Stone Archive

Kunzite

Provenance

Madagascar

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Concept

Dried Lavender

MONTH

SEPTEMBER BIRTHSTONE

TRACE & NARRATIVE

Discovered in 1902 near San Diego, California. Named after George Frederick Kunz, gemologist to Tiffany & Co.

A variety of spodumene, its delicate violet-pink produced by trace manganese. But prolonged exposure to ultraviolet light causes the colour to fade. The more light it receives, the more it loses.

Found in Afghanistan, Madagascar, and Brazil—Afghanistan's Nuristan province yields particularly large crystals. Barely 120 years since discovery, still new in the world of gemstones. A colour that is not permanent. Handled carefully, for precisely that reason.

PHYSICAL ATTRIBUTES

MOHS SCALE

MOHS 6.5 ｜ MODERATE DURABILITY

LATTICE STRUCTURE

MONOCLINIC SYSTEM | INCLINED TENSION

VISUAL METRICS

Pale pink-violet, transparent. The colour is soft, but the impression stays clean, not sweet.

MAINTENANCE

Strong light can fade the colour permanently — store out of sunlight.
Has strong cleavage — can split on hard impact.
Do not leave on windowsills, dashboards, or under display lights.

SYMBOLIC INDEX

ORIENTAL PHASE

FIRE PHASE

CLASSICAL ELEMENT

AETHER

PHYSIOLOGICAL FOCUS

Heart | Anahata, Crown | Sahasrara

ASTROLOGICAL PERIOD

Taurus, Libra

PSYCHOLOGICAL PROJECTION

Reopening — Trust — Tenderness

Restores circulation to the parts that closed after damage. Not forced — it waits for the moment of felt safety, then eases the tension. A slow thaw, not a sudden one.

SELECTOR'S NOTE

A circuit closed because of something that happened — maybe he knows which event, maybe he doesn't. This stone is not for force. I keep it for the moment a person feels safe enough to let something open by a fraction. Not hurried. Not imposed. Only when he's ready.