Hematite Fiber Optic Bead Choker Necklace.

This necklace is gorgeous. This highly fashionable piece of hand strung jewelry features beautiful beads of genuine Hematite. Translucent fiber optic beads and glass seed beads have been included for variety. The shining gray shades of the Hematite perfectly compliment the black glass seed beads. These beads have been strung on memory wire for a flexible and comfortable fit. This choker necklace is 16-1/2" long.

Hematite is an important iron ore gemstone and it's deep red color that it has when it's ground up makes it useful as a pigment. The name Hematite is rooted in the Greek language, based on the word "haima" meaning blood, and it was named as such because of the color of its powder. Superstitions of the ancient world held that large deposits of hematite grew on fresh battlefields where the blood of the wounded and slain seeped into the ground and mixed together within the earth. Hematite relates strongly to Mars, the Roman God of War. Warriors in Ancient Rome used Hematite as protection during battle. Their belief was that Hematite could make them invincible in the midst of their raids. Hematite crystals are rare and are highly sought after by collectors. Hematite can be found in the United States, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Brazil, Spain, Germany, Norway, Sweden, and Mars. That's right, the god of war's planet, Mars. Hematite has been found on the red planet, which has led scientists to the break-though discovery that the Martian atmosphere may have had water in the past. Some of these scientists even believe that the old Martian atmosphere that created the Hematite could have sustained life.