The Institute of Geological Sciences of the University of Wroclaw is inviting participants to an open lecture on 18 January within the series “Secrets of the Earth and the Universe”. About material and immaterial values of precious stones.

Since the dawn of time, stones have accompanied people in the development of their material and spiritual life. And it all probably started with the discovery of a variety of crystal forms and mineral clusters, a range of their colors and shades, fancy patterns and structures, and spectacular optical phenomena.

People appreciated the beauty of precious stones and assigned them extraordinary properties for the human body and spirit. Over time, they became an important subject of material and spiritual culture. People also gave them an extraordinary material value, which stimulated the fantasy of treasure hunters, ambitious rulers, women craving for someone else’s beauty, shamans and charlatans, who used stones to heal the body and soul, adventurers greedy for “hard” fortunes.