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Please help: Malachite(polished beads & chips) safe to wear or not?!

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kaylagee

kaylagee

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I received some gorgeous malachite bead jewelry(earrings and necklace). I looked it up in my Gemstones/Lapidary book and the entry was brief.

Later, I Googled it & read that it's poisonous when ingested or breathed(the dust of malachite) and has to kept away from children and pets.

I've also read that it can be toxic if worn for extended periods of time?!

One article said an hour for a necklace worn against the skin is alright? What on earth! A time limit for jewelry?!

"Check please?...My necklace is about to poison me."
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I've seen malachite jewelry at many stores & sites, both mounted on metals and as beads. I had no idea.

***
So, should I just lock these away to wear when my kids are older? Or throw them away? Am I over-reacting?

I hope someone can help. TIA
 
Wow, that''s news to me. But then again I don''t know a whole lot about Malachite. I will be interested in what the experts have to say.
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We live in a time of near-paranoia when it comes to environmental dangers in my opinion. If you cut malachite, breathe dust from it or otherwise ingest it, yes, it can be toxic. But for casual wear in jewelry I think there''s little danger. Millions of people wear the stuff and I''ve never heard of a single health problem.

Malachite is a copper ore as well as a beautiful gem and decorative stone. I''ve personally cut thousands of carats of the material and do believe it can pose some danger to miners and the artisans who work with it regularly. After a few hours of cutting malachite I used to notice a metallic taste like a penny in my mouth and I knew it was time to quit for a few days.

In cutting the mineral is ground to a very fine powder, suspended in water, and is absorbed through the skin. I''m sure I probably have some residual copper in my system from that work 25 years ago but have never noticed any negative health effects. That exposure was a scale of magnitude greater than wearing a necklace, especially if the material isn''t in direct contact with the skin.

Of course mileage varies and everyone gets to decide how much risk they wish to take. I have some lovely malachite roughs left and plan to cut them one day. But I''m already so old I don''t stand a chance of dying young!
 
Date: 12/21/2005 10:15:21 PM
Author: Richard M.
We live in a time of near-paranoia when it comes to environmental dangers in my opinion. If you cut malachite, breathe dust from it or otherwise ingest it, yes, it can be toxic. But for casual wear in jewelry I think there's little danger. Millions of people wear the stuff and I've never heard of a single health problem.


Malachite is a copper ore as well as a beautiful gem and decorative stone. I've personally cut thousands of carats of the material and do believe it can pose some danger to miners and the artisans who work with it regularly. After a few hours of cutting malachite I used to notice a metallic taste like a penny in my mouth and I knew it was time to quit for a few days.


In cutting the mineral is ground to a very fine powder, suspended in water, and is absorbed through the skin. I'm sure I probably have some residual copper in my system from that work 25 years ago but have never noticed any negative health effects. That exposure was a scale of magnitude greater than wearing a necklace, especially if the material isn't in direct contact with the skin.


Of course mileage varies and everyone gets to decide how much risk they wish to take. I have some lovely malachite roughs left and plan to cut them one day. But I'm already so old I don't stand a chance of dying young!
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Thanks so much Richard! Well, I suppose I'll keep & wear them with some caution then. I love the colors so much!

Is it possible to safely clean these pieces(a necklace of beads strung on nylon, bead earrings) at all?

Are there other toxic stones out there?

I'm so glad I'm learning about this because I have a habit of putting necklaces, especially beaded ones near and/or in my mouth, across my lips. Not sitting down with fork & knife, but it's a weird, fidgety kind of thing... liking the smoothness, the coolness against the skin, etc.

yeah, i'm bit weird.
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I would be more worried about copper cookware, myself.
 
given it is more likely one is to die from a car accident, i''d wear that malachite with much pleasure and joy.........

peace, movie zombie
 
Date: 12/22/2005 6:43:46 PM
Author: kaylagee

Is it possible to safely clean these pieces(a necklace of beads strung on nylon, bead earrings) at all?
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I''d just use a damp soft cloth for cleaning. If you need to polish metal findings or settings I''d recommend one of the special polishing cloths available from jewelers that contain a metal polishing agent. Do *not* clean malachite with anything acidic! It''s a carbonate and the polish will fizz off in a split second.
 
Things you find on the net these days... I had to run a search and see malachite being declared a health hazard with my own eyes. Gee!

Do they do the same with turquoise? The two are very similar.


Malachite is very much a staple decorative stone around here and there is allot of jewelry. The problems caused by the dust while carving malachite are also well known. However, this is the first time I have ever heard anything negative about wearing it (including, hm... chewing beads
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).


Besides, if there was any problem, turquoise would also get the bad reputation. The two minerals are very close by chemistry.
 
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