Klerksdorp Spheres are small, spherical to disc shaped objects that were mined from three billion year old pyrophyllite deposits in South Africa. Some believe these out-of-place objects were manufactured by intelligent beings. Geologists have concluded that the objects are not manufactured, but naturally made. The appearance of these objects, which look manmade, is what brought them to my attention. I’m working on a plot for book three in my time traveling Witches of Griffin series and I wanted to find an ancient object I can tie into Cleopatra and Ancient Egypt. Before I decide to use any objects in my story I do quite a bit of research about them, which is why I decided to turn what I learn into a blog, while also explaining the process I use to create my stories.
The Klerksdorp Spheres range in diameter from 0.5 to 10 centimeters, with colors ranging from dark reddish brown to dusky red. Many specimens consist of hematite and goethite and some of them have distinct parallel latitudinal grooves, while others are inter-grown with each other. Geologists Cairncross and Heinrich argue that the grooves are caused naturally in volcanic ash sediments over 3 billion years ago. There have been other similar objects found in Australia and New York, although the Klerksdorp Spheres are the oldest known examples.
After researching more about these spheres, I decided not to use them in my story. They don’t seem very mysterious since they formed naturally and so it is not what I’m looking for. And now I’m done wasting time on them and shall move onto a new idea.
Moving onto the Sphere of Destiny, which is a sphere of flawless, natural quartz crystal that weighs about 10 pounds. There are only a few flawless quartz spheres of this size in existence on earth. The crystal sphere was believed to have been smuggled out of Acre, Isreal by the Knights Templar in 1291 AD. The Templars history states that the sphere was carved from a powerful seer’s stone, which was reputed to be the original Eye of Cleopatra. It is uncertain how the object came to be in the Templars possession, but at that point in history the Knights were collecting objects of power and art from all over the East. The mention of Cleopatra in affiliation with the crystal sphere is why it was brought to my attention. I’m debating on having the sisters travel back to assist their many greats grandmother Cleopatra and this research is part of my process to find a reason for their journey.
The Eye of Cleopatra was a large 25-pound rough quartz stone block that had been ground and polished to a glassy shine on its upper surface. If someone stares into the dark depth of the crystal it is said the past and future will be revealed through images. It is also said that Cleopatra could speak to her generals through the stone. History states that Cleopatra saw Mark Anthony’s face for the first time by looking into the stone.
It sounds like a scrying mirror that can be purchased today, which is believed to show images of the past or future. Since this crystal can tell Cleopatra the future and allow her to speak to her generals, it is worth a great deal to her and it is definitely something I can work with in book three. If this crystal was stolen she’d want it returned quickly, and who better to come to her rescue than her triplet 21st century granddaughters who share her gift of magic. I’m liking the idea, but back to the research.
The Eye was considered ancient even by Cleopatra’s time, and is believed to be from a time before written history. I do love the sound of that as ideas are flooding my mind regarding its origin.
The Sphere of Destiny was taken from the Knights Templar, who had carved the block of seer stone into a perfect shiny crystal ball. The Mamluks then took this roughly ten-pound sphere in 1302. It was later purchased by a wealthy occultist in Egypt, and was passed between various seers over hundreds of years. The crystal has been used to predict the most accurate prophecies ever documented. It is currently in a private collection in Istanbul. It is also the same crystal referenced in Frank Baum’s movie The Wizard of Oz.
This is that same crystal used by the priests of Isis and Osiris, in which Cleopatra first saw the approach of Julius Caesar…and so on, and so on… –Frank Morgan as Professor Marvel in “The Wizard of Oz.”
Well that is all the research I can do today, I’ve read so many articles that my brain needs a rest. Now is the point that my imagination ties in Cleopatra’s magical stone block into the rest of what I envision for the book. It is a process, but I already know that the research has helped to get the story ideas flowing. Plus, I’ve learned about Klerksdorp Spheres and the Sphere of Destiny, whereas I knew nothing about them before.
A special thank you to: http://www.pophaydn.com/sphere-of-destiny.htmlhttp://www.studentsocculthistory.com/sphere-of-destiny.htmlhttps://eyeofcleopatra.wordpress.com/2015/01/10/the-sphere-of-destiny-and-also-the-eye-of-cleopatra/
