Charoite
charoite
Found in exactly one place on earth, a small area of the Murun massif on the Chara River in Siberia, and formed by a syenite intrusion cooking limestone at 200, 250 °C. It has been available to collectors only since the 1970s, which makes its folklore about eighteen months older than most of its owners.
Seen · you don't have this one yet
Mineral facts
Hardness
5-6 Mohs
Formula
K(Ca,Na)2Si4O10(OH,F)·H2O
Family
silicate
Where it comes from
Russia (Murun Massif, Sakha Republic, Siberia), sole world source
What it is
Found in exactly one place on earth, a small area of the Murun massif on the Chara River in Siberia, and formed by a syenite intrusion cooking limestone at 200, 250 °C. It has been available to collectors only since the 1970s, which makes its folklore about eighteen months older than most of its owners. The swirl is real; the tradition is invented.
What it is confused with
sugilite, lepidolite, dyed-howlite, purple-jade, dyed-quartzite, purpurite
Swirling, feathery, fibrous purple, the fibres are interlocked and curved, producing a silky chatoyant sheen that flows across the stone in whorls like brushed velvet or marbled ink. Colour ranges from pale lilac to deep violet within one piece, and it is almost always accompanied by white feldspar, orange-brown tinaksite and black aegirine inclusions. The fibrous whorled texture with a silky sheen is unmistakable and cannot be faked by dyeing. Takes a good glassy polish.
How to tell
The swirling fibrous chatoyant sheen is diagnostic, dyed howlite is flat, matte and shows dye in the veins; lepidolite is flaky and soft. Charoite is 5, 6, so a knife will not cut it easily but quartz will scratch it.
Genuine charoite is untreated. Dyed purple howlite, dyed quartzite and reconstituted 'charoite' composites are common fakes and lack the fibrous swirl.
What it means for you
The Moon is at 1° Scorpio today. Charoite is a silicate, 5-6 on the Mohs scale, and it is the stone traditionally carried when the problem is proximity rather than intensity.
You know what this one would do for you. You just don't have it.
Charoite for every sign
Aries
The swirl is real.
One place on earth: a small area of the Murun massif on the Chara River in Siberia, where a syenite intrusion cooked limestone at 250 degrees. Collectors have had it since 1978, which makes its folklore younger than most of its owners. The swirl is real. The tradition was written recently.
Taurus
Collectors have had it since 1978.
A syenite intrusion cooked limestone at 250 degrees under one small area of the Murun massif in Siberia, and that is the only place it exists. Collectors have had it since 1978. Every attribution attached to it is demonstrably younger than most of the people wearing it.
Gemini
Every tradition attached to it is younger than you.
One deposit on earth, in the Murun massif on the Chara River in Siberia, formed where a syenite intrusion cooked limestone at around 250 degrees. Collectors have only had it since the 1970s, so every tradition attached to it is younger than most of its owners. The swirl is real.
Cancer
Every meaning it carries was assigned within living memory.
One deposit on earth, along the Chara River in Siberia, where a syenite intrusion cooked limestone at around 250 degrees until the fibres grew in whorls. Nobody outside Russia had any of it before the late 1970s. Every meaning it carries was assigned within living memory.
Leo
Known since 1978. Every tradition attached is newer.
One small area of the Murun massif on the Chara River in Siberia, and nowhere else on the planet. Collectors have only had it since 1978, which makes every tradition attached to it younger than most of the people repeating them. The fibrous violet swirl, at least, is real.
Virgo
The swirl is real. The tradition is not.
One deposit on earth, the Murun massif on the Chara River in Siberia, where a syenite intrusion cooked limestone at 200 to 250 degrees. Collectors have only had it since the 1970s, so every attribution attached to it is younger than most of its owners. The swirl is real. The tradition is not.
Libra
The swirl is real. The tradition was written afterwards.
One deposit on earth, a small area of the Murun massif on the Chara River in Siberia, formed where a syenite intrusion cooked limestone. Collectors have had access only since the 1970s. The fibrous violet swirl is real and every scrap of folklore attached to it was written after 1978.
Scorpio
The swirl is real. The tradition was invented.
Found in exactly one place on earth, a patch of the Murun massif on the Chara River in Siberia, where a syenite intrusion cooked limestone at around 250 degrees. Collectors have had access to it only since 1978. The swirl is real and every attribution attached to it is a modern construction.
Sagittarius
The folklore is younger than most of its owners.
One deposit exists, in the Murun massif on the Chara River in Siberia, where a syenite intrusion cooked limestone at around 250 degrees. Collectors have had it since the 1970s, which makes the folklore younger than most of its owners. The swirl is real and the tradition is not.
Capricorn
The swirl is real. The tradition dates from 1978.
Found in exactly one place on earth, a small patch of the Murun massif on the Chara River in Siberia, where a syenite intrusion cooked limestone at around 250 degrees. It reached collectors in the 1970s, which makes its folklore younger than most of the people who own it.
Aquarius
Every attribution attached to it dates from after 1978.
One deposit on earth, a small area of the Murun massif in Siberia, formed where a syenite intrusion cooked limestone at 250 degrees. Every attribution attached to it dates from after 1978, which makes the folklore younger than most of the people wearing it. The swirl is genuine.
Pisces
Everything it means was invented within one human lifetime.
The swirl is real: interlocked curved fibres producing a silky sheen that flows across the stone like brushed velvet. It exists in one small area of Siberia and has been available since 1978. Everything it means was invented within one human lifetime.
Correspondences
What tradition attaches to this stone. Folklore, not chemistry.
Element
spirit
Planet
Pluto
Chakra
third-eye, crown
Signs
scorpio, sagittarius, virgo
What tradition says
In crystal lore, charoite is associated with confronting fear and with rapid, unwanted but necessary change; because the stone has only been known since 1978, every attribution attached to it is demonstrably a modern construction.
Care
- Water is fine. Dry it afterwards.
- Keep it out of direct sun. The colour goes and does not come back.
- Salt scratches it. Do not bury it in salt.
- Brief water contact is tolerable but do not soak; associated minerals are softer than the charoite itself. Purple can weaken in sustained sun. Avoid salt and ultrasonics.
Common questions
What does charoite mean?
Charoite is carried for transformation, shadow work and intuition. Found in exactly one place on earth, a small area of the Murun massif on the Chara River in Siberia, and formed by a syenite intrusion cooking limestone at 200, 250 °C.. Tradition links it to the third-eye, crown chakra.
Is charoite real or fake?
Charoite is not faked often, but it is still worth checking. The swirling fibrous chatoyant sheen is diagnostic, dyed howlite is flat, matte and shows dye in the veins; lepidolite is flaky and soft. Charoite is 5, 6, so a knife will not cut it easily but quartz will scratch it.. Genuine charoite is untreated.
Can charoite go in water?
A short rinse is fine for charoite, then dry it. Keep it out of direct sun, because the colour fades and does not come back.
Rare · violet, lilac, deep purple with white and black, lavender
Where this leads
This stone belongs to
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From the Grimoire
FOR ENTERTAINMENT AND REFLECTION. NOT MEDICAL, PSYCHOLOGICAL, FINANCIAL OR LEGAL ADVICE. How this works