most widely used scale of hardness (in gemology) is Moh's scale of relative hardness. This scale goes from 1 to 10 with gypsum at place 1 and diamond at place 10. A material - or gemstone - that is lower on the scale can not leave a scratch on a material that is higher on Moh's scale. Quartz (at place 7) is a critical point as dust in air has many minute silica particles in it and may scratch gemstones and other materials below place 7 on the hardness scale. Sand also consist in part of quartz and this may cause your jewelry to be damaged during gardening.