Published September 2016  •  Updated March 2024  •  Read Time: 7 minutes
Chrysoberyl is an oxide mineral closely related to Ruby and Sapphire.  It can be green or gold and may demonstrate fantastic special effects in the light.  When cut and polished, it may have a “Cat’s Eye” or chatoyancy in which thin lines of narrow light seem to shift from side to side.  A rare variety of Chrysoberyl called Alexandrite will actually appear to change color, from green in the sunshine to raspberry red at night under incandescent lightbulbs.  All varieties are charming little crystals, full of vim and vigor.  Its energy encourages us to be stop “playing small” in the world and share our unique gifts with the world.

Chrysoberyl

Chrysoberyl Meaning

Spiritual Healing Properties

Chrysoberyl is an empowering stone for bright new beginnings. It links our solar plexus chakra with our heart and crown chakras; allowing us to move forward confidently, be guided by Love, and to act wisely in service of the Highest Good. Chrysoberyl helps us to see and acknowledge our own true self-worth and to resist the fearful urge to “play small” or diminish ourselves in front of others. It joyfully dares us to take control of our own destiny and to allow our secret dreams to come to life. Chrysoberyl has a very practical vibration as well, helping us to be more astute in our spiritual life, and not be charmed by false prophets or their promises. It promotes long lasting peace of mind, and helps us to figure out what is necessary for us in order to thrive in our daily life.

Metaphysical Properties Chrysoberyl
Chakra Solar Plexus and Heart
Element wind and water
Numerology 6
Zodiac Leo

Emotional Healing Properties

Chrysoberyl has a very gentle and compassionate energy. It teaches us that the strongest and wisest people, are the ones who dare to live from the heart. It urges us to actively face the reality of negative emotions or situations, and to not run away from them or hide. Chrysoberyl helps us to stabilize and stay grounded during times of trauma or stress. It reminds us to keep in mind the larger picture and to do whatever is necessary in order to return to a state of peace and joy. When someone has harmed us, Chrysoberyl encourages us to be magnanimous and forgiving. When we are the ones in error, Chrysoberyl helps us to admit our mistake, fix the problem as best we can and then forgive ourselves for being wrong. It reminds us that it is never too late to start again, and to learn from the lessons of the past so we can create a peaceful present and a wonderful future.

Mental Healing Properties

Chrysoberyl strengthens our analytical skills and encourages us to think strategically. It is particularly useful while we are in the planning stage of any endeavor. It reminds us to make plans with actionable steps and achievable small goals, even if the overall goal is large and ambitious. Chrysoberyl can also help us to stay the course and to have the self-discipline to follow our plans through until completion. If we discover that our plans include old patterns of thinking or acting that no longer serve us, Chrysoberyl can help us to rewrite our habits. In particular, Chrysoberyl is useful when we need to stop listening to our own anxious thoughts, fears and worries, and instead focus on what we need to do in order to make our lives better and to create a peaceful and joyful life. Chrysoberyl may also push us to think beyond our own limited ego, and instead consider the larger world and how we can play a part in improving it for future generations. It encourages us to understand opposing viewpoints and accurate judge their merit, and to adjust our own thinking as needed.

Physical Healing Properties

Chrysoberyl is said to enhance our body’s natural self-healing ability and to help us to understand the primary reason(s) for any illness or injury. It has been used by metaphysical healers to treat muscle weakness and nerve strain, including paralysis, as well as various heart and liver problems. It is also said to help the body more quickly recovery from radiation cancer treatments and to help regulate the natural chemical balance of the body.

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Chrysoberyl Mineralogy

Where does Chrysoberyl come from?

Chrysoberyl is found in Brazil, India, Madagascar, Mynamar, Russia, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, the United States (Colorado and Conneticut) and Zimbabwe.

Mining and Treatments

Chrysoberyl is typically found in granite and depending on the location may be mined at its primary deposit. However Chrysoberyls are also commonly found in secondary alluvial deposts in streams and gravel beds.

