Labradorite Peacock 170mm hand-carved from various types of gemstone. are supplied assorted.

The mineral labradorite is a calcium-sodium-aluminum tectosilicate with the chemical formula (Ca,Na)(Si,Al)4O8. It belongs to the feldspars. The colorless, white, gray or light green labradorite has a glass luster, a white stripe color, a perfect cleavage according to the crystal plane [001] and a good cleavage according to [010]. The average density is 2.69 and the hardness is 7. The crystal system is triclinic and the mineral is neither radioactive nor magnetic. The characteristic play of colors, called labradorization, is caused by light refracting onto microscopic crystals of various dark minerals that lie on the cleavage surfaces. Labradorite usually appears shapeless or granular; the mineral rarely if ever forms crystals. Labradorite is undoubtedly the best known of the gemstones that display such a play of color. When the stone is cut judiciously, the play of colors comes into its own even better. But the beautiful labradorization can also often be seen on the raw chunks. There are few minerals that change color as dramatically as labradorite. The name of the mineral labradorite is derived from the Labrador Peninsula in Canada, where it was first described. The stone was discovered in 1780 on the east coast of the Labrador Peninsula by a priest and he named it after the island. He found a large number of boulders with a striking gray color that changed color into dark blue and green nuances when turned. This discovery aroused great interest among scientists at that time and it was determined that this was a soda-lime feldspar or plagioclase. Labradorite is a common feldspar in metamorphic and igneous rocks such as pegmatite. It is part of the plagioclase series (albite-anorthite). The type locality of labradorite is on Canada's Labrador Peninsula. Deposits can also be found in Australia, Madagascar, Mexico, Russia, the United States and Finland.