Mookaite is a swirled chert from Western Australia, sold as mookaite jasper. It is a natural rock made of the tiny fossil skeletons of sea creatures, with colors that come from iron and manganese in the ground.
Quartz (microcrystalline); radiolarian chert · radiolarian chert (jasper in the bead trade)
Mookaite
Mookaita
- Palette
- Red Yellow Orange Brown Pink Purple White Multicolor
- Mined in
- Australia
- Hardness
- Mohs 6.5–7.0 ?
- See-through
- opaque
- Known since
- no formal date (bead-trade name)
- Named for
- Mooka Creek, Western Australia
- Also sold as
- mookaite jasper, Australian radiolarite, silicified radiolarite from Mooka Creek
- Intention
- Protection Strength
- Looking for
- Grounding Willpower
- Water
- Fine with water and mild soap
- Dye or finish
- Mookaite is usually sold natural, with its colors from clay and iron in the rock. Ask if a strand is brighter than normal.
Not in our pieces now
KENNEDY RANGES
Mookaite is mined from the Windalia radiolarite of the Kennedy Ranges near Gascoyne Junction, Western Australia, rock laid down in the Early Cretaceous.
IRON OF PALEOLITHIC
Radiolarite, the rock type mookaite belongs to, has been called the 'iron of the Paleolithic' because it was shaped into axes, blades, drills and scrapers.
90% EXTINCT
About ninety percent of known radiolarian species are extinct, and each one is only 0.1 to 0.2 millimeters across.
What it is
Mookaite is a trade name for a swirled, opaque chert from Western Australia, in cream, mustard, rust red and purple-brown. It is a sedimentary rock made of the silica skeletons of tiny sea creatures, and it is sold as "mookaite jasper" although it is not a true jasper in the strict sense.
What gives it its color
Mookaite is a rock made of tiny sea-creature skeletons turned to silica, and its yellows, reds and browns come from iron-rich minerals, while the cream and white parts are purer silica.
Where it comes from
Mookaite comes from the Kennedy Ranges near Gascoyne Junction in Western Australia, in a rock layer called the Windalia Radiolarite.
What's said about it
In crystal lore, mookaite is grouped with the jaspers, stones people keep for steadiness. It's said to be a stone for staying grounded and for sticking with something over time.
Long before it was a bead, rock like this was chipped into tools by early peoples. Today people wear it on the wrist or carry it in a pocket.
How people wear or keep it: On the wrist, in a pocket, or held in the hand.
In crystal practice
In the crystal tradition, mookaite is paired with the root and sacral and solar plexus chakras, so practitioners rest it there during meditation or lie down with it in place for a few quiet minutes. Day to day, the same tradition suggests keeping it close: on the wrist, in a pocket, held in the hand. People reach for it when they want grounding, willpower, and many set an intention when they put it on. Most practitioners cleanse a new stone first (running water only if the stone can take it, otherwise smoke or moonlight) and set it aside now and then to rest.
These are beliefs people have held and still hold about the stone, reported as such. Nothing here is a promise or a medical claim. We sell stones as jewelry, not for these effects.
Associations
The chakra and star sign this stone is usually matched with. These are popular traditions, not facts about the stone.
ChakraRoot, Sacral, Solar Plexus
ZodiacLeo
ElementEarth
Also calledmookaite jasper, Australian radiolarite, silicified radiolarite from Mooka Creek
Care
- Hard enough for daily wear, but it is a brittle rock, so a sharp knock can chip it.
- Clean with a soft cloth and lukewarm water; dry it afterward.
- Keep it away from harsh cleaners and ultrasonic machines.
- Store it apart from harder stones such as quartz crystal and gem beryl.
How to tell what you have
- Mookaite is a fine-grained Australian rock (a chalcedony-type radiolarite) in earthy reds, yellows, creams and purples, hardness 6.5 to 7.
- Look-alike jaspers are common. Very bright or even colors, or dye in the drill hole, point to dyed jasper.
Questions people ask at our table
What is mookaite?
Mookaite is a fine-grained chert from Western Australia, made mostly of microcrystalline quartz formed from fossil radiolarian shells. It is sold as mookaite jasper in the bead and crystal trade.
Is mookaite dyed?
The colors are natural, from iron and manganese carried through the rock by groundwater. Bright, even colors with no swirl may point to dyed chert, which is a different thing.
Where does it come from?
The stone comes from one area, near Mooka Creek in the Kennedy Ranges of Western Australia. It formed on an ancient sea floor in the Cretaceous.
How is it different from our red and brecciated jaspers?
Mookaite has softer, creamier swirls of mustard, rust and purple. Jaspers such as red leopard or brecciated jasper are usually more solidly colored or broken into angular patches.
Do you carry mookaite?
Not at the moment. Red leopard, brecciated jasper, lemon jasper and muddy jasper give a similar earthy, swirled look.
Not in our pieces right now
Stones we do carry that are close to it are listed under related stones.
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