Discover the World’s Largest Quartz Crystals

World's Largest Quartz Crystal
Largest Display Cluster, Quartz. Namibia, Crystal Gallery.

The world’s largest quartz crystal on display resides in Swakopmund, Namibia. This piece was pulled from a Namibian mine 135 feet deep, and weighs an incredible 14,100 Kgs. The excavation of the piece took over three years before finding its home at the Crystal Gallery in Swakopmund.

Coleman Mine Multi-Million Quartz Cluster
The $3.5 Million Quartz Cluster pulled from the Coleman Mine in Arkansas.

This amazing quartz cluster was excavated from the Coleman Mine in Jessieville, Arkansas. It sports beautiful clear points, amazing luster, and took 4 days to pull out of the mine. It is over 8 feet in diameter and weighs 2,000 pounds (~907 kg). The majority of the piece’s value does not come from it’s size, but rather the condition, luster, and unique features specific to such a find.

 

Berns Quartz Cluster
The Bern Quartz Cluster out of Arkansas.

Another fabulous Arkansas origin piece, the Bern Quartz is housed in the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. This single cluster stands 7 feet tall and weighs over 8,000 pounds (~3630 kg), and is the largest piece within the Smithsonian. This piece originally hailed from Arkansas’ Ouachita Mountains, a renowned hotspot for quartz crystals. To date, is the largest single cluster taken from the Ouachita’s.

Quartz with Gold- Australia Mine.
A large quartz rock containing large gold deposits found in Australia.

Although very common quartz can be seen in this find, what lies within it shocked the miners who discovered it. Over $10.4 million worth of gold weighing in at 116 kg between two separate quartz rocks was found in Western Australia. Mined by Canadian firm RNC, the mining company confirmed that this ranks among the world’s top discoveries in history for a single, pristine gold deposit.

Gemstones: Agate- What You Need to Know

You may have heard of agate before, but its elusive name does not lend a proper definition unless you’re already familiar with the stone. Agate is a semi-precious variant of quartz, made up of a cryptocrystalline structure of chalcedony. Chalcedony is a commonly mined mineral around the world, making it a common crystal.

The agate gemstone is formed in hollow, cooled lave cavities. Silica formed in these cavities captures water and forms a gel. Iron-rich rock infuses with the gel, and as water dissipates from it, the gel then cools into a crystalline structure forming agate.

Agate rarity is valued by weight, coloration, color distribution, and the internal composition of the agate. Most agate are extremely common, so finding a properly rare specimen can be hard to come by. Researching any specific specimen’s characteristics are paramount in verifying the rarity of agate pieces. Use an expert if needed, agate is known as a common category of fraudulent and artificial stones that are sold without the knowledge of the buyer being sold false goods.

Browse a selection of rare stones, including rare agate, at Gaea Rare. Happy hunting.

Gemstones: Bloodstone- What You Need to Know and How it Affects Your Life

The bloodstone is a gemstone made up of Heliotrope. It is identifiable as a gem with deep, dark colored earthy tones and beautiful accents of red distribution throughout the stone. Its beauty has been renowned for millennia, with historical evidence of the semi-precious gem being used in jewelry, art and pottery, and healing.

Typically, bloodstone is the combination of two types of quartz: Jasper and Chalcedony. The Chalcedony gives a deep, earthy green coloration accompanied by the Jasper lending rich blood-like coloration to the gem. Although there may be variation in color distribution, the luster of this gemstone is defined consistently as waxy.

The ancient cultures exposed to bloodstone used it as both spiritual and physical healing. Spiritually, the bloodstone is associated as the gemstone representing the sun. For growth, warmth, and prosperity, the bloodstone reflects the sun’s power in spiritual practice. Physical healing used bloodstones as a means of promoting blood circulation, organ health, and vitality.  Bloodstone is a powerful gemstone, and emits the power of the sun both upon and around the user. Its physical and spiritual power is insurmountable.

Bloodstone is also representative of many ancient goddesses, primarily those who oversaw fertility and womanhood. Women of all ages and backgrounds were able to promote their wellbeing with the use of bloodstone. This gem is particularly powerful for promoting feminine welfare.

In home design, bloodstone can contribute to the earthy feng shui of your space. Its dark greens and bloody/sunny reds ground nature into a space, promoting creative growth. The clarity it brings by grounding one in their natural space can disrupt obstacles within the creative or growth process.

Gemstones with properties like bloodstone are precious within the home, and precious to those who use them. For interior design ideas with bloodstone, Gaea recommends infusing these trends with your creative outlook on bloodstone’s uses.

To find luxurious pieces of bloodstone for your design, always look at to Mother Gaea.

Luxury Interior Design- What to Know, History, and an Argument for it’s Promotion

Interior design has been the cornerstone of creativity, productivity, and the overarching integration of humanity into homes, businesses, public works, and anywhere else you can think of that has an “inside”. At its core, interior design focuses on the individual, and then the collective, as a methodical means of promoting what makes us human.

Luxury interior design is a more opulent approach meant to strategically and thematically promote the individual in an almost hyper-sensual manner. Every last detail that can be rendered by the senses must be accounted for. Vision, fragrance, sound, physical feel, and certain contexts demand taste also be considered. All of which culminate into an impactful and inspiring design.

