From deep purples to sunshiny yellows to sky blues and seafood greens, It is easy to see why fluorite earns the reputation as "The Most Colourful Mineral in the World”. Discovered by "the father of mineralogy," Georgius Agricola in 1530 and originally referred to as 'fluorspar’, the name Fluorite comes from the Latin "fluere," which means "to flow," because of its low melting point. It is a calcium fluoride mineral belonging to the halides family and occurs in hydrothermal veins that are often associated with granitic rocks. Deposits of fluorite are found in many locations around the world such as Argentina, Canada, China, France, Mexico, Namibia and the United States, However, one of the most famous, yet limited deposits comes from Derbyshire in the UK and is known as Blue John. Since Roman times, Blue John has been used for making vases and other ornaments and is known for its purple, blue and violet banded patterns that follow the lines of the crystals.The ancient Chinese also held Fluorite in high regard, both for its beauty but also for its ability to bring about vivid, lucid dreams.

In 1852, George Gabriel Stokes discovered that specimens of fluorite produced a blue glow under ultraviolet light. He called this phenomenon "fluorescence" after the mineral fluorite. So whenever you see a fluorescent highlighter pen, bicycle strip or light, know that the word fluorescent would not exist today if it wasn’t for this incredible gemstone. Typically Fluorite fluoresces blue but on rare occasions, you can witness red, yellow, green, white and purple. Some will even demonstrate phosphorescence (a glow in the dark) and some do not fluoresce at all. Fluorescence in fluorite is thought to be caused by yttrium, europium, samarium, or other trace elements.

Amazingly, the largest single fluorite crystal cube found in Russia measured 2.12 meters and weighed a whopping 16 tonnes.