Rhodonite

Rhodonite is a pink-red silicate mineral containing manganese. It gets its rose colour from manganese and is often marked with black manganese oxide veins or patches. It usually occurs in massive form and is cut and polished into cabochons, beads, small carvings and decorative slabs. Its name comes from the Greek word rhodon, “rose”.

Ornamental stone: Massive rhodonite is worked into cabochons, beads, small carvings and decorative slabs. At the Serrana mine in the Tarragona area of Spain, a mixture of rhodonite and pyroxmangite is extracted for decorative slabs and cabochons. Architecture and monuments: In the 19th century the deposits in the Ural Mountains were worked as ornamental stone; the tomb of Tsarina Maria Alexandrovna was built from a block from this area. Collecting: Transparent, bright pink crystals from places such as Broken Hill, Morro da Mina in Brazil and Peru are prized by collectors.

It has a hardness of 5.5–6.5 on the Mohs scale. It can scratch glass; a steel knife scratches it only with difficulty. Its specific gravity is 3.57–3.76 g/cm³.

Its best-known localities: Yekaterinburg area, Ural Mountains, Russia; Långban, Värmland, Sweden; Franklin, New Jersey, USA; Broken Hill, New South Wales, Australia; Conselheiro Lafaiete (Morro da Mina), Minas Gerais, Brazil.

Its colour runs from rose pink to reddish brown, with typical black manganese oxide veins or patches; surface oxidation can turn the colour brown or black. It is much harder than rhodochrosite, the other pink manganese mineral: rhodonite has a hardness of 5.5–6.5, rhodochrosite 3.5–4. Its specific gravity is about 3.6, noticeably heavier than the look-alike pink quartz (2.65).

On the “street to diamond” value ladder it sits on step 5 of nine: Ornamental stone. What matters most in rhodonite is the vividness and saturation of the pink and the pattern of the black veins; stones that have turned brown or are dominated by black oxides are less sought after. Smooth-polishing, crack-free, large pieces are valued as ornamental stone. Transparent red crystals that can be cut are far rarer; but being soft and having perfect cleavage, they are easily damaged, so they are sought mostly as collector specimens.

In Türkiye some news and lifestyle sites claim that rhodonite balances the heart chakra, heals heartbreak and old emotional wounds, calms anger and resentment, and strengthens self-love and confidence. The same sources also say that rhodonite reduces stress and has positive effects on the heart and circulation. There is no scientific evidence that rhodonite heals emotions, calms anger or helps the heart and circulation; for heart or circulation complaints, see a doctor rather than relying on a stone. The stone's pink colour comes from the element manganese; no effect on mood has been shown. This section reports beliefs; it is not health information. There is no scientific evidence for these claims and no stone replaces medical treatment.