Published September 2014  •  Updated February 2024  •  Read Time: 5 minutes
Aragonite comes in many different colors, with reddish-brown considered the standard, just like Sapphire is associated with the color blue.  Aragonite is chemically identical to Calcite, the only difference between them is the shape of the crystals.  The two crystals often grow intertwined, sometimes forming distinct crystals and other times fusing together in a massive form. Brown Aragonite has a very sweet and calming presence.  It is a grounding stone, but it doesn’t feel heavy or stern.  It is a fantastic choice for any kind of healing work, it acts like a soft touch and a quiet voice that helps us feel safe enough to do what needs to be done.

Brown Aragonite brown aragonite meaning

Brown Aragonite Meaning

Spiritual Healing Properties

Brown Aragonite clears and activates the auric field, chakras, and meridians. It is particularly good for grounding and centering prior to entering into meditation. It can help us to express our deepest feelings more authentically and to better access higher levels of spiritual knowledge.

Metaphysical Properties Brown Aragonite
Chakra Root
Element Earth and Storm
Numerology 9
Zodiac Capricorn

Emotional Healing Properties

Brown Aragonite is a wonderful grounding stone that is very helpful for anyone who is actively undergoing self-healing work. It helps us to find the calm place in our heart and release attachment to the wounds of the past, especially wounds from verbal abuse. Brown Aragonite helps us stay centered, especially during stressful periods that require extreme patience and compassion.

Mental Healing Properties

Brown Aragonite encourages clear communication, both in words and artistically. It can help us to be disciplined, reliable, and practical in order to move forward towards our goals. Brown Aragonite encourages tolerance and helps us to understand the root cause of situations.

Physical Healing Properties

Brown Aragonite increases stamina and vitality in the body. A hot elixir of Brown Aragonite is thought to be especially good for warming the extremities and combating chills. It is good for treating general aches and pains, particularly ones that feel “deep” in the body. It has been used by metaphysical healers to help heal broken bones as well as regenerate bone tissues.

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Brown Aragonite Mineralogy

Where does Brown Aragonite come from?

Aragonite is found in small deposits around the world.  Notable deposits for Brown Aragonite are found in Austria, Morocco, Peru, Spain, and the United States.

Mining and Treatments

Miners find Aragonite in the oxidized zone of ore deposits, in caves as stalactites, and near hot springs.  It is most often colorless, white, grey or yellowish.  Industrial mines dig up most Aragonite.  The mineral gets grounded into gravel or powder and then used to make cement and soil neutralizers.  The mineral also helps maintain the pH balance in salt-water aquariums.  Most of the Aragonite on the collector’s market was mined artisanally.  The only enhancement for these pretty minerals is cutting and polishing.

Brown Aragonite Placeholder
Brown Aragonite

The Environmental & Social Impact of Crystals

Your crystals should have a healing energy that is clean, powerful, & makes a positive difference.

Mineral Family

Aragonite is a relative rare member of the Carbonite mineral family. These minerals are an important part of the Earth’s crust and are located in sedimentary, metamorphic, and igneous rocks. Carbonates are minerals which contain the carbonate group CO3 as their basic structural unit. They form in a trigonal system with one Carbon atom centrally located between 3 Oxygen atoms.  Aragonite is chemically identical to Calcite, the former being slightly harder and heavier than the latter.  On the microscopic level, Aragonite is orthorhombic while Calcite is hexagonal.

Aragonite’s energy works well with its family – other Carbonite minerals.  Try it in combination with Azurite, Calcite, Magnesite, Malachite, Rhodochrosite, and Stichtite. Or try it with different colors: Blue, Pink, Red, and Yellow.

Brown Aragonite Formation and Crystal Associates

Aragonite is chemically identical to Calcite and forms in a very similar way.  In fact, Aragonite naturally alters into Calcite under the right geological conditions. Unsurprisingly, Aragonite and Calcite often grown intertwined.  Aragonite forms at low temperatures near the surface of the earth.  Mollusks and corals also produce Aragonite by biological processes that scientists don’t yet fully understand.  Aragonite is a necessary ingredient for oysters and mussels to produce pearls.

Brown Aragonite’s energy works well with its “friends” – crystal associates formed in the same geological environment.  Try it in combination with Angelite, Gold Calcite, Selenite, and White Calcite.

Mineralogy Brown Aragonite
Chemical Formula Ca[CO3]
Cleavage Distinct
Color Brown
Crystal System Orthorhombic
Form/Habit Prismatic, acicular
Fracture Subconchoidal, brittle
Hardness – Mohs Scale 3.5-4
Luminescence Yellowish-white (long wave) / Blueish-white (short wave)
Luster Vitreous
Mineral Family Carbonites
Specific Gravity 2.94
Streak White
Transparency Transparent to opaque

History of Brown Aragonite

The German geologist Abraham Gottlob Werner (1749-1817) first described Aragonite in 1797, after the small town of Molina de Aragón, in Guadalajara, Spain.  Werner was one of the first scientists to recognize the chronological succession of sedimentary rocks, namely that newer rocks will be on top of older rocks.  Werner suffered from poor health for most of his life and rarely traveled.  However, he was an avid mineral and crystal collector and a famous geology lecturer, so unusual specimens were sometimes sent to him.  In addition to Aragonite, Werner also described and named Zoisite.

The original type specimen was a reddish-brown Aragonite star and miners still produce beautiful specimens in that region.  Later mineralogists noted other colors and shapes.  Today we know that most Aragonite is colorless or grey, and doesn’t always produce large distinct crystals.  It can appear in a massive form.  During the 21st century, a brown striped massive Aragonite from Peru has become popular with the metaphysical crowd and in the 2020’s Peruvian miners found an additional deposit of red striped Aragonite.  Metaphysical healers consider reddish-brown to be the standard color of Aragonite.  Much like Green Aventurine is the standard color for Aventurine or Blue Sapphire is the standard color for Sapphire.

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