- 1). Wrap your unopened geode in a towel and place it on a hard, flat surface. Wear your safety glasses during every step of the process to protect your eyes from flying debris.
- 2). Hit the geode with the blunt end of the rock hammer. If the geode is somewhat hollow with good crystals, the blunt end should open the geode. You may have to hit the rock more than once. As soon as you feel the geode begin to break apart, stop the hammering so that you do not crush the amethyst crystals inside.
- 3). Wrap the smaller pieces of the geode in a towel and place the rock on a hard surface with the crystals facing down. Gently hit the geode to break it into smaller pieces. Do not hit the sample so hard that you crush the crystal tips. The crystals will loosen from the geode walls as you break the rock into smaller pieces.
- 4). Remove the loosened crystals from the geode with the pointed end of the rock hammer. Aim the hammer's tip at the base of the crystal where it attaches to the rock or agate base. Try to remove the largest crystals on the ends of the sample first and work your way to the center.