Keywords:
Transition, transformation, personal growth
Affirmation:
I know the truth in the centre of myself. All the answers lie within. Ancient knowledge and wisdom are available to me.
I recall my dreams when I wake and use them as tools to help guide me in my waking life.
Zodiac Signs
Capricorn, Virgo
Ammonite is one of the world’s rarest gems rivalling the rarity of such gemstones as alexandrite and red diamonds. Available in the full spectrum of colours , red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo & violet. In 1981, Ammonite was given official gemstone status by the World Jewellery Confederation, the same year commercial mining of Ammonite began. It was designated the official gemstone of the Province of Alberta in 2004 and the official gemstone of the City of Lethbridge in 2007.
Ammonite is formed from an ancient marine fossil. Although sources of Ammonite exist in other locations around the globe, it is only in one isolated region of Southern Alberta, Canada, that this deposit produces the gemstone Ammonite.
Significant deposits of gem-quality Ammonite are only found in the Bearpaw formation that extends from Alberta to Saskatchewan in Canada and south to Montana in the USA. The best grade of gem quality Ammonite is along high energy river systems on the eastern slopes of the Rockies in southern Alberta. Most commercial mining operations have been conducted along the banks of the St. Mary River, in an area south of and between the town of Magrath and the city of Lethbridge. Roughly half of all Ammonite deposits are contained within the Kainah (Kainaiwa) reserve, and its inhabitants play a major role in ammonite mining.
Although there are several other locations around the world, such as Russia and England, where ammonites can be found with some colour, only in southern Alberta and to a lesser degree in northern USA, can ammonites be found with vivid colours that take on all the hues of the rainbow.
Canadian ammonites are rare. The Canadian government considers them part of the “National Treasures of Canada”. For this reason, all ammonites must be inspected and registered by the Alberta provincial government. Each ammonite then receives a number and is entered in the provincial database. A cultural property export permit, with the name and address of the buyer, is required before any Canadian ammonite is allowed to leave the country.
When purchasing a colourful Canadian ammonite, be sure that the specimen number is registered with the government of Canada. If you live outside Canada, be sure to ask if it left Canada with a cultural property export permit.
Seventy-one million years of tectonic pressure, heat and mineralization have resulted in the formation of this geological wonder. At current production levels supplies of high grade ammonite are expected to be completely exhausted in approximately 20 years.
The colour present in Ammonite is caused by light interference during refraction into the many layers of the gemstone. Each colour in Ammonite represents a different layer of the gem material. Depending on the number of fine layers in the rough, everything from one colour to the full visible spectrum will be displayed. Since the play of light varies, every Ammonite gem shows a unique array of colour. Ammonite’s luminous qualities rival the famous black opal for colours and fire.
In the late 1990s, practitioners of Feng Shui began to promote Ammonite as an “influential” stone with what they believe is the power to enhance well-being and detoxify the body by improving its flow of energy or “chi”. Named the “Seven Color Prosperity Stone”, each color is believed by Feng Shui practitioners to influence the wearer in different and positive ways. A combination of ruby red, emerald green, and amber yellow is most sought after for this purpose, the colours being said to enhance growth, wisdom, and wealth.