Product Description

FOUND IN: ITALY, MEXICO, SCOTLAND & USA

Obsidian is a naturally created glass. It is formed form volcanic lava which cooled too quickly for significant crystallization to occur. It is most often black, but colors such as gray, brown, and less likely but evident still is red, blue and green. These colors may be uniform, spotted or banded. This coloring is caused by the presence of titanium, iron or manganese.

In some stones, the inclusion of small, white, radially clustered crystals of cristobalite in the black glass produce a blotchy or snowflake pattern, and this is known in the gem trade as Snowflake Obsidian. Obsidian may contain patterns of gas bubbles remaining from the lava flow, aligned along layers created as the molten rock was flowing before being cooled. These bubbles can produce interesting effects such as a golden or rainbow sheen.

In addition to its use as a gemstone, obsidian has been used in cardiac surgery, as well-crafted obsidian blades have a cutting edge many times sharper than high-quality steel surgical scalpels, with the edge of the blade being only about 3 nanometers wide. Even the sharpest metal knife has a jagged, irregular blade when viewed under a strong magnification. When examined under an electron microscope an obsidian blade is still smooth and even.

Since obsidian is composed mainly of silicon dioxide, it has similarities to quartz. But since obsidian is not crystalline, it is not as hard as quartz

METAPHYSICAL:
Obsidian is a very powerful stone, one which reminds us that birth and death are simultaneously and constantly present, one with the other, always as one. This is a stone that has always been associated with guardian spirits that watch over us, and is connected to protection on all levels.Snowflake

Obsidian aids in clearer and more logical thinking. Carry this stone to keep others from taking advantage. This stone will reveal what needs to be changed in life to assist one in advancing.

SCIENTIFIC:

Color: Colorless, Pink, Red, Yellow, Brown, Green, Blue, Violet, Black, Multi-Colored
Color of streak: White
Moh’s hardness: 5 – 5½
Specific gravity: 2.3-2.6
Cleavage: None
Fracture: Large Conchoidal, Sharp Edges
Composition: Volcanic, Amorphous, Siliceous Glassy Rock
Transparency: Opaque, Transparent
Refractive index: 1.48 – 1.51
Double refraction: None
Dispersion: 0.010
Pleochroism: None
Absorption spectrum: Green” 6800, 6700, 6600, 6500, 6350, 5950, 5550, 5000
Fluorescence: None