Piedra Cruz de Laraquete – a unique gemstone from Chile

Even though Chile’s borders are currently closed, the wonderful landscapes and natural monuments remain unchanged and are just waiting to soon be discovered again by our guests…

Today we would like to introduce this wonderful mineral origin gemstone piedra cruz, the object of many legends. Its pattern looks like a cross, making this gemstone quite unique. What also makes it unique is that piedra cruz is only found in the river El Cajón in the province of Arauco, about 600 km south of Santiago.

Since 2017, this precious gemstone has been recognized by the National Institute of Industrial Property (Inapi) as a unique raw material in our country and is the first product of the province of Arauco in the Bío-Bío region to receive this recognition. The river El Cajón, also known as the river Las Cruces, flows through the whole region and has acquired great importance thanks to the artisans from Laraquete who process the piedra cruz.

Particularly interesting are the legends that were created to explain the appearance of this gemstone. One of the legends is about a Mapuche-Toqui (leader) who met a Spanish young woman and both fell in love with each other. However, one day she was told that her beloved had died. Desperate and crying, she went out to look for him on the riverbank, where each of her tears turned into crosses on the stones.