Judging quality
Balls are smoother and denser than okenite's fibre puffs, and split to show layered concentric shells.
Zeolite-associated
Gyrolite
Pale spherical aggregates with a concentric internal structure, usually nested among green apophyllite and white stilbite in Indian basalt cavities.
Care
Soft; handle by matrix, no water.
History & lore
First described from the Isle of Skye in 1851.
Cultural history, recorded as tradition rather than as medical or scientific claim.
Common questions about Gyrolite
- What is Gyrolite?
- Pale spherical aggregates with a concentric internal structure, usually nested among green apophyllite and white stilbite in Indian basalt cavities.
- How hard is Gyrolite and what is it made of?
- Gyrolite is a Zeolite-associated-family mineral with the composition NaCa16Si23AlO60(OH)8·14H2O. It crystallizes in the trigonal system and rates 3-4 on the Mohs hardness scale. It occurs in white, cream, apple green.
- Where does Gyrolite come from?
- Notable localities for Gyrolite include Maharashtra, India, Iceland, Northern Ireland.
- How do you tell good Gyrolite from filler?
- Balls are smoother and denser than okenite's fibre puffs, and split to show layered concentric shells.
- How do you care for Gyrolite?
- Soft; handle by matrix, no water.
See it in person
Photographs only go so far
Both rooms are open six days a week, and there is always someone happy to pull pieces out of the case so you can compare them under the light.