Tiger Iron Properties, Facts and Photos

Properties of Tiger Iron

Tiger iron is a banded iron formation, or BIF for short. Many types of banded iron formations are known around the world, but the stone known as tiger iron can only be found in Western Australia. Another type known as jaspilite can be found in the USA and Ukraine. 

Known for their distinctive layered appearance, banded iron formations are dense sedimentary rocks that date 1.8 to 2.5 billion years. These geological structures are the most important source of iron on Earth.

Banded iron formations are made up of relatively thin layers of minerals rich in iron. Hematite or magnetite, red jasper, and tigers eye are the most common.

Although some tiger iron can look very similar to the mineral tigers eye, they're not the same stone. With closer inspection, it's usually quite easy to tell one from the other.

Banded iron formations, which can be hundreds of metres thick, formed when Earth was very young. At this point in time, there was little to no oxygen in the atmosphere.

Dissolved iron, most likely from underwater volcanoes, reacted with oxygen produced as a waste product by microscopic organisms called cyanobacteria. This reaction led to precipitation, a process in which substances in a solution mix together and form an insoluble product.

The result was the formation of iron oxides on the seafloor, which gradually became banded formations rich in iron and silica. Iron oxides are chemical compounds of iron and oxygen, with rust being the most common example.

Over millions of years, immense heat and pressure led to the crystallisation of these formations. Earth's natural movements caused the layers to become distorted.

As oxygen levels in the atmosphere increased, an ozone layer developed, protecting Earth from the sun's harmful rays. This allowed organisms to eventually leave the water and begin living on land.

What is Mugglestone?

Mugglestone has recently emerged as an alternative name for tiger iron, but it's only used within the metaphysical healing community. I can find no factual evidence to connect mugglestone with tiger iron.

This is what I discovered regarding the origins of the name Mugglestone:

Ironstone was historically mined in the Stoke-on-Trent and North Staffordshire areas of the UK. Mucklestone is a small village in Staffordshire.

While ironstone and banded iron formations are both sedimentary rocks used as sources of iron, they are not the same. Banded iron formations are also known as banded ironstone formations.

The name 'Ironstone' also refers to a type of pottery produced by Staffordshire potters in the 19th century. It was designed to be a more affordable alternative to porcelain. 'Iron' was used in the name to reflect its strength and durability.

One article I read that ranks well in an online search for "Mugglestone" states, "Mugglestone was once found in a place called Moclestone in what is now Great Britain."

The only reference to "Mucklestone", not Mugglestone, being known as "Moclestone", is in the Domesday Book of 1086. However, it does not say, "... it was once found in a place called Moclestone".

In reference to Moclestone, the Domesday Book talks briefly about land ownership and resources.
 
I've learnt after many years of writing articles that plagiarism leads to so much inaccurate and misleading information being published, especially online.

I believe the name Mugglestone probably came about because of the following chain of events:

Someone wrote an article linking tiger iron with the village of Mucklestone in Staffordshire, probably because they believed, albeit incorrectly, that ironstone (the material mined in Staffordshire) was a banded iron formation. Tiger iron is a type of banded iron formation.

Once published, it's likely to have been plagiarised, as many articles on the healing properties of crystals are.

Most people who write articles to publish online know that duplicate content doesn't rank well in Google search results. Therefore, each time the article was plagiarised, the person who wanted to use it would have made minor changes before republishing it. The reason for doing that would have been to make it appear as if it were their own work.

At some point, the name Mugglestone is likely to have appeared, probably because of an error. Once that article started being plagiarised, this new name for tiger iron would have spread quickly. 

Articles that rank well in search results are prone to being copied and are widely used for reference. However, few people take the time to check for accuracy from a genuinely trustworthy source, which is why there's so much false and inaccurate information online.

Since writing this article, I've seen a video on YouTube in which the presenter states tiger iron is found in Mucklestone, Staffordshire. Tiger iron can only be found in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.

No banded iron formations exist in Staffordshire.

The first article I wrote about tiger iron was in 2004. At that time, there was nothing online about it being known as Mugglestone. I only became aware of the name a few years ago.

A Few More Facts

Tiger iron is an attractive stone that takes on a high polish. It's made up of alternating layers of tigers eye, red jasper and either hematite or magnetite.

With tiger iron being made up of different minerals, it's a rock, not a mineral.

Tiger iron grades 7 on the Mohs scale of mineral hardness.

Tiger Iron Healing Properties

Tiger iron is said to promote inner strength and help balance emotional energies. A great stone to use in meditation, it can bring peace, calmness and tranquillity into your life.

Tiger iron enhances concentration, brings optimism, and clears doubt and confusion. It encourages appreciation of everything that's pure and beautiful and is especially suited to those who are artistic or creative.

Article Pictures

The tiger iron tumbled stones in our first picture are from our collection.

The banded iron formation fragments in the second picture are 1.7 billion years old. They're located in Pike's Peak, Arizona. Despite being a banded iron formation, they're not tiger iron. Photo courtesy of Stan Celestian.

The next picture is courtesy of James St.John. The photo, which is clickable, redirects to an album of banded iron formations.

The tiger iron stone was once part of our collection.

The final photo is also courtesy of Stan Celestian.

Most photos are clickable and redirect to the original image.