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[John Robinson]

I was looking at my amethyst the other day and one seem to 'jump' out to me. I could not even tell  what was special about it (?). That started me thinking and I realized that I was going to have to add amethyst to the list of things I do not know much about.
So what is the difference between a good amethyst and an ordinary amethyst?
I have four stones that look like conglomerates not crystals (to the left in the pix) Is there a name for this type of quartz?

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[rocks2dust]

The most valuable amethyst stones are a medium-dark tone (around 85%), highly saturated violet-purple (aka, "royal purple") color that when faceted shows reddish flashes (scintillation) under incandescent lighting. Stones should be eye-clean and exhibit even saturation. Stones with some deep blue color zoning are sometimes encountered, and also desirable when cut to show the blue to advantage (i.e., showing some dark blue, along with the reddish, scintillation through facets). As the tone gets lighter and/or the color saturation lessens, the value of amethysts declines rapidly. Treated stones are priced the same as lower-value and synthetic amethyst.

As to those that you describe as "conglomerates," I'm seeing stones with color zoning (and perhaps some inclusions). When well cut to highlight inclusions (e.g., rutile or cacoxenite) or zoning (e.g., pseudo-trapiche pattern), these can raise the value of otherwise lower-grade amethyst.

[John Robinson]

So a 'pink amethyst' is royal purple with red highlights?

I screwed up again and sent the wrong photo this is one of the stones I was referencing

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[Barclay]

here is what i would look for in a perfect amethyst.  Nice deep purple, but not so dark as to be opaque.  You should see red and blue flashes from incandescent light as it hits the facets.  Even color throughout the stone.  The cut should reflect all the the light through the table.  No "windows" that let you see all the way through the stone when looking through the table.  No visible inclusions. A girdle that is appropriate for the stone size.  No big band around the stone and no knife edge shaped girdle.

[crashoveroide]

The finest amethyst color is a strong reddish purple or purple with no visible color zoning. Dealers prefer strongly saturated reddish purple to dark purple, as long as the stone is not so dark that it reduces brightness. If the color is too dark, an amethyst might look black under dim lighting conditions.

[finegemdesigns]

I'll just add to the above excellent answers that the best material seems to come from Africa. Brazil and Uruguay have tons of amethyst but their best color doesn't get to the level of Africa's best. Deep translucent purple with flashes of blues and violets from different angles.