The creative methodology to achieve luxury interior design that is impactful and inspiring is what makes the best interior designers the best. The execution of creativity on a custom space is no small challenge. Designing a smooth flow with an opulent feel around the client’s vision is the conclusive obstacle between interior design flash-in-the-pan trend chasing, and the formation of a thematic statement  that achieves its intended impact. Luxury interior design is not summed up by a set of rules, but by inspiring this impact.

What would design inspire if material cost wasn’t a factor?

Gazing into the human psyche is the initial step to answering that question.

History is rife with luxury interior design. The minds of our ancestors and great thinkers of the past used design to promote their humanity.

The ancient Romans were prominent utilitarians of luxurious interior design. Their homes were infused with vibrant mosaic backsplashes, towering pillars and columns, tasteful marble accents, ornate geometric patterns, and some even incorporated modern tastes like interior courtyards.

Public works and common areas utilized an open-source approach on luxury design. Archways were used in the aqueducts that ran water to the citizenry. Temples, libraries, and markets are renowned for their looming columns, many of which are preserved ruins today and are the symbol of ancient Rome.

A common theme in the approach to Roman architecture as a whole was that if one could build, they shall be free to do so. There was an overwhelming emphasis within Roman culture to promote the artfulness of architecture, representative of Roman sentiment in regard to the human spirit.  One of the few known architects of Rome, but the most respected, was Vitruvius. In his words, the guidelines for Roman architecture were, ‘All buildings must be executed in such a way as to take account of durability, utility and beauty.’ (From Chapter 3, Book 1, On Architecture)

Modern guidelines for design are swamped with bureaucracy, codes, addendums, rules, and exemptions. Just take a look at modern commercial real estate, of which the majority is utterly hideous. Why would the Romans strictly adhere to enforcing beauty as a staple guideline?

Inherently fusing luxury, artfulness, and design together made Rome the mecca of architectural inspiration. Promoting beauty promoted the wellbeing of any participant within the design of the architecture. The Romans were so strict about design guidelines- which lended itself to making them absolutely excellent at design- that modern societies have been entranced by their achievements.

Current standards for these guidelines are subpar, at best. At worst, just take a look around. The Romans understood the connection of set and setting, designing around humans instead of the other way around. In comparison, a strong argument can be made that our predecessors within Rome were eons ahead of many financiers, policymakers, and builders of today. One of the great, unspoken tragedies of modernity is the outright absence of beauty within public and commercial architecture.

Illustrating this tragedy in comparison to the momentousness of luxury design emphasizes its crucial benefits. Connection, spiritual inspiration, artfulness, creativity, beauty. All of these are bolstered by the fact that the world lacks so much of it today.

Modern design can be swayed by trends that are merely temporary, or by outdated corporate bottom lines that need filling by selling products. Trends come and go, corporate products lack craftsmanship and soul. Achieving a modern luxury design isn’t inherently an endeavor of expense, it is a journey to dive deep into the exploration of possibility.

Quality is necessary to stave off the allure of trends and gimmicks, and helps avoid pitfalls within a corporation’s product line (corporations spend a lot of money brainwashing you into thinking they care about you, they don’t). Experiencing the design is more important than displaying the status of the design. It doesn’t matter how much the vision of the design cost to fulfill, a design not capable of evoking an experiential setting is unfulfilling and worth far less than whatever it cost. The design should feel correct for the context in which the design exists. This appropriate feel is what makes or breaks successful design, and promotes its impact.

Correct feel in modern spaces requires balance and harmony. Screens, technology, and wires pervade space and are atrociously artificial. Diluting this invasive artifice requires the use of nature within a space. Metal and wood, placed and emphasized correctly can diminish the invasive nature of technology.

Aside from natural finishes traditionally sought after in luxury interior design, a fresh alternative is the introduction of natural fine art. Crystals and gemstones evoke a curiosity other materials simply have no ability to evoke. The unique formation of these stones, their properties, and their aesthetic promote a genuine exclusivity and rarity. No two pieces are alike, no two specimens evoke the same emotion. Each one resonates with its owner in a special bond, deeply rooted in the psyche of the individual.

Cultural taste has finally caught up to the opulence offered by crystals. Unfortunately, the market as a whole is muddled with fake, artificial, or low-grade stones. They lack authenticity, and therefore render themselves obsolete in attaining any clout within the realm of luxury interior design.

Achieving true luxury design would make the focal point of procurement the attainment of high grade crystals that have impact. The feel of the stone is affected by a myriad of factors such as type, coloration, properties, size, shape, dimensions, even the crystal’s first impression upon an individual. Correctly matchmaking a crystal to an individual or a specific setting makes the difference between design with impact and collecting a stone.

Gaea Rare is the only player on the field with the ability to curate and procure stones that are capable of making an impact. Looking for that special bond to elevate your luxury tastes and design?

Visit gaearare.com and explore your creativity.

Crystals, and Gems, and Fossils- Oh My!

Crystals are the new diamonds, and people are going crazy finding high quality crystals. In cities like Los Angeles, high-end commercial real estate, hotels, and homes are buying up massive crystals to display, heal, and promote the feng shui of specific spaces.

Feng shui is a movement and design principal that promotes balance in a certain space or setting. Crystals are the freshest way to bring balance in modern homes. Inside spaces filled with screens and other artificial contraptions, crystals reconnect you and your home to the Earth in a magnificent way. To really hone in on your space’s feng shui, we highly recommend checking out this article.

Crystals come in a variety of different types, shapes, and sizes, but overall increase the Earthly connection of any given space. They are majestic conduits that connect you to the Earth.

You can find some of the rarest and finest crystals at gaearare.com.