Dravite is a member of the tourmaline family. It is actually the least known stone of all the varieties of tourmaline. The name dravite comes from the Drava River area, which is the district along the Drava River, in Styria, in southeast Austria, where the stone was fist identified. This name was first used in 1884 by Gustav Tschermak (1836 - 1927), a Professor of mineralogy and petrography at the University of Vienna. Dravite has a hardness suitable for jewelry and can make a stunning faceted gemstone. Dravite is a brittle stone with a vitreous luster, and rates a 7 to 7.5 on the hardness scale. It can range from being opaque to transparent. Like other tourmaline family members, dravite is a high pressure, high temperature mineral. Dravite ranges in color from light to dark brown. Its brown color comes from its high magnesium content, as well as its sodium content. Most dravite is very dark brown in color, but heat treatment is often used to lighten up the color to a more attractive shade.
Like other members of the tourmaline family, dravite shows strong dichroism. Because of this dichroism, it must be cut with the table facet parallel to the length of the crystal, so as to show a lighter, prettier shade of brown. Dravite forms quite large, well shaped crystals. They can occur as single crystals or as parallel or radiating groups. Dravite is usually given a brilliant or cushion cut. Dravite normally occurs in granite pegmatites, or in granites that have undergone metasomarism by boron-bearing fluids. It can also be found in sediments adjacent to these granites, and as an accessory mineral in schists and gneisses. Dravite usually occurs as rounded triangular striated crystals or as hexagonal crystals. It is associated with other minerals such as micas, feldspar, and 
quartz.
The very best dravite comes from Yinnietharra in Western Australia. These deposits were discovered in the 1970's, but are now exhausted. Other locations for the stone include Mexico, Norway, Cochabamba, in central Bolivia; Aracui, Minas Gerais, in southeast Brazil; Ossola Valley, Piedmont, in northwest Italy; eastern Siberia, in Russia; Nora, Vastmanland, in eastern Sweden; and in the Pamir Mountains, in Tajikistan. Dravite also occurs in the gem gravels of Sri Lanka. In North America, dravite is found in Sandon, British Columbia, Canada, in Oxford County, Maine, and in New York.
Dravite is a stone that brings the wearer back to earth. This quality is said to come from the stone's natural, earthy color. It is said to help restore emotional balance and stability, and promote understanding. It has the power to relieve worrying, making problems seem insignificant, and brings about a feeling of great peace and calm. It is therefore recommended to those who experience insomnia. Overall, dravite has the power to transform negative energy into positive energy.
