Malachite
Malachite is a green copper hydroxide, or copper ore. Copper is what gives malachite it beautiful green play of color. It is considered one of the earliest ores ever mined. It was mined as early as 4000 B.C. by the ancient Egyptians. They crushed the malachite into a powder and used it as eye paint, pigment for wall paintings, and as a glaze and coloring for glass. Malachite got its name from the Greek for “mallow” as they determined the stones deep green colors resemble the leaves of the mallow plant. As it is only a minor copper ore, today malachite is used mainly as an ornamental material and gemstone. Malachite is mostly found in Russia, U.S.A., and the Dem. Rep. of Congo.
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