Dominican Republic: Precious stones

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Larimar (or blue pectolite), a blue mineral, only found in the Dominican Republic, in the Eastern Bahoruco. It's a semi-precious stone. A semi-precious stone is a mineral that doesn't belong to the four groups of precious stones (diamond, ruby, sapphire or emereld). Miguel Méndez, a Dominican, discovered the stone and gave it the name Larimar. It is a combination of his daughter’s name, Larissa and the Spanish word for the sea, "Mar".
The chemical formula is NaCa₂(Si₃O₈)(OH). It has a hardness of 5.0 on the Moh’s Scale and a specific gravity of 2.7 - 2.9.
Its powers are believed to help us view events from a different perspective. Larimar stimulates the heart, throat, third eye and crown chakras facilitating inner wisdom and outer manifestation. It represents peace and clarity radiating healing and love energy. It is recommended for people who are stressed. Malachite is a green mineral. Malachite can be found in Zaire, Russia, Germany, France, Chile, Australia, Arizona and New Mexico/USA.
The chemical formula is Cu₂(CO₃)(OH). It has a hardness of 3.0 - 4.0 and a specific gravity of 3.7 - 4.1.
The powers of the semi-precious stone include: protection, power, peace, love and success in business. It is worn to detect impending danger, and is assumed to break into pieces when danger is near. It is the guardian stone of travelers. Promotes inner peace and hope, provides protection and security.

The Lambí-conch or the Queen Conch (Strombus gigas) is found in warm shallow waters in grassbeds of the Caribbean Sea and other tropical waters. Other names for the Queen Conch include pink conch, caracol reina, caracol rosa, caracol rosado, caracol de pala, cobo, botuto and guarura.
The large conch has been used as offering vessel and sacred trumpet by many cultures on all the world's continents, starting with the ancient Greeks where Triton the son of Poseidon and Amphitrite was often depicted with a trumpet made from a conch which he used to raise or calm storms.
In the Mayan and Aztec culture it was used during rituals to recall ancestors or supernaturals as well as the rain god, Pacific rim cultures would use it as a signaling and ceremonial instrument, in Buddhism it proclaims the glory of the Saints and according to Hindu mythology it was the primordial sound of creation. Dedicated to the spirit 'Agwe' is the sound of 'Lambi' in Voodoo ceremonies. Another conch and her ornaments.

Red coral (Corallium rubrum). Coral is a colonial animal, a carnivore, related to sea anemones and stony corals. Red coral is found mostly in the Mediterranean, in the waters near Algeria and Tunisia. The coral is also found off the coasts of France, Sicily, Spain, Australia, Mauritius, in the Red Sea, the Persian Gulf, in the seas near Japan, and off Africa’s northwest coast.
The hardness of coral is 3.25-3.75, the specific gravity is 2.65.
Those who wear red coral will be brave and defeat their enemies. Red coral helps defeat mental depression, and it protects women from widowhood. Red coral protects the wearer from evil spirits and curses, and stops nightmares. It aids meditation and brings happiness. Red coral can help one avoid violence and war. Black coral (Antipathes pennacea) is found in all oceans, but is most common in deep water habitats of tropical and subtropical seas. Black coral is Hawaii's, US 50th State, Gemstone.
Black coral was harvested for centuries as a charm and a medicine. In old cultures one believed that black coral had the power to ward off evil and injustice. The Greek considered it "a lucky amulet against any ominous evil". The name, antipathes, means "against suffering".

Amber, the national gemstone of the Dominican Republic, is a fossil resin from prehistoric conifers, Pinus succinifera, also found in the Dominican Republic: La Cordillera Septentrional, in the north, Byaguana and Sabana, in the east. Most of the world's amber is in the range of 30-90 million years old.
The general formula is C₁₀H₁₆O. It has a hardness of 2.0 - 2.5. Its specific gravity varies from 1.05 to 1.10.
Heating amber will soften it and eventually it will burn, which is why the German word for amber is bernstein.
Amber is one of the birthstones listed for the Sun Sign for Taurus. Powers attributed to the semi-precious "stone" amber include love, strength, luck, healing and protection, calming for hyperactivity and stressed nerves, it finds humor and joy. Onyx, a semi-precious stone, is a chalcedony quartz that is mined in Brazil, India, California and Uruguay. It has a fine texture and black color.
The chemical formula is SiO₂. It has a hardness of 7. Its specific gravity is 2.6.
The name comes from the Greek word onyx which means nail of a finger or claw. Legend says that one day while Venus was sleeping Eros/Cupid cut her fingernails and left the clippings scattered on the ground. Because no part of a heavenly body can die, the gods turned them into stone which later became known as onyx.
Onyx is the birthstone for the Zodiac sign of Leo. Onyx is also given on the 7th and 10th wedding anniversary. Thought to increase regeneration, happiness, intuition, instincts. Also thought to decrease sexual desire and helps to change bad habits.

