Vantaa Blue

Fri, 15 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Swedish Blue Stone is a synthetic jewelry stone made from blast-furnace slag. They were not made on purpose, but have been cast away as a byproduct of metal ore smelting during the last centuries. While in Sweden these stones are commercially used , nobody in Finland bothers to make a business out of them. A few hobbyist gemstone hunters - like me - have been gathering these stones over the last 50 years or so, but you can still find quite a few of these. One deposit of these blue stones is near the Pitkäkoski Rapids on the Vantaa River. I have polished a few and use them occasionally as presents.

Gemstone hunting in Finnish Carelia

Wed, 31 May 2017 00:00:00 +0000

Last Sunday, we participated in the spring excursion of the Finnish Gemstone Hobbyists’ Society ( Suomen Jalokiviharrastajain Yhdistys ) to a spectrolite quarry near Ylämaa in Finnish Carelia. Spectrolite is a variety of labradorite , which shows a rich iridescense. The Finnish spectrolite is peculiar because of its dark base color. Strictly speaking, the term “spectrolite” applies to the Finnish variety of iridescent labratorite only. The trip was a success as we returned tired and with many kilograms of specimens.

Gemstones on Michael’s Domain

Vantaa Blue

Gemstone hunting in Finnish Carelia