I write a lot, here and elsewhere, about thresholds and interstices, tangible and otherwise, about the interplay between light and shadow that creates lines we may perceive — and never moreso than at this time of year, when the autumn light in this place manifests in its most mystical form.
And so, today, I’ve chosen to feature a stone that embodies those lines themselves: clearly visible, a tangible thing, yet perceptible precisely because of the interplay of light upon the surface of the gem. It’s a stone unfamiliar to most people, and often mistaken for another, but it is fully its own mineral: Psilomelane.
The name is pronounced, more or less, as SIH-LOH’-meh-lahn (or meh-layne), a compound word of Greek etymology, psiló-, translating in English roughly to “bare,” or “naked,” or “smooth.” and -mélan, or “black.” In other words, it was given a name that means, more or less, “smooth black stone,” which is also more or less true, as far as it goes, but doesn’t begin to describe its full identity.
Psilomelane is often misidentified and mislabeled as “black hematite,” which is a misnomer thrice over. It’s not hematite at all; there isn’t really a “black” hematite anyway; and psilomelane is not precisely black, at least in its polished form. It does, however, have the shiny metallic gunmetal gray look of hematite, and its easy to see where the confusion arises. It is, however, a wholly different mineral: Hematite is an iron ore, while psilomelane is a manganese ore — specifically, it’s a hydrous manganese oxide that contains barium and potassium. [There are other manganese oxides, but psilomelane is harder.] Adding to the confusion over its identity, a given deposit also may contain bits of iron oxide.
And it’s not merely that the stone is mistaken for another mineral altogether; in some regions, it’s known by a whole other name, romanechite (pronounced roughly roh-mahn-ESH-ite). This name derives from the region where one famous deposit was found: Romaneche, in the Saone-et-Loire region of France. It appears, though, that the name romanechite applies only to one specific, albeit common, variant of psilomelane, that which contains barium. It does not appear to include the form of psilomelane that contains only potassium. Germany is also a substantial source of romanechite.
Psilomelane is considered a common mineral, and indeed, it is found virtually worldwide in its variant forms (the only continent on which it has not yet been found is Antarctica). As noted above, there are significant deposits in both France and Germany; numerous others may be found as far north as Finalnd, as far south as Greece, and as far east as Russia. It is also found in the United Kingdom: in Somerset, in southwest England; in Lostwithiel, Cornwall; and in Scotland’s Orkney Islands. Here in North America, psilomelane can be found here in the U.S. in Alaska, Arkansas, New Mexico, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, and Wisconsin, at a minimum, and in Nova Scotia in Canada. Sources exist in Panama and in Argentina, Bolivia, and Brazil in South America; in Africa, in Botswana, Kenya, Namibia, South Africa, Togo, and Zambia; and in Madagascar. It also appears in several deposits in Australia; and in Asia, its range is scattered from the eastern reaches of Russia and Siberia to China, Cambodia, and Japan.
Psilomelane minfest primarily in two forms: botryoidal, from the Greek, which means, literally, to appear “like a bunch of grapes”; or as stalactitic masses, from the German for “dripping,” formed by the accumulation of dripping water into a shape resembling an icicle. It often appears like the image shown above and below, a gray-black mass with banded lines, often wavy, running in parallel through the stone. The bands often appear metallic, luminescent but without colorful rainbow hues or chatoyant effects. You can see an example of the bands present in the stone in its rough form at this link; an example of the stone in botryoidal rough form is shown here.
This luminous banding effect is linked directly to psilomelane’s symbolism among New Age “crystal practitioners.” Some suggest that those lines are a manifestation of “the landscape of life,” or of many different “truths.” Some regard it as a stone related to patterns of thought and behavior; others, as a protective talisman that wards off everything from colds and hypothermia to evil spells and witchcraft. Some also believe that its powers can turn on the wearer, and suggest that its use in “dark arts” means that it should not be worn by ordinary people for extended periods, for reasons of both physical and spiritual health.
To us, of course, it has no such properties. It is not a stone of “black magic,” nor of witchery; it is a gift of the earth that manifests, much like the Earth itself, in an unusual and beautiful play of light and shadow. Its ore qualities render it a hybrid, metal and mineral simultaneously, making it especially well-suited to the wearable art of metalsmithing, at once contrasting and complementary. [The only cabochon Wings currently has in his inventory of stones is the one shown; the two photos depict the two sides of the same stone. If it speaks to you, he can create a work uniquely suited to you; simply inquire via the Contact form at left.]
It is, indeed, a stone of lines and shadows, an example of the forces of Earth itself charting its own map in miniature.
~ Aji
All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2015; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.
