Chrysocolla
chrysocolla
A hydrated copper silicate with no fixed hardness, ranging from chalk to gem depending on how much silica got into it. The Greeks named it for gold-solder, since it was used as a flux. People carry it for communication, calm and self-love. Tradition attaches it to the element water, the throat, heart chakra, Venus.
Seen · you don't have this one yet
Soft material is routinely resin-stabilised or backed to make it workable. 'Eilat stone' is a natural mixture of chrysocolla, malachite and turquoise; reconstituted versions exist.
This one does not go in water. It dissolves.
Contains metals you should not drink. Never make an elixir with it.
Mineral facts
Hardness
2.5-7 Mohs
Formula
(Cu,Al)2H2Si2O5(OH)4·nH2O
Family
silicate
Where it comes from
USA (Arizona, Ray, Inspiration), Peru, DR Congo, Israel (Timna, Eilat stone), Chile, Mexico
What it is
A hydrated copper silicate with no fixed hardness, ranging from chalk to gem depending on how much silica got into it. The Greeks named it for gold-solder, since it was used as a flux. Its colour is the exact blue of shallow water over sand, which is most of the reason anyone buys it.
What it is confused with
turquoise, amazonite, dyed-howlite, malachite, larimar, shattuckite
A vivid cyan to blue-green with a soft, cloudy, almost watercolour quality where the colour bleeds into browns and blacks at the edges rather than stopping sharply. Occurs as botryoidal crusts, earthy masses and, most desirably, infused through chalcedony, in which case it becomes translucent and hard. Pure chrysocolla is chalky and very soft; silicified material is glassy and hard. Frequently intergrown with malachite, azurite and black manganese, giving a mottled parrot-wing appearance.
Commonly faked · check before you buy
How to tell
Hardness is wildly variable, so test the specific piece: chalky material scratches with a fingernail, gem silica scratches glass. Unlike turquoise, chrysocolla's colour is cyan-leaning and bleeds into the matrix in soft clouds rather than forming discrete nodules with hard veins.
Soft material is routinely resin-stabilised or backed to make it workable. 'Eilat stone' is a natural mixture of chrysocolla, malachite and turquoise; reconstituted versions exist.
What it means for you
The Moon is at 1° Scorpio today. Chrysocolla is a silicate, 2.5-7 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.
Chrysocolla for every sign
Aries
It has no fixed hardness.
It has no fixed hardness. Depending on how much silica got in, the same mineral runs from something a fingernail gouges to gem silica that scratches glass, so test the piece in your hand rather than the label. The Greeks named it for gold-solder because they soldered with it.
Taurus
Test the piece rather than the name.
The colour is exactly that of shallow water over sand, which is most of the reason anyone buys it. Hardness runs from fingernail-soft chalk to gem silica that scratches glass, depending on how much silica got in. Test the piece rather than the name. Copper silicate, so no elixirs.
Gemini
The same mineral runs from chalk to gem silica.
It has no fixed hardness. Depending on how much silica got in, the same mineral runs from chalk you can mark with a fingernail to gem silica that scratches glass, so you have to test the piece in front of you. The Greeks named it after gold-solder, because they used it as flux.
Cancer
The colour is shallow water over sand.
The colour is shallow water over sand, which is most of the reason anyone buys it. Hardness runs from 2.5 to 7 depending on how much silica got in, so chalky pieces mark with a fingernail and silicified ones cut glass. It is a copper compound, so nothing goes in water.
Leo
Named for gold-solder, because that is what it did.
The Greeks named it gold-solder because that is what they used it for, as a flux for joining gold. Its hardness runs anywhere from 2.5 to 7 depending on how much silica got in, so two pieces under one name can behave like chalk and like gem. Copper silicate. Do not soak it.
Virgo
Test the piece, because the species has no fixed hardness.
Hardness anywhere from 2.5 to 7 depending on how much silica got into the specimen, so the label tells you nothing and the piece in your hand tells you everything. Chalky material takes a fingernail. Gem silica scratches glass. It is a copper compound either way, so keep it out of the bottle.
Libra
Two pieces of one name, one chalk and one gem.
