Black obsidian same as Apache Tear?

Sweet Irish Angel suggested many crystals to me in a previous thread (thank you so much). The story of the Apache Tear really spoke to me and I would like to find either a ring or pendant with this stone. However, it is proving to be a little difficult. Is black obsidian (or snowflake obsidian) a worthy substitute for true Apache Tear? Are they all essentially the same energetically?

Hey

Hey

glad you enjoyed the suggestions, I got my apachje tear from www.crystalcrazy.co.uk

here is the link
http://www.crystalcrazy.co.uk/products.asp ( fab shop on line )

and there only £1 each

*SIA* xx

buddhagoddess

Hi, I wondered if black obsidian and Apache Tear were really so different (geochemically they are not so different) but energetically in my humble opionion (an I respect others think differently) they are different so it has to be in their formation and life as a crystal that they gain something different I guess, but working with both, its worth getting an Apache Tear if it is speaking to you

blessings

MARINA

Further to my last post for those who might be interested ----

Apache tears - dark gray to nearly black, pebble-sized glass nodules, most of which have greatest dimensions ranging between two and four centimeters, that occur as remnants within or weathered out of light gray perlite. (Perlite, apparently derived from obsidian as the result of hydration involving meteoric water, is a light gray rock made up of concentrically fractured fragments.) Many apache tears in the marketplace are from Maricopa and Pinal counties, Arizona.

http://www.cst.cmich.edu/users/dietr1rv/obsidian.htm
blessings

MARINA

snowflake has a slightly different energy to it, so if you want the specific energy of black obsidian then don't use it.

apache tears are named because of their natural shape, and are no different in my experience to bog standard obsidian.

you will really struggle to find a piece if jewellery which uses a whole apache tear, due to the fact that it will need to be drilled through.

what you could do is buy one and pop it inside a silver or gold spiral cage, then thread it onto a necklace.

otherwise, just go for obsidian.

off to have a look at that site!

jue xx

I have a black obsidian apache tear, whole, not drilled and it's glued into the bracket that holds it on the necklace (just come off again, so will need to superglue it). It was a christmas present so not sure where to get one from.

No, Apache tears and black or snowflake obsidian are not the same. For one thing, snowflake obsidian is a stone from here in Oregon and has white "snowflakes" in the obsidian. Apache tears are from the southwest US and are more of a crystal, being clear in varying degrees. They're not actually a crystal I don't think, but in the sense that you can see through them, that's what they remind me of. Apache tears are getting harder and harder to find. You may want to look at southwestern American stone sites to find them.

I used to have a bottle full of Apache tears given to me by an aunt who lived in the southwest but I don't know what happened to it.