Carnelian

Carnelian, also spelled cornelian, is a reddish form of chalcedony, the fine-grained silica (silicon dioxide) counted as a variety of quartz. Traces of iron oxide colour it, anywhere from pale orange to a red so deep it looks nearly black. Sard is the darker, harder sort, and the boundary between the two names is loose. Peru and Sri Lanka are among its important sources. People in Bulgaria were already making beads of it in the early Neolithic, and Roman gem cutters favoured it for signet rings because hot sealing wax will not cling to it. The name goes back through medieval Latin to the Latin word for the cornel cherry, whose red fruit looks much like the stone. Cunningham gives carnelian projective energy, the Sun and fire, and lists protection, peace, eloquence, healing, courage and sexual energy among its powers. He says the shy wear it to bolster their nerve, speakers carry it to strengthen the voice, others carry it so no one can read their thoughts, and it is worn in bed to stop nightmares. Hall calls it a grounding, energetic stone that sparks creativity, lends courage and drive towards success in business, shields against envy and anger, and can cleanse other crystals; she says a piece by the front door brings protection and abundance to the household.