History
Larimar History
Larimar was originally discovered in the year 1916 in Bahoruco/Barahona, south west of the Dominican Republic, by the Spanish born priest Miguel Domingo Fuertes Loren, who reported this discovery to the Archbishop Nouel in Santo Domingo. No mining action was taken at that time. It was not until 1974 that the American Peace Corps Volunteer, Norman Rilling. and the Dominican, Miguel Mendez, rediscovered this stone on the beaches of Barahona close to the alluvial of the river Bahoruco.
This stone was analyzed by several geologists, also by the Smithsonian Institute in USA, and they all agreed that it has a volcanic origin and belongs to the group of the pectolite with the exception, that this is the only blue pectolite found until now. The mines are located in the mountains of Bahoruco, approx 7 km above the Caribbean Sea level, in the province of Barahona, south west of the Dominican Republic. Most mining is open pit, with miners using only pick, shovel and hammer to break the weathered basalt in search of this pectolite, effort are being made by the Dominican Government to modernize the mining system.
The available quantity in the mines is unknown, which makes the supply of Larimar uncertain in the long run. This semi-precious stone was named after Mr. Mendez’s daughter “LARISSA” (Lari) and the Spanish word for sea “Mar”. Like the Caribbean Sea Larimar reflects the different blue colors, from deep to light shades and jade green, often sparkled with the white and gray colors of the clouds in the sky, peppered now and then with red dendrites
Larimar Mines
The crystallization of the mineral happened when the blue pectolite or larimar was pushed into the "tubes" or "chimneys" of the volcano by the hot gases and the incandescent matter. For this reason, the localization of the mineral and its subsequent extraction depend on the identification of theses tubes.
Hence, its exploitation forces the miner to excavate deeper and deeper into the old vulcano, until today these holes transformed into a true network of tunnel mines.
A travel to the mines of Larimar is an extraordinay experience. The place appears after a long adventure ride on an off-road vehicle over dirty and stony roads, in a village that brings memories of centuries past long ago.
The wells or holes are all around, look like open craters in the mountain and the miners appear from afar as small busy ants in their tasks.
There are several factors typically used to grade the stone, with color and patterning being the primary ones:
Colour – the deeper, "volcanic" blues are considered to be "best".
Patterning – the richer, more interesting, the better.
Luster - is it glossy?
Luminosity - does it seem to "glow" or have an inner light?
Clarity - is it free of obvious defects? (Pits, cracks, carbon deposits, etc.)
Translucence - can light pass thru a portion of the stone?
Chatoyance - a luminous band with a silky luster (like that typical of cat's-eye).
There is no one particular factor that determines the grade; it is a combination of factors. The depth of color alone may not "make or break" the grade; the pattern and luminosity may bring up the grade of a stone whose color may not be as deep as others.
With larimar, perhaps more than with any other gemstone, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Some prefer the very light blues of larimar, others prefer larimar stones that tend towards the green, and while others prefer larimar with mineral spots, some prefer larimar with no patterning at all. In actuality, stones like those mentioned above cannot be classified as AAA larimar (or probably even AA larimar). But, when selecting larimar, the stone should speak to you. The stone you like the most is the stone that's right for you, regardless of its grading or perceived quality.
Larimar is a very rare and unique semiprecious stone (blue pectolite) with different color shades, mostly blue, which can be only found in the mountains of Barahona, in my beautiful contry the Dominican Republic.It is a result of vulcanic activity, which occurred many millions years ago. It's crystalization took place when the volcanic lava was cooling off as columns in the tubular chimneys, in which these pectolites, andesites, basalts and other minerals formed.
The most popular outcrop of Larimar is at "Los chupaderos" about 10 kilometers of the city of Baharona in the south wester region of my country. The first evidences of this mineral appeared in small rollings that were found at beaches of Bahoruco.
But is in 1974 when a member of the United states Peace corp and a Dominican volunteer named Miguel Mendez found the seashore and follow the vestige upstream the Bahoruco river to "Los chupaderos".
However, there is constancy that already in 1916 the parish priest of Barahona, mieguel Domingo Fuentes Loren, had applied to the Treasury Department for the exploration privilege and the explotation of the mine, but it never happened.
This stone received it's name by the Dominican Miguel Mendez, by combining the name of his daughter LARIssa and MAR, the spanish word for sea, whose color the stone resembles. This stone is also called ATLANTIS STONE.
The exquisite blue-green Caribbean waters of the Dominican Republic will concur that this is an appropiate name for this beautiful stone.
Some people say that the Larimar or "Pectoliza Azul" alows an open mind and release tension and stress, because of the free energy flow. It is associated to the sky and the sea. It's colors ble and white represents harmony between the air energies from the mind and thoughts; and water, from the heart and emotions.
NOBODY KNOWS THE EXACT SIZE OF THE LARIMAR MINE, SO WE DON'T KNOW EXACTLY UNTIL WHEN WE WILL BE ABLE TO GET THIS PRECIOUS MINERAL, SO I'M PRETTY SURE THAT ITS VALUE ITS EVEN HIGHER THAN THE ACTUAL PRICE. BUY THEM AND KEEP THEM AS A PERSONAL TREASURE!
Larimar - Mystical and Magical! A rare and extraordinary form of blue pectolite - Called by some as a "stone for Earth's healing." The name LARIMAR was created by Miguel Mendez by flowing his daughter’s name LARissa with the Spanish word for sea, MAR. Miguel, along with Norman Rilling a Peace Corps volunteer to the Dominican Republic, discovered blue pebbles along on the coast of Barahona in 1975. They followed the Bahoruco river upstream until they reached an outcrop at Los Chupaderos. Since then, the mining and refining of Larimar has brought a boon to local artisans and helps to support a Caribbean basin economy.
A powerful healing stone, Larimar is finely tuned with the human body. It has been used to stimulate the upper chakras (4th~7th), in particular the Throat (5th) Chakra. Pendants, Necklaces and Earrings are especially well suited for Larimar settings, bestowing wonderful, some would say, magical benefits to the wearer. Speech, communication and the body's natural healing processes are all enhanced.
Larimar’s beautiful blue color reflects "answers from the sea of consciousness" while softening, enlightening and healing in physical, emotional, and spiritual ways. Larimar has excellent energy for communicating with dolphins, sea creatures of all kinds and is known as the "Atlantis" stone. Emitting energy of Love, Larimar represents peace and clarity.
Inspiring and assisting one toward improvement, one is calmed and able to keep their energy collected allowing one to "see" events or the true Self from a different perspective. Let the magic of Larimar endow your higher beauty! You too deserve to be a Larimar Princess!
