Everything about Shungite

What is shungite?

Shungite is a carbon-rich black mineraloid found in commercial quantity in exactly one place on Earth: the Republic of Karelia, in north-west Russia. It is roughly two billion years old, and it behaves unlike almost any other stone — most notably, it conducts electricity.

Where the name comes from

It is named after the village of Shunga in Karelia, near Lake Onega, where it was first described. There are two competing explanations for how it formed and no settled answer: the biogenic theory holds that it came from ancient organic matter altered over hundreds of millions of years, the volcanogenic theory that the carbon came from volcanic activity and was never alive. Both remain open.

The Zazhoginsky deposit

The largest working source is the Zazhoginsky deposit in Karelia, and it is where our stone comes from. Similar-looking black rocks are mined elsewhere in the world, but they are not shungite — which is the single most useful thing to know when buying it online.

Types and grades

Broadly there are two. Classic, or type III, is matte black and roughly 30–60% carbon, with most of the remainder silicate — largely quartz, which is why raw pieces show pale veining and pyrite flecks. Everything we sell is classic type III. Elite, or type I, is silvery, mirror-like and around 98% carbon. It is brittle and cannot be carved, which is why it is only ever sold as loose nuggets, by the gram, at many times the price. “Noble” shungite is a marketing word for the same thing as elite.

Shungite and fullerenes

Shungite contains fullerenes — carbon molecules arranged in hollow spheres, discovered in 1985, whose discovery won the 1996 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. They occur naturally in shungite in small amounts, within a much larger and more unusual carbon structure. Shungite is not made of fullerenes, and a seller implying that it is has overstated things considerably.

Shungite water

Placing raw or tumbled shungite in water for several hours is the oldest use of the stone. Carbon is the standard medium in domestic water filters, and shungite is approved in Russia for use in drinking-water treatment systems, where it acts as a sorbent — it binds and holds substances rather than destroying them.

Polished pieces do not work for this: polishing seals the surface. Use raw or tumbled stone, roughly 100–200 g per litre, in glass or ceramic, for 6 to 24 hours. The full method, and the maintenance step almost everyone skips, is here.

Shungite and devices

A great many people keep a piece of shungite beside a router, under a laptop, or stuck to the back of a phone, and it is one of the most common reasons people come looking for the stone. Carbon conducts, and carbon-loaded materials are used industrially for electromagnetic shielding, which is where the association comes from. Phone stickers are the cheapest way in at €2.60; a pyramid beside the router is the usual choice for a room.

Shungite in energy practice

Shungite has a long standing in energy work as a grounding stone. It is used to absorb heavy or stagnant energy, clear blockages, and steady the root chakra, and many practitioners keep a piece close during meditation or Reiki. This is a tradition and a personal practice rather than a measurement, and for a lot of people it is the whole reason they own it.

How people use it

• Wearing. A pendant or bracelet, so the stone is on you through the day.
• Placing. A pyramid, sphere or plate on a desk, a shelf, or beside a router.
• Water. Raw or tumbled stone in a glass jug.
• Meditation and energy work. Held, or set in a grid.
• Collecting. Large single pieces, kept for what they are rather than for anything they do.

How to check it is real

Fakes are common, usually black resin, dyed stone, or shungite dust pressed into a binder. Four checks you can run at home, with things you already own:

• Conductivity. Real shungite completes a circuit. A small battery, a bulb and two wires will light through the stone. Almost no other stone does this.
• Weight. It is light for its size — about half the density of quartz. Most people notice this first when they pick up a pyramid expecting it to be heavier.
• The streak test. Genuine stone leaves a dark carbon mark on unglazed porcelain.
• Surface. Raw and unpolished pieces are matte and slightly rough, with visible pyrite or quartz inclusions. A piece that is flawlessly, uniformly black is more likely to be dyed than superior.

The full guide walks through each test with photographs. Our certificate for the deposit is published on the site.

Care and cleansing

Practically, raw stone needs rinsing when new and a brush every couple of weeks if it lives in water; polished pieces need a dry cloth and nothing else. No cleaner, no oil, nothing abrasive.

Many people also cleanse and charge their stones as part of their own practice — rinsing under running water, a bed of salt, a night in moonlight. That is a personal ritual rather than upkeep the stone asks for, and it does it no harm.

Is shungite safe?

Yes. There are no toxic substances in shungite’s composition, it is approved in Russia for drinking-water treatment, and lead content is negligible — under 0.02%. It is worn against the skin without issue. As with anything, keep small pieces away from children and pets who might swallow them.

Where to start

If you are buying your first shungite, weight matters more than shape. Raw stone starts at 100 g; a 330 g bag is the usual size for a water jug. Carved shapes start at €8.90, pendants and bracelets at €12.50, and phone stickers at €2.60. The kits bundle several categories for less than buying the pieces separately. Every order, at any size, includes a free 100 g piece of raw shungite.