Sunstone

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Jewelry 101--Colored Stones

Sunstone

Like its counterpart moonstone, sunstone is also a gemstone comprised of feldspar. While both stones have similar characteristics these stones have a very different appearance with the color and adularescent properties of moonstone reminiscent of moonshine and the color and aventurescence of sunstone rivaling the bright, shiny sun itself.

Sunstone is comprised of feldspar, a group of minerals that is broken down into two main groups—Plagioclase (calcium) Feldspars and Alkali (potassium) Feldspars. Both of these groups have a sunstone variety.
Today, sunstone is a fairly inexpensive gemstone due to the more recent finds in Norway, Siberia, and other parts of the world, but in the early 1800’s sunstone was a more rare and costly gemstone.
In the early 1900’s sunstone was found in ancient lava fields in Oregon in a desert area called Warner Valley. Native Americans in that area might have been the first collectors of these sunstones.
Sunstone can have a sparkly, metallic-looking luster called aventurescence which is caused by flat, reflective inclusions. These inclusions are sometimes referred to as “schiller”.
Not all sunstones display aventurescence, though most have a warm yellow, orange, or brown body color. The look of the aventurescence depends on the size of the inclusions—small inclusions create a reddish or golden sheen on top of the body color while larger inclusions create sparkly, glittery reflections. These inclusions can be hematite, copper, or some other mineral.
Sunstone from Oregon is a transparent feldspar with glittery copper inclusions and is gaining attention worldwide for its natural and untreated beauty.
The aventurescence of sunstone is usually red, orange, or golden yellow and, very rarely, green or blue.
Star Sunstones are sunstones that display asterism in the form of four-rayed stars. Sunstones occasionally also display a cat’s eye effect.

Specs

Chemical Formula	Microcline: KAlSi₃O₈ Oligoclase: (Na,Ca)Al_1-2Si_3-2O₈	Mineral Class	Microcline or Oligoclase
Color	Red, Orange, Brown, Pink
Crystal System	Triclinic	Hardness	6-6.5
Transparency	Transparent to translucent	Luster	Vitreous
Refractory Index	1.525 - 1.548	Double Refraction	0.01

Legends

Wounded by an arrow the blood of a great warrior, according to Native American legend, dropped onto pieces of Oregon sunstone and the blood carried his spirit into the stones staining them with shades of red and imbuing them with sacred power. Because of this, Native Americans have buried their dead with sunstone nuggets.

Several 13th-14th century written sources in Iceland describes sunstone’s use to locate the sun in a completely overcast sky. A theory exists that the stone had polarizing attributes and was used as a navigation instrument by seafarers in the Viking Age.

An ancient tale of Saint Olav, King of Norway from 1015 to 1028, used a sunstone to confirm the time by holding the sunstone up against the snowy and overcast sky and noting where light was emitted from it.

Ancient Greeks and Egyptians believed that the sun god Ra imbued sunstone with the energy of creation.

Today some believe that sunstone is powered by the sun and can pave your path to successful opportunities and, in the process, allow you to experience mental clarity, creativity, and productivity. It’s also believed to clear negativity by spreading good energy, peace, and positivity.

For those who believe in the chakras sunstone can tap into your lower chakras to balance hormones, detoxify negativity, and promote wellness. It can also accelerate the effects of medicines and alleviate pain.

As far as the chakras go, bonding with sunstone relieves tensions by connecting you to the earth via the root chakra, activates the life force via the sacral chakra, and promotes physical and emotional healing via the solar plexus and heart chakras.