Goldstone, sometimes referred to as Sandstone or Aventurine Glass, is actually not a natural crystal but rather a manmade colored glass that contains abundant, flat-faced, highly reflective inclusions. The reflective inclusions have a bright metallic luster, and their glittering appearance has made goldstone a popular gem in the modern world.

It is said the original goldstone was accidentally discovered by Italian monks or the product of alchemy (I mean...how cool right?!) But the actual manufacturing process for this stone was invented in the seventieth-century Venice by the Miotti family. Nowadays Goldstone is readily available, but how is this stone actually made?

According to geology.com, “the reddish Goldstone is made by heating molten glass to a temperature that is hot enough to dissolve granules of copper oxide that are added to the melt. After the copper oxide is completely dissolved, the melt is allowed to cool very slowly. This slow cooling gives copper ions in the melt adequate time find one another and grow into octahedral-shaped copper crystals. The slower the cooling, the larger the copper crystals.

The bright metallic luster of these copper crystals is what produces the sparkling appearance of goldstone. An octahedral crystal has eight triangular faces. If you look at goldstone with a microscope under reflected light, you will see triangular faces of the copper crystals reflecting the light back at you from various depths below the surface of the glass.

The glass of reddish brown goldstone is colorless. Its reddish brown appearance is caused by reflections from the included copper crystals. Blue, green, and purple goldstone are made using compounds of metals other than copper. The color of these goldstones is caused by the color of the glass rather than the color of the reflections from the metallic crystals. The glass color of blue goldstone is caused by cobalt, green is caused by chromium, and purple is caused by manganese."

With Goldstone being a manmade crystal, does it have any healing properties? Well this stone is called the “stone of ambition” for a reason. The reflective gold glitters call to mind wealth and wonder. This stone gives us self-confidence, expand the mind for more creativity, and motivate us to go after our goals. Being a manmade stone, it sets a daily reminder of ingenious creativity and what can happen when we set our minds to create.  

Love & light,

Serenity