PYRITE PIRATE

...beguiled by the full moon. A glass shatters. Crystal shards of moonlight scattered. Embellishments on cyborg legs. Scissoring streets. Blemished begs. Flashing lights. Flashing tights. Cavernous nights. Crystals cleansed in the bright sunlight. Fool’s gold in celestial cluster and metallic luster. Dip yourself in my pyrite...

A blustering brassy hue has earned pyrite its ironic nickname, fool’s gold. Evoking gilded decadence, the material has the appearance of raw gold embedded in rock, much like something unearthed if one werepanning in a flush. Or a Gold Rush. Confusion between the materials has led to a history of its charmingly disarming trickster moniker. Derived from the Greek word for ‘fire’, Romans used the stone to create sparks against steel. As a gemstone it is a traditional symbol of money and good luck, energizing and protecting.

I like to blur the boundaries between pyrite and gold, one mineral as precious as the other, each priviliged in their own way. Gold is harmonizing, and a little pricier per ounce, but the patina of pyrite, used by shamans and charlatans alike, can quell the precocious magpie in anyone.

October 2012