Angelite (Blue Anhydrite): Properties, Facts and Photos

Angelite is the trade name for a blue variety of anhydrite, a calcium sulphate mineral. Most of the material on the market comes from the Casapalca mining district in Peru. It's soft, brittle and should not be allowed to get wet.

What is Angelite?

Angelite is a delicate blue-coloured stone used mainly for its metaphysical healing properties. A trade name for the mineral anhydrite, this important rock-forming mineral is a type of calcium sulphate.

Anhydrite comes from the Greek word 'anhydros', meaning 'waterless' because it has no water molecules in its crystal structure.

Although anhydrite occurs in many colours, including white, grey, blue, lilac, pink and red, only the more intensely blue-coloured stone from Peru should be sold as Angelite.

The blue colour comes from trace amounts of ferrous iron. Although Angelite usually has a dull lustre, the colour often intensifies due to its fine grain.

A relatively soft stone, Angelite grades 3 to 3.5 on the Mohs scale of hardness. It's also brittle, so must be handled carefully.

Where Angelite is Found

Most commercial Angelite comes from the Casapalca mining district in the Lima Department of Peru, an area worked for silver, copper, lead and zinc. The anhydrite formed as nodules within altered limestone, where sulphate-rich solutions reacted with calcite.

Blue anhydrite can also be found in several other countries, including Germany, Poland, Canada, America and Mexico. Stone from these locations tends to be a lighter shade of blue. Although often marketed as Angelite, it should be called blue anhydrite.

Blue anhydrite has been found in ancient Egyptian tombs, but it's unknown if the material was mined in Egypt or arrived along ancient trade routes.

The Name Angelite

Angelite emerged in the late 1980s as a trade name for blue anhydrite from Peru. The name has angel and heavenly connotations, but its origin is not documented.

The Spring 1989 issue of Gems & Gemology states Angelite was being sold at the Tucson gem show and advertised in lapidary magazines. Its Gem News column, edited by gemmologists John Koivula and Robert Kammerling, reported that gemmological testing and X-ray diffraction identified Angelite as anhydrite.

Some crystal healing websites credit Koivula and Kammerling with discovering or naming the stone, which is incorrect. Angelite was already being sold under this name when it was examined. Their report established the mineral's identity, not the origin of its trade name.

Mindat describes it as a New Age or metaphysical name, while some crystal retailers have claimed it originated at the Harmonic Convergence gatherings in Peru in 1987.

For this event, New Age followers gathered at Machu Picchu and other 'sacred sites' for the world's first synchronised global peace meditation. Blue anhydrite from Peru is said to have been sold to those who attended, and may have been given its name at that time.

Why Angelite Must Be Kept Dry

Angelite should not be allowed to get wet because as it hydrates, it turns into gypsum.

Some Angelite shows white specks or veining where the surface has already rehydrated underground.

Article Pictures

The Angelite tumbled stones are from our collection.