Bloodstone

Bloodstone — also called heliotrope — is a dark green jasper flecked with vivid red spots of iron oxide that resemble drops of blood. India's Kathiawar peninsula and the Kathiawar mines have produced bloodstone for thousands of years; it also occurs in Brazil and Australia. The stone's dramatic appearance gave rise to a powerful Christian tradition: that the red spots were formed when drops of Christ's blood fell upon jasper at the foot of the cross, making every bloodstone a relic of the Passion. This legend made bloodstone extraordinarily prized in medieval Europe for carvings of religious scenes.

Before the Christian legend, bloodstone was equally prized. Ancient Babylonians used it in divination; ancient Egyptians included it in warrior's equipment to prevent wounds from bleeding; Pliny the Elder described its use in the treatment of blood disorders, tumours, and internal haemorrhage. The stone's name 'heliotrope' (sun-turner) came from ancient accounts that a bloodstone placed in water would turn the reflected sun red — a belief likely connected to its use in predictions of solar eclipses.

In contemporary crystal work, bloodstone is associated with physical vitality, blood health, and courage in difficult circumstances. It is particularly used when someone faces health challenges, needs to build physical resilience, or must maintain courage and endurance under sustained adversity. It is the stone of the long game — not quick triumph, but sustained strength, one day at a time.