Pyrite is iron sulfide, not gold, which is how it earned the name fool's gold. It tarnishes if it gets damp, so it is kept dry.
Sulfide
Pyrite
Pirita
- Palette
- Yellow Brown
- Mined in
- Spain, United States, Peru, Italy, Canada, Chile, United Kingdom
- Hardness
- Mohs 6.0–6.5 ?
- See-through
- opaque
- Known since
- Prehistoric
- Named for
- Greek pyrites lithos, a stone that strikes fire
- Also sold as
- fool's gold, iron pyrite, iron pyrites, marcasite (old jewelry name)
- Intention
- Abundance Strength
- Looking for
- Prosperity Willpower Luck
- Water
- Keep it dry; wipe with a soft cloth
- Dye or finish
- Pyrite is natural iron sulfide and is not dyed or heated, but it tarnishes when damp so some beads are sealed with a clear coating. Ask if a bead has been sealed.
Not in our pieces now
NAVAJÚN
Spain's Navajun locality yielded a 512-gram pyrite specimen whose main cube is 31 millimeters on an edge.
540 °C
Pyrite starts to break down into iron sulfide and sulfur at 540 °C.
19 SEPTEMBER 1991
German tourists found Otzi the Iceman, who carried pyrite for fire-making, in the Otztal Alps on 19 September 1991.
What it is
Pyrite is iron sulfide, a heavy, opaque mineral with a brassy-gold metallic shine, often in sharp cubes or as nuggets and flecks in darker rock. It is not gold and it tarnishes: left damp, the surface dulls and can turn iridescent or dark.
What gives it its color
Pyrite is iron sulfide, and its brassy gold color and metallic shine are its own; the rainbow tarnish on some pieces is a thin layer of oxidation on the surface.
Where it comes from
Large pyrite deposits are mined at Rio Tinto and elsewhere in Spain, and the best collector crystals come from Navajun in La Rioja and Soria in Spain, while Peru's Huanzala mine and Russia (iridescent pyrite) are also named.
In history
People struck pyrite against flint to make sparks long before they wrote about it: Neanderthals in Suffolk about 400,000 years ago, and Ötzi the Iceman (3350 to 3105 BCE) carried pyrite with his flint. In the 1500s and 1600s pyrite fired wheellock guns, and the Greek name pyritēs lithos means stone that strikes fire.
What's said about it
In crystal lore today, pyrite is the stone people keep for business and money matters. It is thought of as a stone for willpower and good fortune.
The name comes from the Greek word for fire, because it throws sparks when struck. Ancient writers noted this, and some North American peoples used it as an amulet.
People carry it in a pocket or keep it on a desk, in a cash box or in the prosperity corner of a room.
How people wear or keep it: In a pocket, on a work desk, in a cash box, or in the prosperity corner of a room.
In crystal practice
In the crystal tradition, pyrite is paired with the solar plexus chakra, 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: in a pocket, on a work desk, in a cash box. People reach for it when they want prosperity, willpower, luck, 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.
ChakraSolar Plexus
ZodiacLeo
ElementEarth
Also calledfool's gold, iron pyrite, iron pyrites
Care
- Keep it dry. Pyrite breaks down slowly in damp air and water, so no soaking, swimming, steam or sweaty wear.
- Wipe with a dry soft cloth and store with a silica packet or in a dry pouch.
- Brittle as well as moderately hard, so it chips if dropped.
- Keep away from acids, perfume and cleaning products, which dull the surface.
How to tell what you have
- Pyrite is brassy, brittle and heavy, and it shatters where real gold bends. It is harder than chalcopyrite (6-6.5 against 3.5-4), and it dulls to dark or rainbow tones when damp.
Rules and sourcing
Some pyrite beads are sealed with a clear coating to stop tarnish. The FTC jewelry guides call for a seller to disclose a coating, which can wear off.
Questions people ask at our table
Why is it called fool's gold?
It looks like gold at a glance, but it is iron sulfide. Gold is soft and buttery and shows a golden streak, while pyrite is hard, brittle and leaves a greenish-black streak.
Does pyrite tarnish?
Yes. Pyrite is unstable in damp air and slowly breaks down, so it can dull or turn iridescent. Keeping it dry slows this.
Can I get it wet?
Avoid it. Water and humidity speed the breakdown, so take it off for washing, swimming and the shower.
Where does it come from?
It is common worldwide. Well-known sources include Spain, the United States, Peru and Italy.
Is it the same as marcasite jewelry?
Often it is. Victorian marcasite jewelry usually uses small faceted pieces of pyrite set in silver.
Not in our pieces right now
Stones we do carry that are close to it are listed under related stones.
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