Rhodonite: what is it, who is suitable, properties and value

Ural is not without reason called the "mountain of semi-precious stones." This place is indeed a deposit of many unique minerals. One of these stones is rhodonite.

Rhodonite is a semi-precious ornamental stone, the color of which can vary from rich shades of red and crimson to dull, as if slightly powdered pink with different patches. The pattern of each stone is unique - it does not shine through the sun, except for particularly thin plates and a rare translucent variety.

The popular name of this stone is Orlets, since long before the deposits were located in the Urals, local residents often found an unusual red mineral in eagle nests. Therefore, it is still believed that an amulet of red pebbles, suspended above a cradle for children or a crib, will help the child grow as strong, proud and watchful as a real eagle.

The main characteristics of rhodonite include a description of the following properties:

• fairly high hardness of about 5.5 on the Mohs scale;
• jagged edges;
• opaque (translucent only in specific cases);
• glass shine;
• color - all shades of pink to rare crimson;
• The color of each stone is unique.

Despite the fact that the first samples of this mineral were found in Germany, which was the official discovery and recognition of this kind of semiprecious stone, it was known long before the German Christoph Friedrich Jasche introduced the concept of rhodonite into general use. In Russia, in the Urals, this stone was known for a very long time, albeit under a slightly different name. Thus, rhodonite is mined in Russia a little longer than in the rest of the world.

The first samples of rhodonite were found before the beginning of the twentieth century in the Yekaterinburg region, in the village of Maloye Sedelnikovo (not far from the village of Big Sedelnikovo in the Sverdlovsk region). The rhodonite vein in the village of Gagarskoe (its other names: Cheremshanskoe, Bazhenovskoe and Pushkarikhinskoe) are not inferior to the minerals mined in this area. Here rhodonite is located in the form of small nests and inclusions in the quartz rock.

For a long time it was believed that this is the only deposit of this mineral. Today, however, new deposits are being discovered throughout the Urals. Among them are Parnok, Kurgan and Tyshorsky.

Over time, rhodonite began to be found not only in the Ural region, but also in all regions of Russia. The most famous sources of this ornamental stone are the Trans-Baikal Territory, the Khabarovsk Territory, the Republic of Buryatia, the Republic of Sakha-Yakutia, the Primorsky and Krasnoyarsk Territories, and Karachay-Cherkessia.

In addition to these remote regions of the Russian Federation, rhodonite is also mined in Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan. It is also known about the presence of deposits in East China, Japan and in some European countries, for example, in Sweden. The largest suppliers of rhodonite in the world are such countries as Canada, the United States of America, Australia, Brazil, Mexico, Indonesia and the islands of Madagascar and Tanzania.

The division of rhodonite into varieties conditionally. As a rule, a stone is assigned to certain categories, it is primarily looked at the color of the stone (color, blotches, saturation) and how transparent the specimen looks. Classification of species is constantly updated with new and new species discovered that look so unusual that they cannot be assigned to any existing category, so you have to allocate new ones.

The most beautiful and rare, therefore, ruby-homogeneous rhodonite is considered to be expensive. It has a thick red color, which gives it some resemblance to ruby, which is why the name of this variety appeared. It has a very pure color, without internal inclusions of other shades and other impurities. Jewelry is made from this subspecies, combining, like rubies, gold and sometimes diamonds, although such rhodonite itself looks pretty impressive.

The next in cost, transparency and purity of color is translucent rhodonite. According to the palette of shades, it refers more to pink, although it may look pinkish or coral because of its translucency, which generates an interesting play of colors.

Next on the list will go common pink rhodonite, also known as pink spar. Opaque, can be any shade of pink, almost uniform color without various impurities and inclusions. It occurs quite often, because of what it has a low cost and is often used for crafts and interior design.