Hardness anywhere from 2.5 to 7, depending on how much silica found its way in, so two pieces sold under one name can behave like chalk and like gem. The Greeks named it for gold-solder because they used it as a flux. Copper compound, so keep it out of water.
Scorpio
No fixed hardness. It depends what got into it.
A hydrated copper silicate with no fixed hardness, running from chalk a fingernail marks to silicified gem material that scratches glass, depending entirely on how much silica got into it. The Greeks named it for gold solder. Copper compounds, so keep it out of anything you drink.
Sagittarius
Test the specific piece rather than the species.
Hardness anywhere from chalk to gem depending on how much silica got into it, so test the specific piece rather than the species. The Greeks named it for gold-solder because they used it as a flux. Arizona and Timna in Israel produce the good material.
Capricorn
Not a property of the mineral. A property of your piece.
Hardness here is not a property of the mineral but of your particular piece: chalky material scratches with a fingernail, silicified gem material scratches glass, and both are sold under one name. The Greeks named it for gold-solder because they used it as a flux. Copper compound, so no elixirs and no soaking.
Aquarius
The same mineral runs from chalk to gem.
Hardness runs anywhere from 2.5 to 7 in the same species, depending on how much silica got into it, so one piece carves like chalk and the next takes a gem polish. The Greeks named it for gold solder because they used it as a flux. Copper compound, so keep it out of drinks.
Pisces
The colour bleeds at the edges rather than stopping.
The colour bleeds into browns and blacks at the edges rather than stopping anywhere, which is most of why it looks like shallow water over sand. Hardness runs from 2.5 to 7 depending on how much silica got in. Copper compound, so no elixirs and no soaking.
Correspondences
What tradition attaches to this stone. Folklore, not chemistry.
Element
water
Planet
Venus
Chakra
throat, heart
Signs
taurus, gemini, virgo
What tradition says
In crystal lore, chrysocolla is associated with speech, teaching and the tempering of anger, and is often called a goddess stone; the throat-chakra placement is a colour-based modern assignment.
Care
- Contains copper or heavy metals. Do not make elixirs. Wash your hands.
- Do not put this one in water. It dissolves or spalls. Dust it dry.
- Salt scratches it. Do not bury it in salt.
- Porous and often soft; water can leach and dull it, and salt attacks the copper content. Dry cloth only. Stabilised pieces should still be kept out of solvents and ultrasonics.
COPPER silicate. Copper compounds are toxic if ingested and soft material powders readily. Do not make elixirs, do not soak, do not grind dry. Wash hands after handling raw or chalky pieces. Hard silicified gem silica is much more stable but should still not be put in drinking water.
Common questions
What does chrysocolla mean?
Chrysocolla is carried for communication, calm and self-love. A hydrated copper silicate with no fixed hardness, ranging from chalk to gem depending on how much silica got into it.. Tradition links it to the throat, heart chakra.
Is chrysocolla real or fake?
Soft material is routinely resin-stabilised or backed to make it workable. 'Eilat stone' is a natural mixture of chrysocolla, malachite and turquoise; reconstituted versions exist.. Hardness is wildly variable, so test the specific piece: chalky material scratches with a fingernail, gem silica scratches glass. Unlike turquoise, chrysocolla's colour is cyan-leaning and bleeds into the matrix in soft clouds rather than forming discrete nodules with hard veins.. Soft material is routinely resin-stabilised or backed to make it workable.
Is chrysocolla toxic?
COPPER silicate. Copper compounds are toxic if ingested and soft material powders readily. Do not make elixirs, do not soak, do not grind dry. Wash hands after handling raw or chalky pieces. Hard silicified gem silica is much more stable but should still not be put in drinking water.
- Read: toxic crystals, the compounds, and what it actually means →
- Read: the crystals you cannot put in water →
- Read: fake crystals and the four tests that settle it →
Common · cyan, turquoise blue, blue-green, sea green, with black or brown matrix
Where this leads
This stone belongs to
Related crystals
FOR ENTERTAINMENT AND REFLECTION. NOT MEDICAL, PSYCHOLOGICAL, FINANCIAL OR LEGAL ADVICE. How this works