PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
- GROUP Silicates - cyclosilicates
- COMPOSITION (Mg,Fe)2Al4Si5O18
- COLOR Blue, greenish blue, purplish grey
- CRYSTALLINE SYSTEM Rhombic
- CRYSTALLINE HABIT Short prismatic, granular
- HARDNESS 7 - 7.5
- FRACTURE From conchoidal to unequal
- EXFOLIATION Moderate to bad
- SHINE Vitreous to oily
- STRIP White
- TRANSPARENCY From transparent to translucent
- SPECIFIC GRAVITY 2.6
- REFRACTIVE INDEX 1.53 - 1.55
MINERALOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS
Iolite is the name given to transparent blue cordierite of gem quality. It is also given the name of water sapphire, due to its bluish color. Iolite is pleochroic, when viewed from different angles it shows different colors, between blue, violet, lilac and gray. Its name comes from the Greek "ios", which means "violet color". The crystals are prismatic. It appears in contact metamorphic rocks, in gneiss and in sedimentary rocks.
It is said that iolite was a stone used by the Vikings for navigation. Carved in the shape of a lens, it helped them to know the position of the Sun on cloudy days.
Deposits: India, Brazil, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, United States and Madagascar.
THERAPEUTIC PROPERTIES
The iolite is considered a vision stone. It is associated with the 6th chakra, also called the third eye, activating intuition and promoting understanding. The iolite enhances introspection and the connection with inner knowledge. On a healing level, it is said to help heal addictions and codependency. Strengthens the body and promotes detoxification.
