Joyyyyy to the World!
Although I have been a crystal adherent (and in particular, a quartz adherent) for years, I finally got my first Herkimer Diamond this week!
Back when I started with crystals, Herkimer Diamonds were a bit outside of my budget. So I made the mistake of postponing getting one. I had no idea that the New Age market for Herks was going to blow up, causing the prices to rise DRASTICALLY over the past 23 years. I went looking for Herks at the couple of meta shops on South Street (Philadelphia) a few weeks ago, and I was *astounded* at the high price for the tiny, tiny stones. I understand that there needs to be a markup on items in order for shop owners to survive, but... well, let's just say WOW and leave it at that.
So I headed over to eBay. Herkimer Diamonds have a VERY distinctive look, so I knew that I'd be able to ID a correctly-labeled Herk on eBay from the photographs.
And what do you know? I found a stone that called out to me SO loudly, I couldn't believe that the entire world wasn't stampeding to bid on it. I think we've all had that kind of moment when we encounter a stone or other tool that resonates with us intensely.
Here it is. The larger of the twin crystals is about half an inch long. And the auction was from one of the people who mines the stones themselves, someone who has been untouched by the "Must Mark Up Price Insanely For New Age Market" craze.