Malachite Slab

Malachite is a green copper hydroxide, or copper ore, whose beautiful green color comes from copper. As early as 4000 BCE, Egyptians crushed malachite into powder to use as eye paint, pigment for wall paintings, and as a glaze and coloring for glass. Its name comes from the Greek word for “mallow,” as its deep green resembles the leaves of the mallow plant. Today malachite is used mainly as an ornamental material and gemstone, and is found in Russia, U.S.A., and the Democratic Republic of Congo.