Sodalite: The Blue Stone Behind Eric Joe's Silverwork

Some call sodalite a “poet’s stone”. The delicate crystal lacework inside its surface resonates a harmony that calls to those who see its beauty. As silversmith Eric Joe explains why he uses it in his work, “The matrix of the stone drew me to it.”

Though the color of the stone can vary from gray to purple to orange, or can even be clear, it’s the deep blue variety that attracts most jewelers. Captivated by it, Eric did some research and discovered that sodalite is a “stone of intuition.” After working with it for some time, he sees it as “basically a tool to help strengthen intuition, to help you remember who you are, your divine self.” He says the inner lacework looks to him like lightning, a feeling that promotes the idea that the stone illuminates the inner person.

Sodalite’s beauty has been drawing people in since it was first discovered in Greenland in 1811. The popularity of sodalite as a jewelry stone grew when large deposits of it were found in Canada in the late 1800s. Its name is Greek for “salt stone”, a title given it due to the high quantity of salt it contains. This salt is why sodalite is a mineral and not a rock. It’s the same hardness as turquoise, which makes it malleable and acceptable for jewelers to work with. Deposits of high quality sodalite are found in only a few places. In the US, the stone is found in Maine and in Arkansas.