Origin: Mynamar, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, and Tadzhikistan

 

Lore: The earliest recorded use of a spinel gemstone was in 100 BC, as an ornament on a Buddhist tomb in Afghanistan; spinel has been mined in Afghanistan since 750 AD, while the Romans often used spinel in jewelry. The origin of the name was lost in antiquity, though it may derive from the Latin word spina meaning "little thorn," perhaps a reference to the sharp points on crystals. Spinels are documented in literature dating to the sixteenth century.



Mystical: Black spinel is believed to protect its owner from harm, to reconcile differences, to console sadness, and to help one be in charge of situations and to handle other people in a correct and efficient manner.