Dominican Republic: Miscellaneous

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Larimar (or blue pectolite), a blue mineral, only found in the Dominican Republic, in the Eastern Bahoruco. It's a semi-precious stone. A semi-precious stone is a mineral that doesn't belong to the four groups of precious stones (diamond, ruby, sapphire or emereld). Miguel Méndez, a Dominican, discovered the stone and gave it the name Larimar. It is a combination of his daughter’s name, Larissa and the Spanish word for the sea, "Mar". The chemical formula is NaCa₂(Si₃O₈)(OH). It has a hardness of 5.0 on the Moh’s Scale and a specific gravity of 2.7 - 2.9. Its powers are believed to help us view events from a different perspective. Larimar stimulates the heart, throat, third eye and crown chakras facilitating inner wisdom and outer manifestation. It represents peace and clarity radiating healing and love energy. It is recommended for people who are stressed.		Malachite is a green mineral. Malachite can be found in Zaire, Russia, Germany, France, Chile, Australia, Arizona and New Mexico/USA. The chemical formula is Cu₂(CO₃)(OH). It has a hardness of 3.0 - 4.0 and a specific gravity of 3.7 - 4.1. The powers of the semi-precious stone include: protection, power, peace, love and success in business. It is worn to detect impending danger, and is assumed to break into pieces when danger is near. It is the guardian stone of travelers. Promotes inner peace and hope, provides protection and security.

The Lambí-conch or the Queen Conch (Strombus gigas) is found in warm shallow waters in grassbeds of the Caribbean Sea and other tropical waters. Other names for the Queen Conch include pink conch, caracol reina, caracol rosa, caracol rosado, caracol de pala, cobo, botuto and guarura. The large conch has been used as offering vessel and sacred trumpet by many cultures on all the world's continents, starting with the ancient Greeks where Triton the son of Poseidon and Amphitrite was often depicted with a trumpet made from a conch which he used to raise or calm storms. In the Mayan and Aztec culture it was used during rituals to recall ancestors or supernaturals as well as the rain god, Pacific rim cultures would use it as a signaling and ceremonial instrument, in Buddhism it proclaims the glory of the Saints and according to Hindu mythology it was the primordial sound of creation. Dedicated to the spirit 'Agwe' is the sound of 'Lambi' in Voodoo ceremonies.		Another conch and her ornaments.

Red coral (Corallium rubrum). Coral is a colonial animal, a carnivore, related to sea anemones and stony corals. Red coral is found mostly in the Mediterranean, in the waters near Algeria and Tunisia. The coral is also found off the coasts of France, Sicily, Spain, Australia, Mauritius, in the Red Sea, the Persian Gulf, in the seas near Japan, and off Africa’s northwest coast. The hardness of coral is 3.25-3.75, the specific gravity is 2.65. Those who wear red coral will be brave and defeat their enemies. Red coral helps defeat mental depression, and it protects women from widowhood. Red coral protects the wearer from evil spirits and curses, and stops nightmares. It aids meditation and brings happiness. Red coral can help one avoid violence and war.		Black coral (Antipathes pennacea) is found in all oceans, but is most common in deep water habitats of tropical and subtropical seas. Black coral is Hawaii's, US 50th State, Gemstone. Black coral was harvested for centuries as a charm and a medicine. In old cultures one believed that black coral had the power to ward off evil and injustice. The Greek considered it "a lucky amulet against any ominous evil". The name, antipathes, means "against suffering".

Amber, the national gemstone of the Dominican Republic, is a fossil resin from prehistoric conifers, Pinus succinifera, also found in the Dominican Republic: La Cordillera Septentrional, in the north, Byaguana and Sabana, in the east. Most of the world's amber is in the range of 30-90 million years old. The general formula is C₁₀H₁₆O. It has a hardness of 2.0 - 2.5. Its specific gravity varies from 1.05 to 1.10. Heating amber will soften it and eventually it will burn, which is why the German word for amber is bernstein. Amber is one of the birthstones listed for the Sun Sign for Taurus. Powers attributed to the semi-precious "stone" amber include love, strength, luck, healing and protection, calming for hyperactivity and stressed nerves, it finds humor and joy.		Onyx, a semi-precious stone, is a chalcedony quartz that is mined in Brazil, India, California and Uruguay. It has a fine texture and black color. The chemical formula is SiO₂. It has a hardness of 7. Its specific gravity is 2.6. The name comes from the Greek word onyx which means nail of a finger or claw. Legend says that one day while Venus was sleeping Eros/Cupid cut her fingernails and left the clippings scattered on the ground. Because no part of a heavenly body can die, the gods turned them into stone which later became known as onyx. Onyx is the birthstone for the Zodiac sign of Leo. Onyx is also given on the 7th and 10th wedding anniversary. Thought to increase regeneration, happiness, intuition, instincts. Also thought to decrease sexual desire and helps to change bad habits.