Banded Malachite

Malachite

Malachite is a beautiful, intense, green mineral that has banded masses taking the color from emerald green to a much lighter green.  The banded stones are highly sought after and come mostly from Africa.

This banded piece comes from the Copper Queen mine in Bisbee Arizona.  The mine is now closed but there are tours available.

The name Malachite comes from the Greek word for mallow, because the  designs on the stone resembled leaves of the mallow plant.

A Raw Image from Bisbee

Photos courtesy of :

R.Weller/Cochise College.

Ancient Egypt was using malachite 6000 years ago for jewelry and ornaments.  It was worn to ward off evil.

There is an archeology site in Isreal that indicates malachite was mined in the Timna Valley over 3000 years ago. They used it for ornamental stone, pottery and gemstones.

More modern use was for the green pigment in paints up to the 1800’s.

It is found all over the world,and quite often results from the weathering of  copper ores, especially where copper and limestone are present.

There is an interesting piece in the “Linda Hall Library”  in Mexico City.  “The Tazza”  is a large malachite vase,standing in the center of the malachite room.  It was a gift from the Tsar Nicholas 11, of Russia and is the biggest piece of malachite in North America.

Here is one from the Hermatige museum,St Petersburg  Russia.

This photo of State Hermitage Museum and Winter Palace is courtesy of TripAdvisor

In healing , Malachite is about harmonizing your body and should not be attached to any metal as metal can block the healing waves.  A sphere as a pendant on an earth chain such as leather or string works best. Use something natural as malachite is the most connected gemstone to the earth’s vibrations.

Very important stone for repelling negative energies and assisting in mental clarity.Works with the heart chakra and is also helpful for many feminine distresses.  It also repels nightmares.

It has been called the “Mirror of the Soul”

When worn as jewelry it will always reflect your feelings.  If you are having a real bad day, better off to leave it at home.

To increase it’s power use it with copper.

However, according to “Antoinette Matliins ” in the “Colored Gemstones” buying guide, one should never clean your malachite with any product  containing ammonia, as it will remove all the shine of your polished stones.

Resources: Malachite by SAh’Rah Kerfoot, also http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/geophys/malachite.html, gemisphere.com, gemdat.org,wikipedia.com,”The Pocket Book of Stones” by Robert Simmons,  “Gemstone Guardians” by Michael Katz  and of course our favorite “Colored Gemstones” by Antoinette Matlins.