Mysterious 'Derbyshire Blue John' to be auctioned off

More than 250 ornaments made from a rare and precious stone only found in Derbyshire are going on auction in Birmingham's Jewellery Quarter today.

The 'Derbyshire Blue John' is incredibly rare and only found under the triangular hill known as Treak Cliff, just outside the town of Castleton.

This sale is thought to be one of the largest collections of Blue John and uniquely brings together a vast range of objects, from neo-classical style ornaments to tiny bowls and cups to hold trinkets. With these items on sale from £30 to over £30,000

"Rare and Coveted"

Derbyshire Blue John is a semi-precious mineral, a notoriously fragile yet beautiful form of fluorite with purple-blue or yellow bands of colour which create striking patterns in the rock.

The Romans believed that drinking wine from a chalice made in this material would prevent drunkenness, and there are many mysteries surrounding the name itself.

These colours are what are believed to give the material its name - in French 'bleu. The use of this wonderfully coloured mineral became increasingly popular in the Jane Austen period - namely the second half of the eighteenth century, where it was mined for its ornamental value; used to create various objects and for architectural purposes in decorative arrangements.

In the UK this material is found only at Blue John Cavern and Treak Cliff Cavern at Castleton in Derbyshire, during the 19th century it was mined for its ornamental value, and with mining occurring on a very small scale in today, it is claimed to be extremely rare and collectable.