Saturday's Gem - Onyx & Tophatter Auction Reminder!

Good Morning.  Just a quick reminder about the Team Venus Tophatter Auction that will be starting this morning around T - 6 hrs 30 m (lol just like saying it that way it starts around 9 am Pacific Time)  I hope you can at least stop by and check out all the amazing goodies they are offering at a very low starting bid at http://tophatter.com/auctions/3562  I already have my eye on about 10 different things!  Here is just a very brief snapshot of the 100+ items that are entered into the auction.

Our Gem for this beautiful Saturday is Onyx.  I used absolutely love black Onyx as a teen but never realized that it came in so many different colors.  Shades range from white – gray – black and cream colored - tan – brown.  Onyx is porous so it can take on dye easily and can be colored many variations.  It is most commonly seen in black. 

Onyx is a Chalcedony quartz and is a microcrystalline (meaning it has very tiny crystals) and is botryoidally or mammillary shaped.   Onyx is made from a silicate solution that slowly fills the spaces and cavities usually in low temperatures the gradual time gives it layers and the banded look.  It is often used in making carvings like cameos because of the layered colored can give most art pieces a striking look.

These beautiful Vintage Cameo Earrings can be purchased from Etsy Shop CamanoIslandVintage at  http://www.etsy.com/shop/CamanoIslandVintage

All Chalcedony (including Onyx) is smooth; sort of waxy looking, and very hard.  Because of these characteristics it makes it a great medium for carving as mentioned before, making cabochons, beads, and even larger items like boxes and bowls.

These are great examples of Raw Black Onyx and can be purchased from ETSY shop KKGemStones at http://www.etsy.com/shop/kkgemstones

Metaphysically Onyx was thought by the Ancient Egyptians to be able to divide lovers and disrupt the harmony within the relationship to point of splitting them up.  Onyx is a stone that is related to negative energies; it will cause a discord within oneself if used in abundance and keeping your own energies bottled up.  But on the other hand can be useful to get rid of bad relationships or to protect you from any people that are going to be problematic, so it is suggested to have a small figure or amulet for those purposes.  It is also said that once the Onyx is dyed it seals the cells and seals in the energy.

I love the look of onyx and any of the banded agates and chalcedony.  They always have their own hidden shapes often resembling other things.  It is fun to look at the patterns from a cross piece and find land or seascapes sometimes even silhouettes of animals and flowers in the beautiful bands.

Here are some wonderful collections of Onyx and items made from Onyx: