The upcoming Calyx Art Show is being held at the Crescent Heights Community Centre located at 1101 2 st NW, Calgary. I have been selected to be one of the artists to display & sell my work at this exculsive art show. If you wish to see my designs in person, I will have my items on display on Saturday October 17, 2009 from 10-4. There is free admission, plenty of free parking and door prizes. You can check out the website at http://www.calyx.ca/ to see what other talent will be there.
As for the blogsite itself, it has been extremely neglected in the past few months. Our family has gone through a move and I have been very busy with work. I plan on having new and interesting articles every month about various stones. It will include interesting facts and information.
The Quartz Crystal:
The name quartz comes from the Greek word for “ice”. It has a hardness of 7 out of 10 – diamonds being the hardest at 10. Quartz is somtimes called Rock Crystal. These crystals are found on every continent and possible in every country. Quartz is the main material of manmade glass and is found in natural glasses such as obsidian and tektite.
Quartz is a very interesting crystal as it has peizoelectric qualities. “Piezo” is Greek for push or press. When mechanical energy such as pressure is placed on the quartz crystal, it is transformed into electromagnetic energy and vice versa. This makes it useful in crystal radios, microphones, watches and radio transmitters. You have heard of Quartz watches. The reason it was named this was because of the use of the quartz crystal to provide an accurate measurement of time. Piezoelectricity was discovered back in 1880. The crystals that acquire a charge when compressed, twisted or distorted are piezoelectric.
The Japanese called Quartz “the perfect jewel” and viewed it as a symbol of infinite space, purity, perseverance and patience. Native cultures of North America and Australia used Quartz in their rain ceremonies. The Native American and Burmese cultures found quartz to be a living entity and presented them with food as a ritual offering. The crystal ball was brought back from the voyagers and was said to possess magical powers.
In the 1920’s, the stability of broadcasting stations was improved with the use of a crystal oscillator. The quartz crystal is still used today in radios due to its stability as channels have been split and narrowed to allow for a greater use of the radio spectrum. The crystal radio does not need battery or any other power source as they draw energy from the radio waves being transmitted in the atmosphere. These radios can resonate at the frequencies of the AM radio.
With all this scientific research and practical use of the quartz crystal, can we then even think that the human body is not able to detect or feel these energies as well? Or are we just not in tune with our own bodies like our ancestors were.
This information was gathered in “The Book of Stones” by Robert Simmons & Naisha Ahsian.