It is worth considering the following varieties with heterogeneous color:

• foalite - this species contains some zinc, which gives the mineral yellow or brownish blotches;

• tape - as the name implies, stripes of two colors alternate in copies of this sort, most often it is gray and pink, but sometimes brown is also present; sometimes stripes can be different tones of pink color;

• spotted - one of the lowest rated; The reason for this is in the presence of spots of different shapes and different colors (brown, dirty brown, gray, yellow, pink) on the surface;

• mourning - received such a gloomy name due to the presence in the black color of the pattern, which occupies a significant surface area of ​​the stone; therefore, it is used to make tombs, monuments, tombstones, and so on;

• dendrite - it consists of several colors: pink, brown and black in small quantities; In some instances, you can see the remains of twigs, moss and other plant species, which are actually the result of chemical processes and are called manganese hydroxide.

Important! Cobalt rhodonite, which looks like a lavender, violet or lilac mineral, was discovered recently, which makes it similar to amethyst and ametrine.

Rhodonite has been known in Russia for a very long time. It is not surprising that, over time, many mystical and healing properties were attributed to these crystals, which according to legends sometimes exceeded those of emerald.

It should start with the most common physical properties possessed by any mineral. The pink color of the stone is based on chain manganese silicate, which is also the chemical composition of this mineral. Consequently, the more manganese is contained in the composition, the more saturated will be the pink color of the stone.

Rhodonite has a glassy shine, most often opaque. Transparent and translucent specimens are found in nature very rarely and are highly valued in the jewelry industry and collectors.When grinding the surface of the stone gets a mirror finish and the same cold shine. The hardness of the mineral is from 5 to 6.5 points on the Mohs scale.

Rhodonite is considered to be mostly a mineral for women, as it contributes to the easy bearing and favorable birth of a child, which provides good health in the first minutes of life. He promotes conception.

Especially the stone is recommended for young women who become pregnant for the first time. Wearing rhodonite is an excellent prevention of some female diseases of the reproductive and genitourinary systems. Older women will help preserve beauty and youth as long as possible, since energy of the stone coincides with the female energy field.

It is able to prevent the development of eye diseases if small stones are left on the eyes every day for a few minutes. Such a treatment will help relieve excessive tension from the eyes and normalize eye pressure, which is especially useful for those who work a lot at the computer or in another area where there is a large strain on their eyesight.

For diseases of the endocrine system will help a necklace of rhodonite. Stone helps with diseases of the circulatory and cardiovascular systems, heart and liver. Instead of a necklace, you can use a pendant made from rhodonite, but in a short chain so that the mineral fits as close as possible to the neck. If your main task is to prevent liver diseases (including the treatment of hepatitis), then you should use a ring with rhodonitis or a brooch on the right side of the body. The stone is able to equalize the heart rhythm, bring back pressure and improve blood circulation.

Another sphere of action of the stone, about which the lithotherapists for some reason forget - the pancreas. Rhodonite affects enzymes, speeding up and facilitating the process of digesting food and assimilating nutrients, which allows the body to restore health and energy reserves much faster. Also, the wearing of this mineral favorably affects the nervous system disorders, for example, neurosis.

Stone makes a person stress-resistant, helps to avoid nervous breakdowns, bouts of irritability, helps to improve sleep, heal insomnia and restore memory. It will calm during panic attacks, fears and nightmares, give optimism, hope and a state of harmony. Very popular therapeutic rhodonite balls used for massage and meditation.

Primarily rhodonite is known in magic as an ornamental stone for many esoteric tools that can serve as talismans for a very long time. Products from this mineral are like a battery that can charge with both bad emotions of its owner and good ones. If you purchase a product from rhodonite as a spare battery, take care not to inadvertently sate it with negative emotions.

Rhodonite is a stone of creative people. He will help discover the abilities and talents that are still hidden, step over laziness and eventually lead to well-deserved success and fame. In creative crisis, Orlets brings inspiration and faith in oneself, reduces fear of failure and new beginnings.

