Quartz with Hematite and Calcite Crystal Mineral Specimen

QUARTZ (var. ROCK CRYSTAL)

HISTORY, NAME, LOCALITIES: Rock crystal, which is common and occurs worldwide, has been collected since prehistory.  Notable collecting localities are found in India, Brazil, Germany, Peru, Bolivia, Namibia, Russia, and the United States (Arkansas, Colorado, Maine, Connecticut, Virginia).

MINERALOGY, PROPERTIES, OCCURRENCE: Rock crystal is the transparent, colorless variety of macrocrystalline quartz [silicon dioxide, SiO₂).  The word “quartz” is believed to have originated with the Slavic kwardy, meaning “hard,” in allusion to its substantial hardness.  It crystallizes in the hexagonal system and occurs mainly in hydrothermal veins, granite pegmatites, and as geode linings as short-to-long, horizontally striated, hexagonal, prismatic crystals with pyramidal terminations and distinctive, water-clear transparency.  It has a Mohs hardness of 7.0, a conchoidal fracture, vitreous luster, and specific gravity of 2.65.

METAPHYSICAL PROPERTIES, LORE, USES: Rock crystal has since antiquity been one of the most widely collected of all minerals.  It has served as a gemstone and ornamental stone in many cultures.  Until quartz was synthesized in the 1960s, rock crystal was vital to electronic frequency controls, filters, and timing devices. Modern metaphysical practitioners call rock crystal the “universal crystal” because of its numerous abilities to sharpen insight, enhance spiritual development, improve concentration, refine focus, and energize the mind.

HEMATITE

HISTORY, NAME, LOCALITIES:  Hematite served as the earliest red pigment.  Mineralogists recognized it as a species in the late 1700s.  Its name comes from the Greek haimatites, meaning “blood-like,” alluding to the red color of its earthy forms.  Notable collecting localities are found in Morocco, England, Pakistan, Switzerland, China, and the United States (Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Utah, Georgia, New York).

MINERALOGY, PROPERTIES, OCCURRENCE: Hematite [iron oxide, Fe₂O₃], pronounced HEE-muh-tite, is the most common iron-containing mineral.  It crystallizes in the hexagonal system (trigonal subsystem) in massive, botryoidal, compact, and earthy forms, and less frequently as thick-to-thin, tabular crystals.  It has a Mohs hardness of 5.5-6.5, no cleavage, a diagnostic deep-red streak, and a specific gravity of 4.9-5.3.  Massive and compact forms are steel-gray-to-black in color and have a metallic luster; earthy forms are cherry-red to reddish-brown with a dull luster. Hematite is found in sedimentary deposits, carbonatites, disseminated replacement deposits, regional metamorphic rocks, and hydrothermal veins.

METAPHYSICAL PROPERTIES, LORE, USES: Medieval physicians used hematite to treat circulatory, heart, and kidney disorders.  Modern metaphysicists believe that hematite enhances energy, vitality, memory, and intellect; helps to tolerate stress; and aids overall healing.  Hematite is the official state mineral of Alabama.  As the primary ore of iron, hematite has yielded about 85 percent of all the iron ever mined.  A silvery-gray, compact, crystalline form, called “specular hematite,” is fashioned into decorative objects and cabochons.

CALCITE

HISTORY, NAME, LOCALITIES: Although known since antiquity, calcite’s many confusing crystal habits precluded recognition as a species until 1845.  Its name stems from the Greek chalx, meaning “lime.” Calcite is found worldwide; notable collecting localities are in England, Iceland, Germany, India, and the United States (Tennessee, Missouri, Michigan, New Jersey).

MINERALOGY, PROPERTIES, OCCURRENCE: Calcite [calcium carbonate, CaCO₃], pronounced CHAL-site, is the most abundant carbonate mineral.  It crystallizes in the hexagonal system (trigonal subsystem); crystals are usually rhombohedral, scalenohedral, or prismatic with a unusually wide variety of habits.  It has a Mohs hardness of 3.0, perfect cleavage in three directions to form rhombohedrons, vitreous-to-dull luster, and a specific gravity of 2.7-3.0.  It is usually white or colorless, but impurities create a wide range of pale colors.  Calcite develops in many mineralogical environments, including pegmatites, carbonatites, chemical and sedimentary rocks, metamorphic rocks, and hydrothermal veins.

METAPHYSICAL PROPERTIES, LORE, USES: According to metaphysical practitioners, calcite enhances learning abilities, reduces fear and stress, removes negative energies, and promotes creativity and imagination.  Calcite is the primary mineral component of limestone, which is mined in huge quantities for use as dimensional stone, in cement, and as a metallurgical flux; and marble, which serves as a dimensional stone and sculpting medium.  Banded, massive forms of calcite, known as “marble onyx,” are fashioned into ornamental objects.