Sodalite
Other Silicates & Gemstones
Sodalite is a sodium-rich feldspathoid mineral, commonly seen as opaque royal-blue masses mottled with white calcite. It is a mineral in its own right, whereas lapis lazuli is a rock that can contain sodalite-group minerals along with other constituents.
Identity
- Material or variety
- Sodalite
- Scientific or material identity
- Sodalite
- Classification
- Natural mineral or mineral variety
- Composition or formula
- Na₈(Al₆Si₆O₂₄)Cl₂
- Crystal system or structure
- Cubic
- Geological or manufacturing origin
- Can form in more than one geological environment, or combines several materials.
- Mohs hardness
- 5 to 6
Origins
Afghanistan · Bolivia · Canada · Greenland · Myanmar · Namibia
Appearance & optical properties
opaque royal blue sodalite with white calcite veins.
History & discovery
Sodalite was described in 1811 from Greenland’s Ilímaussaq complex and named for its sodium content. It remained a mineral curiosity until rich blue material discovered in Ontario in 1891 made it important as an ornamental stone.
Uses & care
- Common uses
- Massive blue sodalite is cut into cabochons, beads, boxes, spheres, carvings, facing stone, and inlay. Rare transparent crystals may be faceted as small collector gems.
- Handling and cleaning
- Clean only with a soft brush, mild detergent, and warm water. Its hardness of about 5.5 to 6 makes it vulnerable to scratches, so store it separately and use a protective setting for rings.
Jewellery
5 pieces of Sodalite jewellery. Learners earn each one in DigMyGem by learning words; until then it shows as a silhouette.
Hackmanite Twilight Ring
Ring
A ring set with a hackmanite, a sodalite that turns violet in sunlight and fades back to pale grey in the dark. It is worn to watch the stone change colour with the day.
Sodalite Collar
Necklace
A collar of deep royal-blue sodalite beads, a stone mined in bulk in Ontario from 1891 and often mistaken for lapis. It has none of the golden flecks of lapis, only white veins of calcite.
Sodalite Cabochon Earrings
Earrings
A pair of round blue sodalite cabochons hung as earrings, each stone a slightly different blue. Under ultraviolet light they glow orange, a secret the wearer keeps.
Bancroft Maple Brooch
Brooch
An imagined maple-leaf brooch cut from royal-blue sodalite with fine white veins, named after the Ontario town where the blue stone was mined.
Twilight Blue Tiara
Tiara
An imagined silver tiara set with royal-blue sodalite veined in white, the colour of the sky just after sunset.