I have a special fondness for today’s gem (technically mineral)
Serpentine. Serpentine is a metamorphic
rock that is very plentiful in California so much so that it is the actual
State Mineral. The reason why I like it
so much is that it brings back fond memories of Terry’s and my first real rock-hounding
expedition together.
We drove at least
100 miles climbed to over 5,000 feet for an amazing rock-hounding
experience. Unfortunately since was very
novice at that time we didn’t realize that the maps I bought and all the
research I did on the site was not going to guarantee that we would actually
find what we were looking for. We
wandered the mountains for several hours in 104 degree temperatures only
picking up pretty specimens of Serpentine.
The site was supposed to be a treasure trove of abandoned mines with the
possibility of garnet and other wonderful semiprecious gems and minerals, but
Terry and I could only see green.
So we enjoyed our hike to the point of dehydration and
decided that we better take a few of the specimens we found of Serpentine and
call it a day. The good thing was that
we did not have any Serpentine in our collection since we just came from
Wisconsin and so we still, to this day, have a large piece of our finds on
display.
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| A Couple of better specimens we found |
Since Serpentine contains a mixture of magnetite, magnesite,
talc along with other minerals such as asbestos the grades of the rock can vary
quite a bit. Some of the Serpentine we
have found can only be used for display; it is much too soft and fragile to be
used for anything else. This type of
Serpentine is called Crysotile (Fibrous.)
But some Serpentine can be a very durable beautiful green that will be
wonderful for cabochons, beads, and carved collectibles, this is the Antigorite
(scaly) Serpentine. The color can vary
from green to a yellowish green and even have a grey tone or be white.
Serpentine can be broke down into 3 more categories; Common
(which is what we had found) Precious (which I wish we had found,) and
Chrysotile Asbestos (which has industrial uses and not typically something I
would want in my house.) Precious
Serpentine looks a little like Jade when it has been polished or made into
jewelry. But it should never be mistaken
for Jade because there is a definite difference the look and in the value of
the pieces. I think every woman should
have jewelry that is made from both, but that is just me.
Metaphysically travelers used Serpentine as a stone for
protection. Often it was traders traveling
from town to town or sailors that would wear Serpentine. Native Americans wore it to protect them from
any natural dangers while Roman’s used it to keep away hidden threats. It has also been thought to be used in
ancient cultures to help the dead with their travels from this world to the
next. It can also be used to protect the
home from negative outsides forces such as intruders. Overall Serpentine is the stone
(metaphysically speaking) for most of us in this day and age; we are always on
the move.
(for more information on Serpentine you can find references
on my information page http://butterflyintheattic.blogspot.com/p/information-and-referrences.html)
Here are some great picks from ArtFire using Serpentine:
