Also new in stock I have 4mm and 6mm rose cut iolite, at $3.15 and $13 per stone respectively. An interesting stone, with its pleochroic qualities; an indigo blue face-up colour (ideally!), but demonstrating browns, greys and yellows from different angles. In fact I have sometimes had customers contacting me to tell me their iolite is faulty, so clearly grey is it when viewed from the side. No, not faulty, just the nature of this fascinating stone. Legend has it that is was known as the ‘Viking Compass Stone’, and that thin slivers of the stone served as glare reducers and polarising filters that helped Viking marine navigators locate the sun on cloudy days, and therefore locate their own position. It’s a beautiful stone, taking it’s name from ‘ios’, the Greek for ‘violet’. It’s a fairly hard stone, at 7-7.5 on the Mohs scale, and for those who are interested in such things, not treated. It can’t be heat treated as it has a relatively low melting point so would not withstand the kind of heat that, say, sapphire would be subjected to to intensify its colour. This material is slightly included but has a good, saturated indigo colour. Click here to buy!