Ammolite Pendant

Ammolite pendant silver setting in red and green

Size approx. 3 x 1.5 cm + silver eyelet

 Ammolite is a rare opalescent gemstone. 

It is found mainly on the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains and consists of the fossil remains of ammonites.
Ammolite is also sold under the trade names Calcentine or Korite.
In the languages of the native Blackfoot Indian tribes there, the stone is called Aapoak (small, creeping stone in the Kainai language because of the play of color)
or Iniskim ("buffalo stone").

Ammolite consists mainly of aragonite, which comes directly from the original nacre in the shells of ammonites.
Besides aragonite, calcite, quartzite, pyrite and other minerals occur in variable proportions.

Due to the layered structure of the aragonite preserved from the original nacre, opalescence is evident.
This is caused by interference in thin layers, as in soap bubbles or oil spots, not by an inherent color or refraction of light.
The colour depends on the thickness of the layer: thick layers yield red and green interference colours, thin layers also yield blue and yellow tones.

Like the original shell, ammolite is present only in a very thin (0.5-0.8 mm) layer,
this is usually on a grey-brown matrix of shale, calcareous marl, or limestone.
The rock has been compressed by overlying sedimentary layers, so the ammonites are usually crushed,
so that countless cracks form in the thin layer.
This crack texture is sometimes described as dragon skin or stained glass window-like.
Ammolite from deeper layers may also be completely smooth or show a ripple-like surface.

Origin: Rocky Mountains in Alberta / Canada

Worth knowing: Hardly any ammolite has such a high quality that they would not need to be treated except for cutting and polishing.
Most stones are impregnated for stabilization before cutting, so that the sensitive ammolite layer does not flake off.
This can prevent new cracks from forming. Also, the coating is a protection against scratching.
Excerpt from Wikipedia

Ammolite stands for harmony, dignity and splendour, for a sense of beauty, seductive appeal and attraction,
Ammolite is supposed to arouse interest in secrets and dissolve mental fixations