Moonstone: A Glimpse of Light, Luck, and Legends

Among all gemstones, moonstone holds a special place for its ethereal glow and the stories it has carried across cultures. Its most distinctive feature, adularescence, is the soft shimmer of light that floats across the gem’s surface, as if moonbeams themselves had been solidified into stone. This phenomenon is caused by the interplay of light with thin layers of feldspar inside the gem, creating the illusion of movement—an inner glow that feels alive.

Legends surrounding moonstone are as captivating as its appearance. In ancient lore, the gem was believed to bring good luck and protection to travelers. Some traditions whispered that if you held a moonstone in your mouth during a full moon, you could glimpse the future. Others considered it a talisman of love and intuition, a stone that strengthened emotional bonds and heightened spiritual awareness.

The name “moonstone” itself is relatively modern; historically, fine specimens were called adularia, after Mt. Adular in Switzerland (today known as St. Gotthard), one of the earliest sources of high-quality moonstone. From Europe, the gem’s popularity spread widely, inspiring jewelers and artisans for centuries.

During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, moonstone reached its golden age in jewelry. Great designers of the Art Nouveau era—most notably René Lalique and Louis Comfort Tiffany—used its luminous, dreamy quality in custom pieces that celebrated nature, romance, and the mystical. Later, during the Arts and Crafts movement, moonstone appeared in handcrafted silver jewels, loved for its organic elegance and accessibility.

Its magic did not fade with time. In the 1960s, amid the “flower child” movement, moonstone became a symbol of freedom, spirituality, and connection to the cosmos. It gave its wearers the desired ethereal look, reflecting the decade’s fascination with nature and higher consciousness. Once again, in the 1990s New Age revival, designers turned back to moonstone for its natural beauty and symbolic depth, reaffirming its timeless appeal.

Today, moonstone continues to enchant both collectors and jewelry lovers. Each gem is truly unique, with its own play of light, inclusions, and character. Some appear almost transparent with a striking blue sheen, while others glow softly with a milky radiance. Beyond its beauty, it remains a stone deeply tied to symbolism—intuition, transformation, and the rhythms of life itself.

At Dionne Rêve, moonstone has been reimagined through the Soma Ring, our sculptural minimal design that acts as a blank canvas for rare and meaningful gems. For this limited edition, we sought out hand-carved moonstones—each with delicate faces etched into the stone. These are more than gems: they are miniature artworks, fragments of light and history captured in one-of-a-kind forms.

Each carved moonstone Soma Ring is truly irrepeatable. Once this small collection finds its home, it will never return in the same way again.