Crafts from rhodonite are used as a family amulet. This is a good gift for any family holiday - a product from this mineral for a long time will protect you and your loved ones from envy, gossip, betrayal, quarrels and other people's treacherous intrigues. If you are still single, then rhodonit will attract your soul mate and soul mate to you.The stone is able to enhance intuition and bring good luck, which makes it indispensable for gamblers.

Orlets has a rare ability increase the wealth of the ownerso there is nothing surprising in the fact that many collectors seek to get it into their collection. If you put a rhodonite with dark inclusions in the hallway or corridor, you will be protected from the invading robbers. If necessary, you need to conduct a meditation that will fill the stone with your positive energy and will strengthen the owner through strengthening its value for the person.

In terms of its energy, rhodonite is quite delicate and will not do any harm, therefore, wearing jewelry with it can all signs of the zodiac.

Here are just for representatives of the fire element - Sagittarius, Aries and Leo - any product with an orlets will remain a simple piece of jewelry without any useful properties. With special care, Sagittarius and Aries should treat the acquisition of ruby ​​rhodonite - a perfectly clean stone without inclusions has enhanced qualities that, coupled with the swiftness and dynamism of these signs, can lead to completely unpredictable consequences.

Scales will increase self-esteem, self-reliance. If Libra lacks a state of inner peace, then you need to acquire pink rhodonite, and if the desire to increase its popularity with the opposite sex prevails, then the most valuable ruby ​​rhodonite will do.

This stone is not contraindicated, but it can introduce earth signs - Maiden, Capricorn and Scorpio - into deep despondency. If the mad energy of a scorpion is able to resist anguish, then Virgo and Capricorn should wear rhodonite with caution and inconstantly.

Rhodonite jewelry often involves the use of other stones and metals. It depends not only on the idea of ​​the jeweler-creator, but also on the type of mineral. For example, if the classic combination for a ruby ​​rhodonite is gold and diamonds that beat its rich bright color, then using a spotted or mourning rhodonite in such a combination will simply destroy the entire impression of the jewelry.

Quite often silver is used for decorations with orlets. This metal of neutral color is able to create a simple but elegant decoration with almost any kind of stone.

If you look at jewelry from an esoteric point of view, then with the help of other stones you can make combinations that affect different areas of life, namely:

• if you are a public person and the attention and perception of the public is important for you, then pay attention to the combination with sapphire or ruby, but choose one thing, not all at once;

• for creative people who need recognition, it is worth picking up an ornament with rhodonite and a tiger eye;

• a combination of pink orlets with jade will serve to increase material benefits;

• to conclude a truce, refer to the decoration with rhodonite and turquoise;

• often used a combination of pink spar and carnelian, framed with silver, which creates a gentle, feminine image.

Not all rhodonite species seek to forge.As a rule, the most common on the market is plastic "ruby rhodonite" or "translucent", but made of simple pink glass - purpurine. If you buy other varieties of Orlets, then first of all pay attention to its color - in the natural stone there will always be blotches, patterns of a different color or other unique features.

You can compare the weight - a real stone, as a rule, is heavy, and plastic is much easier. But if the fake is made of glass, then it will be much more difficult to identify it. This mineral is quite dense and poorly conducts heat, so hold the product in your hands for a few minutes - if it heats up quickly, then you have a fake.

Defects in the form of various injuries should not be present on the surface of the stone. This rhodonite is very hard, so damaging it is not an easy task.

Although rhodonite is pretty unpretentious, it is better not to break some rules for caring for them, then the stone will last much longer.

• Orlets is not suitable for permanent wear. He needs to “give a rest” for some time, and before that he should wash with warm running water and soapy water, then wipe with a soft cloth. Do not use hard brushes and aggressive cleaning agents when washing.
• Stone should be protected from sudden changes in temperature, falls and gross physical effects. Ideal for storing precious stones - a separate box or pouch for each.
• If some interior decorations or decorative souvenirs are made from the Orlets, then it is enough to simply wipe them from dust. Often, decorative items are made of pink spar, which does not have great strength. In this regard, the product should be protected from shocks and falls.

About the features of the stone, see the following video.