Celebrate the Earth's natural treasures

By Bethany Waldrop Keiper

"The Earth's a big blue marble when you see it from out there..." -- Skip Redwine

This April 22 marks the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, a time to stop and reflect on the beauty of the Earth and the health and future of the planet. For many, it is a time to take action to make sure environmental concerns are voiced or local conditions are improved.

Whether people are environmentally conscious or not, almost all enjoy and celebrate the Earth's beautiful treasures of stones, gems, and minerals. When cut and polished, two of these stones, sodalite and chrysocolla, look like our planet when it is viewed from space.

Sodalite, with its varying colors from light to royal blue, and its lines and swirls of white, is sometimes an exact match for the Earth's "big blue marble" in the star-dotted black realm of space. Sodalite is a somewhat scarce mineral that can form into rock. The white swirls that give it such character are veins of calcite. It gets its name from its high sodium content, and is considered a semi-precious stone.

Sodalite

It is a soft stone, not suited for rings or other jewelry where direct impact might be an issue. It is perfect for cabochons, where the interplay between its hues of blues, black, and white can resemble the Earth, a midnight sky, or the stormy waves of the sea. No two pieces or beads of sodalite ever seem to be quite the same. Stunning carvings are often made from the stone, even though small cracks are common in the carved pieces.

Sometimes sodalite is confused with lapis lazuli, another lovely blue stone with a higher cost. One visual difference between the two is that lapis usually has pyrite inclusions in it, while sodalite does not. Even though one common name for sodalite is bluestone, it is not always blue. It can be found in white, gray, or green.

Sodalite is a relatively "new" stone, historically speaking, so there is not an abundance of ancient myths surrounding it, although beliefs about its health and spiritual benefits abound. It is said to be a very grounding stone, helpful for decision-making, and for calming those in emotional turmoil and mental confusion. This relates to its title as the "Stone of Truth" -- it does not prevent lying so much as it clears confusion to help make the truth evident. It has also been called the "Wisdom Stone" -- a title it shares with lapis lazuli.

Athletes are said to carry sodalite to help improve and prolong physical endurance. The stone is also believed to awaken the Third Eye.

To find sodalite, take some trips all around the globe -- to Ontario, Canada; Mount Vesuvius, Italy; Brazil, the Ice River area of British Columbia; and Maine, United States.

Now, from Maine, go all the way back to space to see planet Earth again, this time in shades of bright aqua oceans and lush green forests. This mix of green and aqua is unique to the mineral world, and chrysocolla is its source. Chrysocolla is actually a mineraloid, which isn't an official class of stones, but a name given to those "leftover" specimens that don't have the crystalline structure needed to belong to the classification of mineral.

Chrysocolla

It is a copper-bearing stone, found in the oxidation zones of copper ore deposits. To find some of the best naturally-occurring copper ore bodies, which are also the best places to find chrysocolla, it would take some more globe-hopping. Best bets include Australia, Zaire, Chile, France, the United States, and England.

Pure chrysocolla is too soft to be used for jewelry, so it is lucky that it likes to mix and mingle with other minerals. It is often found in quartz, which helps to strengthen it, making it hard enough to cut and polish into cabochons. The unique green-blue is also found mixed with malachite and azurite.

Chrysocolla can also be found "agatized" in chalcedony quartz, resulting in druzy chrysocolla. Druzy is tiny quartz crystals that form inside or on top of other stones. It resembles tiny crystals of frost that never melt. Druzy chrysocolla is a soft robin's-egg blue, and in the right craftsman's hands, it can become a very valuable piece of jewelry.

Each piece of this mineraloid varies greatly in its combinations of green and blue, even within the same stone. Some of the more turquoise-colored specimens have been fraudulently used as a substitute for natural turquoise, with is much more costly.

As with sodalite, there are many beliefs about the energy and power of chrysocolla. It is a flexible stone, useful in the heart, throat, and solar plexus chakras. Its healthful properties include relief for ulcers and arthritis. Though it has no official titles, it is thought to be the most gentle of stones, associated with tranquility, patience, and unconditional love.

Since it is such a soothing stone, many consider it to be a stone of feminine lunar energy, and believe it draws out the nurturing instincts of those goddesses, such as Kwan Yin. It is also believed to increase tolerance for both oneself and for others. Chrysocolla's resemblance to the globe, combined with its tranquil properties, is said to make it a natural stone to use for meditating for world peace.

A peaceful planet would be a wonderful thing to celebrate next Earth Day.

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