Everywhere, in every colour, and it splits light in two.
The aesthetic
Calcite is one of the most common minerals on earth and one of the most varied in habit, forming in more crystal shapes than almost anything else and in nearly every colour. Clear Iceland spar shows double refraction so plainly that a line drawn under it appears twice. It is soft, cleaves into neat rhombs when struck, and fizzes in weak acid, which is the quickest way to tell it from quartz.
The dynamic
Calcite is described as a cleansing and amplifying stone, with each colour taking on its own association, and is often used as the gentler counterpart to clear quartz.
Some variations
- iceland spar
- honey calcite
- blue calcite
- orange calcite
- green calcite
- cobaltoan calcite