Azurite

Azurite is safe to handle in its finished, polished state, but excessive exposure to its dust may lead to heavy metal poisoning. When cutting or polishing azurite, wear a dust mask to minimize dust inhalation. Store it in a sealed container in a well-ventilated area, away from children and pets. For those involved in crystal healing, never put it in your mouth.

Azurite has poor toughness, making it susceptible to damage from breaking, chipping, or cracking due to its cleavage and fragile internal structure.

Azurite is not ideal for daily use due to its susceptibility to water, sunlight, heat, stains, and chemicals which all contribute significantly towards altering its appearance and structural integrity over time.

Azurite is often found in close proximity to copper deposits, making it a great indicator of nearby copper and other valuable materials. Its bright blue color and close association with the bright green mineral Malachite make it a popular gemstone. Azurite can also be ground up and used as a pigment.

Known since ancient times, azurite had varied important roles to play in many civilizations, including Chinese, Mayan, Egyptian, Greek and Roman, as well as Native Americans. They all associated this stone with the divine. Reportedly, in ancient Egypt azurite was shrouded in mystery and was known only to the highest priests. Ancient Chinese called it "the stone of heaven". In Greek mythology, azurite honors Athena, the goddess of wisdom and war.

The use of azurite and malachite as copper ore indicators led indirectly to the name of the element nickel in the English language. Nickeline, a principal ore of nickel that is also known as niccolite, weathers at the surface into a green mineral (annabergite) that resembles malachite. This resemblance resulted in occasional attempts to smelt nickeline in the belief that it was copper ore, but such attempts always ended in failure due to high smelting temperatures needed to reduce nickel. In Germany this deceptive mineral came to be known as kupfernickel, literally "copper demon." The Swedish alchemist Baron Axel Fredrik Cronstedt (who had been trained by Georg Brandt, the discoverer of the nickel-like metal cobalt) realized that there was probably a new metal hiding within the kupfernickel ore, and in 1751 he succeeded in smelting kupfernickel to produce a previously unknown (except in certain meteorites) silvery white, iron-like metal. Logically, Cronstedt named his new metal after the nickel part of kupfernickel.

Azurite is one of two basic copper(II) carbonate minerals, the other being bright green malachite. Simple copper carbonate (CuCO3) is not known to exist in nature. Azurite has the formula Cu3(CO3)2(OH)2, with the copper(II) cations linked to two different anions, carbonate and hydroxide. Small crystals of azurite can be produced by rapidly stirring a few drops of copper sulfate solution into a saturated solution of sodium carbonate and allowing the solution to stand overnight. Azurite crystals are monoclinic. Large crystals are dark blue, often prismatic. Azurite specimens can be massive to nodular. They are often stalactitic in form. Specimens tend to lighten in color over time due to weathering of the specimen surface into malachite. Azurite is soft, with a Mohs hardness of only 3.5 to 4. The specific gravity of azurite is 3.77 to 3.89. Azurite is destroyed by heat, losing carbon dioxide and water to form black, copper(II) oxide powder. Characteristic of a carbonate, specimens effervesce upon treatment with hydrochloric acid.

The mineral, a basic carbonate with the chemical formula Cu₃(CO₃)₂(OH)₂, has been known since ancient times, and was mentioned in Pliny the Elder's Natural History under the Greek name kuanos (κυανός: "deep blue," root of English cyan) and the Latin name caeruleum. Since antiquity, azurite's exceptionally deep and clear blue has been associated with low-humidity desert and winter skies. The modern English name of the mineral reflects this association, since both azurite and azure are derived via Arabic from the Persian lazhward (لاژورد), an area known for its deposits of another deep-blue stone, lapis lazuli ("stone of azure").

Azurite is believed to open communication to higher powers, including clairvoyance and spirit guides. It is often used to remove negative blockages affecting the physical, emotional, and spiritual areas of the body, allowing for a positive flow of energy and renewed strength. It can be kept in the home or office or worn as jewelry for greater healing.