Snowflake Obsidian
obsidian with cristobalite spherulites
Obsidian caught in the act of devitrifying, the white flowers are cristobalite crystals nucleating in glass that is slowly, over geological time, deciding to become a rock after all. Utah's Black Rock and Millard County supply most of it. People carry it for shadow work, calm and grounding. Tradition attaches it to the element earth, the root, crown chakra, Saturn.
Seen · you don't have this one yet
Mineral facts
Hardness
5-6 Mohs
Formula
SiO2 glass + SiO2 (cristobalite)
Family
volcanic glass
Where it comes from
USA (Utah, Oregon, California), Mexico, Iceland
What it is
Obsidian caught in the act of devitrifying, the white flowers are cristobalite crystals nucleating in glass that is slowly, over geological time, deciding to become a rock after all. Utah's Black Rock and Millard County supply most of it. A specimen of a process rather than a state.
What it is confused with
dalmatian-stone, black-obsidian, flower-agate, merlinite
Black glassy body scattered with soft-edged white to grey-tan patches that look like snowflakes, feathers or lichen, each patch is a radiating cluster of cristobalite crystals that grew as the glass began to devitrify. The patches are three-dimensional, slightly raised or recessed after polishing because they are softer than the glass, and have feathery, fuzzy margins rather than clean circles. The black between them retains obsidian's mirror luster and conchoidal fracture.
How to tell
The white patches must have feathery radiating edges and sit in a glassy black body with conchoidal fracture; dalmatian stone's black spots sit in a granular white body, which is the exact inverse. Backlight a thin edge, obsidian glows brown, dalmatian stone does not glow at all.
What it means for you
The Moon is at 1° Scorpio today. Snowflake Obsidian is a volcanic glass, 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.
Snowflake Obsidian for every sign
Aries
You are looking at a process rather than a finished object.
The white flowers are cristobalite crystallising inside the glass, which means the stone is currently, over geological time, deciding to become a rock after all. Utah's Black Rock supplies most of it. You are looking at a process rather than a finished object.
Taurus
It is a specimen of a process rather than a state.
The white patches are cristobalite crystals nucleating inside the glass, which means the stone is slowly deciding to become a rock after all. Utah's Millard County supplies most of it. It is a specimen of a process rather than a state, and the process is not finished.
Gemini
Glass slowly deciding to become a rock after all.
The white flowers are cristobalite crystallising inside black glass that has slowly started becoming a rock after all. Millard County, Utah, supplies most of it. The patches take a duller polish than the glass around them because they are softer, which is the process showing its edge.
Cancer
It has been slowly becoming a rock since cooling.
The white patches are cristobalite crystallising out of the glass, which means this obsidian has been slowly turning into a rock since the day it cooled. Utah supplies most of it. The patches polish duller than the black around them because they are softer, and that is not a fault.
Leo
Glass slowly deciding to become a rock after all.
The white flowers are cristobalite crystallising inside glass that is slowly deciding to become a rock after all. Most of it comes out of Millard County, Utah. The patches polish duller than the glass around them because they are softer, and that dullness is the specimen rather than a flaw.
Virgo
You are holding a process rather than a finished object.
The white flowers are cristobalite nucleating inside glass that is slowly deciding to become a rock. Devitrification, running on geological time, and the patches take a duller polish than the black because they are softer. You are holding a process rather than a finished object. Most of it is Utah material.
Libra
You can feel the pattern with a thumb.
The white flowers are cristobalite, crystals nucleating inside glass that is slowly deciding to become a rock after all. They take polish softer than the black around them, so you can feel the pattern with a thumb. A specimen of a process rather than of a state.
Scorpio
A process rather than a state, caught partway through.
The white flowers are cristobalite crystals nucleating inside the glass, which means this obsidian is devitrifying and slowly deciding to become a rock after all. Utah supplies most of it. A specimen of a process rather than a state, caught partway through and sold as finished.
Sagittarius
Glass slowly deciding to become a rock.
The white flowers are cristobalite, nucleating in glass that is slowly deciding to become a rock. Utah supplies most of it.
Capricorn
Glass slowly deciding, across geological time, to become rock.
The white flowers are cristobalite, crystallising inside glass that is slowly, across geological time, deciding to become a rock after all. Utah supplies most of it. You are holding a process rather than a state.
Aquarius
A process rather than a state.
The white flowers are cristobalite, crystallising inside glass that is slowly deciding to become a rock after all. Devitrification takes geological time and it is happening in the piece you are holding, just not at a speed anyone can watch. A process rather than a state.
Pisces
Pattern appearing in something that had none.
The white patches are cristobalite, crystallising slowly inside glass that is in the process of becoming a rock. Devitrification is happening now, in the piece in your hand, on a timescale that makes saying so useless. Pattern appearing in something that had none.
Correspondences
What tradition attaches to this stone. Folklore, not chemistry.
Element
earth
Planet
Saturn
Chakra
root, crown
Signs
capricorn, virgo, pisces
What tradition says
In crystal lore, snowflake obsidian is associated with patience, with finding pattern in difficulty, and with the balance of light and dark, read directly from the appearance.
Care
- Water is fine. Dry it afterwards.
- As black obsidian: inert but chippy. The cristobalite patches polish to a slightly duller finish than the glass, which is normal and not a defect.
Common questions
What does snowflake obsidian mean?
Snowflake Obsidian is carried for shadow work, calm and grounding. Obsidian caught in the act of devitrifying, the white flowers are cristobalite crystals nucleating in glass that is slowly, over geological time, deciding to become a rock after all.. Tradition links it to the root, crown chakra.
Is snowflake obsidian real or fake?
Snowflake Obsidian is not faked often, but it is still worth checking. The white patches must have feathery radiating edges and sit in a glassy black body with conchoidal fracture; dalmatian stone's black spots sit in a granular white body, which is the exact inverse. Backlight a thin edge, obsidian glows brown, dalmatian stone does not glow at all.
Can snowflake obsidian go in water?
A short rinse is fine for snowflake obsidian, then dry it.
Common · black with white-grey patches, black with tan spots
Where this leads
This stone belongs to
FOR ENTERTAINMENT AND REFLECTION. NOT MEDICAL, PSYCHOLOGICAL, FINANCIAL OR LEGAL ADVICE. How this works