Smoky quartz is quartz darkened — pale tea to nearly black — by natural radiation acting on traces of aluminium in the crystal. It is the national gem of Scotland, where it has been cut for Highland dress since the Bronze Age under the name cairngorm, after the mountains it was dug from.
What smoky quartz is used for
It does the grounding work of the black stones with a lighter touch — the tradition calls it the gentle transmuter: it takes the edge off stress rather than walling it out. Root chakra. It is the usual recommendation for someone who finds black tourmaline or obsidian too stark and wants something quieter.
Points and clusters suit it — the transparency is the pleasure of it, held up to a window. A good first grounding stone.
How to care for it
Water-safe; recharge in earth or moonlight. Water-safe and robust; like all the irradiated-colour quartzes, long sun will slowly pale it.
Smoky Quartz in the shop
Stones that keep it company
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