Custom Wire Wrapped Hemimorphite Heart Necklace/Pendant Sterling Silver .935
Hemimorphite is a zinc silicate mineral known for its distinctive crystal shape and association with zinc ores. Its modern metaphysical lore, linked to empathy and joyful transformation, has been created by crystal healing practitioners.
- Distinctive crystal shape: The name hemimorphite comes from the Greek words hemi ("half") and morph ("shape"), referring to its unusual hemimorphic crystal structure. A single crystal is terminated by different faces at each end, with one being blunt and the other pointed.
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Historical confusion with smithsonite: For centuries, hemimorphite and the zinc carbonate mineral smithsonite were mistakenly thought to be the same mineral and were collectively called "calamine".
- In 1803, British mineralogist James Smithson discovered they were two different minerals. The names smithsonite and hemimorphite were officially adopted later, with the International Mineralogical Association approving the latter in 1962.
- The "calamine" used in calamine lotion was historically a powdered mixture of both minerals.