Many rockhounds have had a lifelong fascination with collecting stones.

A new study highlights an innate primordial attraction for crystals found in nature.

Object preference was demonstrated in chimpanzees for translucency and symmetrical geometric shapes.

My idea of a relaxing weekend away is a luxury spa with a great book in a quiet place. My husband’s preference is to go gem collecting with fellow rockhounds. For years I just thought this was quirky and did not pay much attention. Then he announced he was going to Mount Ida in Arkansas to mine crystals. He returned from this trip with bags of quartz crystals that he dug out of the mountain. I did not anticipate how much the crystals would captivate me. I cleaned them until they sparkled, and imagined that some resembled animal figures. I decided to join him on his return excursion. It was on this trip in the mountains of Arkansas that I was transformed into a full-fledged rockhound.

Mystical and magical powers have long been ascribed to crystals. The practice of scrying, or receiving prophecies or spiritual guidance by gazing into mediums such as crystals, has gone on for thousands of years. Rachel Syme wrote in The New Yorker that “The best scryers looked into it and came out spinning stories, making meaning where before there was none, all from a hunk of polished cave rock.” (Syme, R, 2019).

For millennia, people have turned to crystals for faith and........

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