In Madison County, Virginia, the bed of the Rose River is full of unakite. The pink-and-green stones lie in the water as rounded cobbles, some of them the size of boulders, worn smooth by the current coming down out of the Blue Ridge. It's one of the few places where you can see the stone the way nature finishes it, polished by a river instead of a lapidary.
The unakite meaning comes down to balance and patience, feeling and reason given equal room. It's often sold as a jasper, and one look at its grain settles that.
Unakite quick facts
- Chakra: Heart, third eye
- Zodiac: Taurus, Scorpio
- Element: Earth
- Also called: Unakite jasper (a misnomer), epidotized granite
- Color: Salmon pink and olive green, often with clear or grey quartz
- Hardness: About 6 to 7 on the Mohs scale
- Commonly from: the Blue Ridge of North Carolina and Virginia, also Finland
- Pairs with: rose quartz, green aventurine, moss agate
Pink for the heart, green for growth
Balance. Unakite's two colors are read as two sides held in harmony, feeling and reason, the heart and the head.
Patience. It took a slow transformation inside solid rock to make unakite, so it's a stone for change that takes time.
Vision. Through the third eye, unakite is linked to seeing the bigger picture, long-term plans and where you're heading.
Tip the scale. Before a decision, hold your unakite and turn it until the side with more pink faces you, then more green. Notice which side you hoped to see first.
Where the colors sit: heart, third eye and two signs
Unakite belongs to the heart chakra, for its pink and green, and the third eye, for its link to vision and insight. Its element is earth, shared with Taurus, which most guides give as its first sign. Scorpio is the second sign most guides list.
When the heart and the head disagree
- When two people in a family see a decision differently
- Through a slow change, like a move or a new job finding its rhythm
- On a desk during a project that won't be finished this year
- In meditation, one color held toward each hand
- On a nightstand while a choice is still being weighed
- As a gift for a couple starting a life together
Granite, not jasper: the grain test
Unakite is often sold as jasper, but it isn't one. Jasper is a fine-grained quartz rock colored by iron and clay, while unakite is granite that hot fluids changed long ago.
| Unakite | Jasper | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Altered granite (feldspar, epidote, quartz) | Fine-grained quartz rock |
| Grain | Visible grains of pink and green | Smooth, no visible grains |
| Colors | Salmon pink with olive green | Reds, browns, yellows, greens |
| Hardness | About 6 to 7 | About 6.5 to 7 |
If you can see separate grains of pink and green, like a speckled granite, it's unakite.
Pink and green, in pieces you can hold
Unakite towers have been our most-loved shape of this stone, and these pieces carry the same two colors today. The green aventurine and rose quartz heart bracelet carries unakite's pink and green on the wrist, strung around a small heart, a symbol of love. For quiet time, the rose quartz heart palm stone is made to hold in meditation, with rose quartz's story in the rose quartz guide. And the moss agate crystal statement ring brings a branching, earthy green to the hand.
More heart stones are in our heart chakra crystals.
Caring for unakite
Unakite is a tough rock, about 6 to 7 on the Mohs scale, and takes a good polish, though its feldspar can chip if a tower point or ring stone is knocked hard. Wash it in warm water with a little mild soap and dry it with a towel. It's fine in sunlight. Store it away from softer stones that it could scratch. To cleanse it, hold it under cool running water for a minute. Quick care facts for every stone we carry are in our crystal care chart. Every crystal in our shop is smudged with sage and charged in the moonlight before it ships.
Unakite FAQ
What does it mean if someone gives you unakite?
It's often given as a wish for balance and patience, especially to a couple or to someone going through a slow change.
Is unakite a jasper?
No. It's an altered granite made of feldspar, epidote and quartz, though it's often sold as "unakite jasper."
Is unakite rare or valuable?
No. It's fairly common and affordable.
Is unakite a birthstone?
No. It isn't on the traditional birthstone lists.
Can unakite go in water?
Yes. It's a hard rock, and a wash is fine.
Can you wear unakite on your wrist?
Yes. A unakite bracelet keeps its balance of pink and green in view, a small reminder to give feeling and reason equal time.
A granite that changed its colors
Unakite began as granite or a related rock. Long after it formed, hot, mineral-rich fluids moved through cracks in the rock and turned some of its minerals into green epidote. The pink feldspar and clear quartz survived the change, so the rock ended up speckled pink, green and grey. It was first described in 1874 by a geologist named Bradley, who named it for the Unaka Range of the Great Smoky Mountains, on the border of North Carolina and Tennessee. The finest still comes from the Blue Ridge region, including Shenandoah National Park, where older rock was altered into unakite in just this way.
Each piece we sell is one of a kind, and the one pictured is the one you'll receive.