The History and Folklore of Rose Quartz

Rose quartz has long been associated with healing, love, and compassion. This gemstone has been a symbol of both romantic and spiritual love from the ancient civilisations of Mesopotamia and Egypt to its mystical uses in Greek and Roman stories.

The earliest known use of rose quartz dates back to Ancient Mesopotamia, around 7,000 BCE, where it was used to craft jewellery, amulets, and decorative objects. Rose quartz was prized for its symbolic link with love and healing as much as for its beauty. The Mesopotamians thought the stone might promote love and peace as well as heal emotional scars.

Rose quartz was connected in Ancient Egypt to youthfulness and beauty. Egyptian women, especially nobility, applied the stone in cosmetics and facial masks, believing it would help them look better and prevent wrinkles. Linking the stone to the goddess Isis, who was connected with regeneration and renewal, Egyptians valued rose quartz for its alleged ability to repair and retain the youthful radiance of the skin. 

Wearing for protection, rose quartz amulets and talismans were also placed in tombs to assist and guide the soul in the next world. Egyptians thought the stone guaranteed safe passage into the afterlife, therefore bringing calm and emotional healing to the departed and carrying the energy of love.

Rose quartz is abundant in Greek and Roman mythology, usually connected with the gods of love. In Greek mythology, the stone connected to the goddess Aphrodite – the Roman equivalent of Venus – who embodied love, beauty, and desire. One tale tells that rose quartz originated from Aphrodite's rush to defend her beloved Adonis from attack by the god Ares in the form of a boar. While Aphrodite rushed over to save her lover, she accidentally cut herself on a thorn bush. Their blood mixing turned a white quartz crystal pink, forming rose quartz. The stone thus came to represent for the Greeks a symbol of emotional healing and limitless love. Like the Romans, they thought rose quartz may enable couples to rediscover love and desire. Often worn to draw love or heal a wounded heart, it was given as a symbol of love. Both cultures used rose quartz to enhance love in all its forms – romantic, platonic, and spiritual.

In the Middle Ages, rose quartz was used for healing purposes. Doctors and healers thought the stone could reduce mental suffering and stress as well as enhance the circulatory system and heart. It was also believed to ward off nightmares and prevent negativity from influencing the soul and mind.

Often used as amulets and charms to promote harmony and understanding between people, rose quartz came to represent peace and reconciliation. It was often presented as a gift to help to mend relationships of love and friendship or to resolve problems. Those looking for emotional balance and healing came to know it is renowned for its soothing and supporting properties.

Rose quartz is regarded as an effective stone for emotional and spiritual healing in many indigenous civilisations, especially in North America. It was part of ceremonies and rites meant to bring about harmony and balance inside families and communities as well as to atonement. Rose quartz's soothing energy was intended to enable people to re-establish emotional connection, resolve conflicts, and create loving and understanding surroundings. In shamanic ceremonies, rose quartz was also utilised as a tool for opening the heart to the energies of love and compassion, therefore enabling people to link with their higher selves and the surrounding natural environment.