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Chrysoberyl

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Mineral Family

Chrysoberyl is an Oxide mineral. The Oxide family has closely-packed Oxygen atoms with tiny bits of metal or semi-mental atoms occupying the space between. There are two forms of Oxide minerals, “simple Oxides” which only have a single type of metal or semi-metal, and “complex Oxides” which have multiple metals and/or semi-metals. Most Oxide minerals are found in igneous rocks. The most famous Oxide mineral is Corundum, which comes in every shade of the rainbow.  Most of the time, Corundum is called Sapphire, regardless of whether it is blue, pink, orange, green, white, purple, or black. But when Corundum is red, it is called Ruby.

Chrysoberyl’s energy works well with its family – other Oxide minerals.  Try it in combination with Hematite, Lodestone, Merlinite, Ruby, Rutile and Sapphire

Chrysoberyl Formation and Crystal Associates

Chrysoberyl is created when liquid magma slowly rises to the surface of the Earth, cooling down and transforming into igneous rocks. As the magma cools, water and other liquids which are present in the magma, become more concentrated and pick up various rare elements which are not incorporated into the usual major rock-forming minerals. These rare elements gradually turn into distinct, rare minerals such as Chrysoberyl and other gemstones.

Chrysoberyl’s energy works well with its “friends” – crystal associates formed in the same geological environment.  Try it in combination with Aquamarine, Black Tourmaline, Kyanite, Spessartine Garnet, Topaz

Chrysoberyls: Cat’s Eye and Alexandrite

Most forms of Chrysoberyls or Cat’s Eye Chrysoberyl may be considered fully natural, enhanced only by tumbling, cutting, or polishing. Alexanderite, a rare form of Chrysoberyl from Russia, which appears green in daylight but red under artificial light, is often manmade. Natural Alexandrite is one of the rarest of all precious gemstones.

Mineralogy Chrysoberyl
Chemical Formula BeAl2O4
Cleavage Distinct
Color Green, yellow (most common), can also be orange, pink, blue, brown, black and colorless.
Crystal System Orthorhombic
Form/Habit Tabular, prismatic
Fracture Uneven to conchoidal
Hardness – Mohs Scale 8.5
Luminescence  Red, very weak (long and short waves)
Luster Viterous
Mineral Family Oxides
Specific Gravity 3.7
Streak White
Transparency Transparent to translucent

History of Chrysoberyl

The name Chrysoberyl is used to describe a variety of rare gems including, Alexandrite, Cat’s Eye, Golden Chrysoberyl and Green Chrysoberyl. Despite the name similarity, Chrysoberyl is not a member of the beryl family, which includes Aquamarine, Emerald, and Morganite. Chrysoberyl was rarely included in early lapidaries, texts which describe gemstones and their powers. However, it is fairly popular with modern metaphysical healers and mineral collectors, and so is included in most modern lapidaries.

The name Chrysoberyl comes from the Greek chryso meaning “golden”. During ancient times, Golden Chrysoberyl was considered to be a stand-alone mineral.  Green Chrysoberyl, by contrast, was confused with other green gemstones until the advent of modern mineralogy.  Chrysoberyls of all colors often show a special affect called chatoyancy, more popularly known as Cat’s Eye.  When a stone is cut and polished, a strong, narrow light moves from side to side as the mineral is shifted.  This line of light resembles the slit pupil in the eyes of cats, hence the name.  The original Cat’s Eye crystal was a form of Chrysoberyl.  But today, Cat’s Eyes can also be found in Apatite, Beryl, Moonstone, Opal, and Quartz. When the affect occurs in Ruby and Sapphire it is called a “star” instead.

The most celebrated form of Chrysoberyl is Alexandrite.  It was originally found in the Ural Mountains of Russia in the nineteenth century and named in honor of the Russian crown prince, the future Tsar Alexander II (1818-1881).  This remarkable stone looks green in daylight but raspberry red under incandescent light.  It’s been described as an “emerald by day, ruby by night.”  This phenomenon is caused a replacement of aluminum by chromium, which causes light to be absorbed on a narrow range of wavelengths.  Because human vision is most sensitive to green light, the gem appears green in the sunshine because we are seeing the full visible light spectrum.  But at night, it appears red because incandescent light emits less green light and so our eyes see red instead. Alexandrite does not show this affect under a LED light since it is a full spectrum light source.

Additional References:

  1. Chrysoberyl, mindat.org
  2. The Chemistry of Color – Changing Alexandrite (2018), Compound Chemistry, https://www.compoundchem.com/2018/06/26/alexandrite/

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