Sunstone.

Sunstone is a feldspar (usually plagioclase, sometimes orthoclase) with tiny aligned reflective inclusions of copper or hematite. Light bouncing off these flakes produces aventurescence, the metallic glittering shimmer that gives the stone its name. The Oregon sunstone deposit is unusual in that the copper inclusions are large enough to give the stone a transparent gem-quality body with visible shiller, and pieces are often faceted rather than cabochon-cut.

The Norse archaeological literature includes a possible navigation use. The Icelandic sagas mention a solarsteinn, a sun stone, used by Viking sailors to locate the sun through cloud cover for navigation, and recent research suggests the stone may have been a polarising calcite (Iceland spar) rather than feldspar sunstone. Either way the symbolic association with the sun is old.

In modern crystal practice sunstone sits with the sacral and solar plexus chakras. It is the piece people pair with returning vitality after a low season, with creative warmth, and with a particular kind of quiet leadership that does not need to dominate. A polished bead or palm stone in the morning sun is the traditional small ritual. Be aware that goldstone, a copper-flecked synthetic glass, is sometimes mis-sold as sunstone. Real sunstone shows internal structure and is never as uniformly speckled as the manufactured material.