Malachite

A strange sounding name for a strange gemstone. The Greeks thought the colour and patterning resembled the leaves of the Mallow plant which grew alongside the pathways that covered the ancient world. The green comes from its copper content and as copper was probably the first metal mankind discovered, by the late stone age we had discovered not only was Malachite a source of metal, it made impressive jewellery. Nearly 4,000 years ago, Britons were mining Malachite. It was one of our earliest fashion statements and still is.