This was a bubble. Gas caught in cooling lava, sealed and then left alone. Water carrying silica worked its way in over a stretch of time nobody was around for, and quartz started growing inward from the walls, layer over layer, until the crystals ran out of room. Iron in the water is why the purple is purple.

The rind is left on. Ochre, rough, the outside of the rock it came from. Cross that line and the stone goes white, then banded grey, then the face opens: pale at the rim, deepening toward the back where the points had the most room to take. Five inches of it. Small enough for a desk, and it will not look the same at four as it did at ten.

Amethyst is quartz. Seven on the Mohs scale, harder than a steel blade, so it takes handling and dusting without marking and needs no sealing or oiling. The cavity is what makes it work: light entering the opening bounces between crystal faces before it comes back out, which is why the inside looks lit from within at some angles and flat at others. Sun is the one real threat. Prolonged UV pulls the purple and does not return it.

LORE

The Greeks called it amethystos, not drunken, and wore it against excess. Roman households cut it into drinking cups on the same reasoning. Modern crystal practice treats it as a stone of clear thinking and keeps it where work gets done. We make no claims about what a rock does to a person. This is what has been said about this one for three thousand years, and that history came with the stone.

STRATA · VEIN · WEIGHT

STRATA — A gas cavity in volcanic rock, filled inward with quartz over geologic time. Matrix rind intact.
VEIN — Pale lilac to deep purple across the crystal face, banded white and grey through the shell. The photograph is a guide to color, not a contract.
WEIGHT — Approx. 3" high × 4-5" wide. 1 lb

DETAILS

• Natural amethyst geode, matrix rind left on
• Purple crystal face, white and grey banding, ochre exterior
• Approx. 3" high × 4-5" wide.
• Weight: 1 lb
• One of one. No two geodes open the same.
• Care: dust with a dry brush. Keep out of sustained direct sun; amethyst fades under prolonged UV.

IN THE BOX

• Cotton tote
• Hand-stamped story card
• Catalog card

SAÉA — shelter · refugio · پناه
Made by earth. Shaped by hand. Kept by you.

SAÉA Stones

Onyx is a natural stone, stunning but not bulletproof. Wipe with a soft, dry cloth. Avoid harsh detergents. Read more here.

Each piece is sealed with food-grade beeswax. Refresh every 6 to 12 months by warming a small amount of oil or wax into the surface, then buffing gently with a soft cloth.

Free ground shipping on U.S. orders over $100. Hand-packed in San Diego using recyclable, plastic-free materials, usually shipped within 1-2 business days.

30-day returns on unused, undamaged pieces. Email us at hello@saeadesigns.com and we will send a return label.

If a piece arrives damaged in transit, send photos of it as it came out of the box to hello@saeadesigns.com and we will refund or exchange it.

SAÉA is a small design studio in San Diego, California.

Each piece begins as raw onyx in the mountains of Balochistan, hand-carved by artisans, then finished, photographed, and shipped from San DIego, California.

Every SAÉA Jewel is made to order in our San Diego studio.