Jasper Stone: Properties, Facts and Photos

What is Jasper?

Jasper is a microcrystalline variety of the mineral chalcedony. Microcrystalline means the stone's crystals are too small to be seen with the naked eye.

Although often referred to as a mineral, some consider jasper to be a rock. This is because, although composed primarily of chalcedony, a type of quartz, it often contains other minerals and impurities. 

These inclusions are responsible for the stone being opaque and for its wide variety of colours and patterns.

The presence of iron oxides, often from hematite, turns jasper red. Clay minerals can cause a yellowish, white or grey colour, while goethite introduces yellows and browns. Chlorite usually turns jasper green.

Jasper is known for its vibrant colours and patterns, which are rarely uniform and often overlap or merge. Stones commonly exhibit more than one colour.

While blue is rare, shades of red, yellow, and brown are common. Many other colours can also be present. 
Jasper often forms when loose sediments become cemented together. This occurs as groundwater rich in silica seeps into sedimentary layers and evaporates, leaving behind silica that acts as a natural glue, binding the particles together.

The type of sediment influences the stone's final colour, while the motion of natural forces, such as water or wind, helps create the patterns. In some cases, volcanic ash contributes to the formation.

Jasper can also form when hot silica-rich fluids crystallise within cracks or cavities in igneous rocks.    

Well known for its variety of colours and markings, jasper is widely used for decorative purposes and its perceived metaphysical healing properties. 

On the Mohs scale, jasper has a hardness of 6.5 to 7, so it's a relatively hard and durable stone. Many different varieties can be found around the world.

Jasper Stone Trade Names

Many stones are given trade names to boost popularity and increase sales. These names often relate to a specific characteristic or the locality where the stone is found.

Dalmatian, Leopardskin, and Zebra Jasper are named for their markings, which resemble the coats of the respective animals.

Landscape, Scenic, and Picture Jasper, all types of mudstone, feature layered mineral deposits that create landscape-like patterns.

Mookaite, from Western Australia, is named after Mooka Creek. It should be pronounced 'mooka'ite', but rarely is.

Ocean Jasper is named for the location of the original deposit in Madagascar, where it was discovered along the shoreline and was only accessible at low tide.

There are hundreds of jasper trade names, but many, including Noreena, Polychrome, Poppy, and Imperial Jasper, offer little or no clue about the stone's origins or characteristics.

'Jasper' is often used as a trade name for various opaque, coloured stones, many of which are not true jaspers in the geological sense.

The name has gained popularity due to its familiarity, but it can be misleading, as it often refers to materials with different mineral compositions and origins.

Examples include Mookaite, Kambaba Jasper, Ocean Jasper, Leopardskin Jasper and Dalmatian Jasper.

A true jasper is defined as an opaque, microcrystalline variety of quartz (specifically, chalcedony) typically coloured by iron oxides or other mineral inclusions.

Red jasper, coloured by hematite, is a classic example of a true jasper. 

Meaning of the Name 'Jasper'

The name jasper comes from the Greek word iaspis, meaning 'spotted stone.' This reflects its characteristic patterns and multicoloured appearance, which often include speckles, streaks, or swirls.

Historically, jasper has been valued for its beauty and durability. The name has been widely used, often incorrectly, for various stones with bold colours and distinctive markings.

In many ancient cultures,  jasper was believed to offer protection from negative forces and was used as a talisman for courage and determination.

Although known for thousands of years, the stone referred to as jasper by early writers like Theophrastus [c.371-c.287 BC] and Pliny the Elder [23-79 AD] is not believed to be the same as the stone we call jasper today.

Ancient descriptions of iaspis often describe it as translucent, sometimes cloudy, and frequently associated with smaragdos, an old name for emerald.

Although documented as green, some writers, including Pliny, claimed iaspis could also be blue, purple, pink, and could even be colourless.

Today, many scholars believe that iaspis was a general term for translucent or transparent varieties of quartz that hadn’t yet been classified under more specific names.

There are indications that fluorite, and possibly jade may also have been included in this group. At the time, rocks and minerals were commonly grouped by colour, instead of composition. This can make ancient references difficult to interpret today.

The stone described as pink iaspis was likely rose quartz. Blue may have referred to a type of chalcedony, while green was probably chrysoprase. Stones with hues of brown were probably smoky quartz.

Many of these stones were widely used as seals, which has helped historians identify them through physical examples instead of just written descriptions.

Jasper has been used as a carving material for thousands of years, especially for jewellery and decorative items.

There are references to jasper in Greek, Hebrew, Assyrian, and Latin literature. In the Bible (Exodus 28:20), jasper is listed as one of the twelve stones in the Breastplate of the High Priest. Iaspis is said to be the third stone in the fourth row of this sacred garment.

Types of Jasper

• Biggs
• Brecciated
• Bruneau
• Bumblebee
• Dalmatian
• Imperial
• Kambaba
• Landscape, Picture, Scenic (types of mudstone)
• Leopardskin
• Morrisonite
• Mookaite
• Noreena
• Ocean
• Orbicular
• Owyhee (type of picture Jasper)
• Polychrome
• Poppy
• Rainforest
• Snakeskin
• Spiderweb
• Willow Creek 
• Zebra

Article Pictures

The jasper stone in the picture at the top of this article comes from Cave Creek, Arizona. Photo courtesy of Stan Celestian.

The Poppy Jasper in the second photo is courtesy of Captain Tenneal. 

The Red Jasper veined with quartz is housed in London's Natural History Museum. Photo by Stone Mania.

Photos are clickable and redirect to the original image.

Pop-up images: Hematite and fluorite: Courtesy of Stan Celestian. Bumblebee Jasper: Courtesy of Amir Akhavan. Chrysoprase and Owyhee Picture Jasper: Courtesy of Steve Blyskal. Bruneau Jasper and Spiderweb Jasper: Courtesy of Captain Tenneal.

The Quartz, Kambaba, Rainforest, Polychrome Jasper, and Mookaite are from our collection.