Micro Pendant and the history of Goldstone

I finished this commission last night so today is picture day! This is another Blue Goldstone. It's a tiny little pendant- the smallest I have ever created. Making a pendant this small was a bit of a challenge but I think it turned out just lovely.

I also have to say how cool I think Blue Goldstone is, so sparkly and deep blue it reminds me of Space.  Goldstone, all though sometimes listed as a gem stone actually isn't a stone at all.  It's the result of adding copper to molten glass. The copper crystallizes and viola! Goldstone! There are three interesting stories regarding the origins of Goldstone.  The first:

Sometime during the early 1800's an Italian monk was making glass in his monastery when he accidentally spilled some copper filings into his molten glass and BAM! Goldstone was born. The recipe for making Goldstone was kept secret by the monks, but handed down through time.

The second:
Also long, long ago in Italy molten copper was accidentally spilled into molten glass at a glass factory in Murano. The result of this accident? Goldstone. 

The third (and my favorite) is that Goldstone was created by Alchemists. One of the many problems that alchemists attempted to solve was how to turn iron into gold. Goldstone is thought to be the result of one of these attempts. Neat.

Goldstone's heydey was during the Victorian era when women wore brooches, necklaces and stick pins made out of this super sparkly glass.

And now- PICTURES!