Ajoite

Purity and Peace

Ajoite was first found identified at Ajo in Arizona where it was discovered by the Papago Indians and highly valued as a bringer of purity and peace. Up until the early 1960's it was thought to be the only occurrence of this mineral. In fact it had been found, but not correctly identified, in 1947 at Messina (now called Musina) in the far North of South Africa. Only when a second pocket was discovered in 1960 was it correctly identified. The last discovery was in 1991 at the Messina mine in excess of 4000 foot below the surface. Since then the mine has been closed due to the very dangerous conditions. It is highly unlikely that the mine will ever be opened again. As a result of this the Ajoite crystals, which are much prized by mineral collectors, are virtually impossible to obtain.