Chrysocolla silver ring (1114799)

A beautiful Chrysocolla set in silver - size 55.

This deeply blue-green coloured mineral was once called "green turquoise" before being distinguished as a mineral of its own. This strong copper-bearing mineral was also used as a caustic agent for wounds, ulcers, and sore eyes, and as a very dangerous emetic. The name comes from the Greek chrysos, meaning gold, and kolla, meaning glue, in allusion to the material used to solder gold, first described by Theophrastus in 315 BCE.