Quartz Crystal:  Naturally occurring clear, icy rock crystal was called "krystallos" by the Greeks who thought it was ice that was frozen forever.  Has been used for centuries as a stone of power, ie. clear crystal balls.  There are several forms of quartz crystal available.  There is frosted quartz crystal and ice flake quartz crystal which is heated and then quickly cooled to develop internal fractures.  To clean your quartz crystal, avoid harsh detergents.  Wash in warm, soapy water and dry thoroughly.  Never clean ultrasonically and never steam clean.

Repousse:  (ree poo ZAY)  Raised design in metal.

Rhodium:  Nontarnishing white metal that resembles platinum.

Rhodochrosite:  Naturally occurring stone of light raspberry-red.  It's name refers to the Greek word for rose-red.  Also called "Inca-rose" for its natural deposits in Argentina.  To clean your rhodochrosite, avoid harsh detergents.  Wash in warm, soapy water and dry thoroughly.  Never clean ultrasonically and never steam clean.  Moh's scale of hardness:  3.5 - 4.5.

Rhodonite:  Naturally occurring stone which is rosy pink with black matrix.  Thought to allow the wearer to see the goodness in all of life.  To clean your rhodonite, avoid harsh detergents.  Wash in warm, soapy water and dry thoroughly.  Never clean ultrasonically and never steam clean.

Rhyolite:  Jasper with a complex mottling of greens, creams and deep browns.

Riverstone:  A pale beige stone called the "stone of freedom."

Rolled Gold:  A thin layer of gold fused over base metal.

Rose Cut:  An early style of stone cutting that is thought to have originated in India and to have been brought to Europe by the Venetians.  Flat, unfaceted base and a somewhat dome-shaped top that is covered with a varied number of triangular facets and terminates in a point.

Rose Gold:  Gold of a pinkish color (alloyed with copper).

Rose Montee:  Small, flat-backed circular-cut rhinestones, usually colorless.

Rose Quartz:  Naturally occurring stone of a delicate pink which gets its color from titanium and other inclusions.  Rose quartz is believed to restore youthful qualities.  To clean your rose quartz, avoid harsh detergents.  Wash in warm, soapy water and dry thoroughly.  Never clean ultrasonically and never steam clean.  Moh's scale of hardness:  7.

Ruby:  Variety of corundum and one of the most valuable gemstones.  The amount of chromic oxide present determines the depth of its color.  To clean your rubies, avoid harsh detergents.  Wash with warm, soapy water.  Ultrasonic and steam cleaning are usually safe.   Moh's scale of hardness:  9.

Ruby Zoisite:  Green zoisite with non-translucent Ruby inclusions found in Tanzania.  Not another stone like it!  The Zoisite has a Moh's scale of hardness at around 5.5 and the Ruby inclusions have a hardness of 9.

Sapphire:  Naturally occurring gemstone that gets its blue color from titanium and iron oxides.  The depth of color depends on the amount of oxides present.  To clean your sapphire, avoid harsh detergents.  Wash with warm, soapy water.  Ultrasonic and steam cleaning are usually safe.  Moh's scale of hardness:  9.

Sautoir:  (so TWAHR)  A long necklace or strand of beads or pearls often terminating in a tassel or pendant.

Scarab:  Egyptian symbol of immortality, the Scarabaeus beetle, usually carved or molded in stone, clay or glass.

Serpentine:  Naturally occurring stone which gets its name from the resemblance of its color and markings to the skin of the snake.  Thought to promote good luck.  To clean your serpentine, avoid harsh detergents.  Wash with warm, soapy water and dry thoroughly.  Never clean ultrasonically and never steam clean.

Shakudo:  (sha KOO doe)  Japanese alloy of copper with small amount of gold.

Shank:  The part of a ring that encircles the finger.

Smoky Quartz:  Often incorrectly called smoky topaz.  Said to alleviate stress.  To clean your smoky quartz, avoid harsh detergents.  Wash with warm, soapy water.  Ultrasonic cleaning is usually safe.  Never steam clean.  Moh's scale of hardness:  7.

Snow Quartz:  Naturally occurring stone whose semi-translucence comes from microscopic inclusions which were encased in the crystal when it first began growing.

Sodalite:  Naturally occurring stone of a deep blue-violet accented with white streaks of calcite.  Thought to clear the mind.  To clean your sodalite, avoid harsh detergents.  Wash with warm, soapy water and dry thoroughly.  Never clean ultrasonically and never steam clean. 

Spinel:  A naturally occurring gemstone that comes in a variety of colors.  Has often been confused with ruby, garnet, sapphire, amethyst and topaz.  Until just 150 years ago, red spinel was classified as ruby.  To clean your spinel, avoid harsh detergents.  Wash with warm, soapy water.  Ultrasonic and steam cleaning are usually safe.

Stamping:  Decorating technique where a relief design is achieved by means of die stamping or a mechanical stamping machine.

Sterling Silver:  An alloy of 92.5% pure silver and 7.5% other metals, usually copper.  Fine silver (99.9% pure) is generally too soft for producing large functional objects, and in Sterling the silver is usually alloyed with copper to give strength whilst preserving the high precious metal content.  The term "sterling" in reference to the .925 grade of silver, is believed to have emerged sometime during the 1200's in England. 

Sugilite:  A deep purple stone from Africa.  To clean your sugilite, avoid harsh detergents.  Wash with warm, soapy water and dry thoroughly.  Never clean ultrasonically and never steam clean.

Sunstone:  Naturally occurring stone with flecks of gold grainy irridescence called schiller.  Oregon sunstone is a feldspar crystal formed in molten lava and then discharged onto the surface of the earth by a volcano. As the lava weathers away or is broken up the crystals are released.  While feldspars are found all over the world, they are rarely gem grade. Oregon is one of the few places where this type of feldspar is found in gem grade and large enough to cut stones for jewelry.  Oregon is also the only place in the world that this gem grade material is found with copper in it. Varying amounts of copper cause the stones to range in color from water clear to yellow, as well as many shades of green, red and pink. Some stones contain from two to four of these colors. Some rare stones will even change colors in different light as alexandrite does, and some are different colors when viewed from different directions (dichroic and trichroic).  Each Oregon Sunstone is much more than a pretty stone or item of jewelry. It is a piece of art, a piece of history, a piece of Oregon.

SUNSTONE LORE: 
In ancient times, sunstones were used by natives for barter. They were thought by the Vikings to be a talisman for navigation. New age thought links sunstone to protective energy. It is also said to lend extra physical energy in times of stress or ill health. Others claim that sunstone can assist contemplative processes and bolster the energy level.