Protection

Fifty-four pieces in the dark stones: black tourmaline, black obsidian, smoky quartz, and evil eye designs.

What this collection actually is

"Protection" here names a tradition, and we should be clear about that rather than let the word do work it cannot do. Across many cultures, dark and reflective objects have been kept at thresholds and worn on the body as a guard against harm — the nazar or evil eye is one of the oldest and most widely spread of these, found from the Mediterranean through West Asia to South Asia for thousands of years. Black stones entered crystal practice in the same role.

We are not claiming these stones shield you from anything, block radiation or EMF, absorb other people's intentions, or affect your health. They do not. What they are is a well-made object in a tradition a lot of people find meaningful, worn or placed deliberately — and the deliberateness is the part that is real.

The stones

Black tourmaline is a boron silicate with a distinct lengthwise striation you can feel with a thumbnail. Black obsidian is volcanic glass — no crystal structure at all, which is why it takes such a sharp break and such a deep polish. Smoky quartz is quartz coloured by natural irradiation of aluminium impurities in the ground. Evil eye pieces are a glass-and-stone motif rather than a single mineral.

Care

Obsidian is glass: hard but brittle, and it chips on impact. Tourmaline and smoky quartz are durable. Take bracelets off before the shower and the gym — the cord fails long before the beads. Keep smoky quartz out of prolonged strong sunlight, which fades it.

What this is, and what it isn't

These are natural stones grouped by a traditional association. Crystals have a long place in tradition and in ritual practice, and that is the spirit in which we sell them. There is no peer-reviewed evidence that any stone provides protection of any kind, blocks EMF or radiation, treats a medical or psychological condition, or alters the physical energy of a room. Nothing on this page is medical or psychological advice.