Chrysocolla Gemstone – Meaning, Origin, Healing Properties, Uses, Similarities and Care

Akin to most semi-precious stones, Chrysocolla also belongs to mineral origin. It is found in an exceptionally beautiful sea green, sea blue and hues of blue-green colors. The opaque and translucent diaphaneity of the stone along with vitreous patina or contrast earthy luster forms extraordinary patterned stones. Several of these stones display designs that look like a globe.  The word is formed from Greek words Chrysos that means ‘gold’ and kola that means ‘glue’. In primordial times, this stone was extensively used by goldsmiths to solder the metal “gold”. 
Origin 
Chrysocolla belongs to the copper family. It is a copper silicate mineral found in crevices of copper deposit. It is an ore of copper. Chrysocolla is an amorphous type of crystal and usually contains some amount of aluminum and quartz. The quartz either blends in with the copper silicate mineral or forms a layer of quartz on the surface. The stone is abundantly found in Australia, Zaire, USA, Chile, Israel and England. 
Healing Properties
The soothing blue-green color of the stone is believed to encourage calmness, peace, unconditional love, patience, creativity and intuition in one’s life. Besides promoting mental well being, Chrysocolla is thought to have medical healing properties. It is supposed to heal throat related ailments, ulcers and cramps. True to its properties, the cool soothing color is known to have a calming effect on common medical issues like fever and minor burns. 
Uses
As Chrysocolla gemstone is atypical crystal its structure and appearance is reniform, botryoidal or stalactitic. It is found in the form of huge round balls or abstract shapes that have fibrous vein like design between them. Chrysocolla is an extremely soft mineral stone and hence is rarely used in jewelry designs. It weighs only 2.5 to 3.5 in hardness on Mohs scale. Although low in hardness, there are many petite faceted Chrysocolla gemstones available in the market that are used in expensive and precious jewelry. 
Besides exclusive jewelry, the stone is widely available as cabochons. Chrysocolla cabochons are easy to create due to the stones natural drusy surface. Silver, sterling silver and platinum metal complements this stone well. Copper strings and light colored beads match well with the stone and intensify the healing properties of the stone. 
Similarities with Other Stones
Chrysocolla has mineral composition similarities with other stones and are often confused with Turquoise and Azurite. Apart from these two, it also shares commonalities with Limonite and Malachite. Many other stones that have similar color combinations that can be mistaken for Chrysocolla are Simthstone, Variscite, Allophane and Chalcedony of green and blue color. The colors of these stones could be either too dark or too light. Usually a single color like green or blue in Chalcedony gemstone would be more dominant. 
Care
As Chrysocolla is a soft and precious stone, it should be handled with care. Chemicals in perfumes can cause loss of luster. Excessive heat can damage the coating of the stone permanently. If the stone is used in a jewelry form, it should not be mingled with other metals and stone. Utmost care should be taken to prevent it from falling or hitting hard surface as the stone would shatter to pieces due to its pliability. Chrysocolla though a soft and precious stone is extremely versatile and can be used to embellish numerous items.