Magnetic Hematite Balls, Set of 20, 1"

Twenty balls, as ten pairs. Each about an inch across, with a metallic grey mirror finish.

Strongly magnetic. They snap together, cling, and spin, which is the reason people like them.

For grids, layouts, and fidgeting. Not, as it turns out, for much else.

• Set of 20 magnetic balls (10 pairs), approximately 1 inch each
• Material: man-made magnetic material with a hematite-look finish, usually called hematine or magnetic hematite
• Not natural hematite; see below
• SKU: GBHM25

Magnets of this kind carry a real and well-documented danger, and we would rather tell you than sell quietly.

• Swallowed magnets are a medical emergency. If more than one is swallowed, they can attract each other through the walls of the intestine, pinching the tissue between them. This causes perforation, and it requires surgery. It has killed children.
• Keep them away from children and pets entirely. They are shiny, round, and exactly the size a small child will put in their mouth.
• Keep them away from pacemakers, implanted defibrillators, and other medical devices, and away from phones, cards with magnetic strips, and hard drives.
• If a magnet is swallowed, seek medical attention immediately. Do not wait to see what happens.

Natural hematite is only very weakly magnetic and will not hold to a fridge. If a bead or ball is strongly magnetic, it is not hematite; it is a manufactured material, usually sold as hematine or magnetic hematite. These are that material, and we price them as what they are.

Modern crystal practice keeps hematite for grounding, and Cunningham seats the mineral under Saturn and the element of Fire. Whether those attributions carry over to a manufactured lookalike is a question practitioners answer differently, and we would rather leave it with you than pretend it is settled.

What these actually offer is the pull itself. A magnet is a physical demonstration of attraction, which is not a bad thing to have on a table where you are working with drawing intentions, and there is a long folk tradition of taking the lodestone's magnetism literally. That is an honest use, and it does not require the material to be something it is not.

1. Store them somewhere children and pets cannot possibly reach. This is the first instruction for a reason.
2. Cleanse them with smoke or moonlight; keep them dry, since the finish dulls and rusts.
3. Set them at the points of a grid, where the pull between them is part of the working.
4. Hold a pair and let them click, which is a legitimate way to settle a restless hand.
5. Keep them well away from phones, cards, hard drives, and any implanted medical device.

• Man-Made Hematite Bracelet, 8mm: the same material, worn.
• Lodestone Food, 4 oz: magnetism worked in the older tradition.
• Black Tourmaline Tumbled Stones: a genuinely mined grounding stone.
• White Selenite Wand: to cleanse a working set.
• White Sage Smudge Stick: the arrival cleanse.

Are these dangerous?

They are magnets, and swallowed magnets are a genuine medical emergency: two or more can attract through the wall of the intestine and cause perforation. Keep them entirely away from children and pets, and seek medical attention immediately if one is swallowed.

Is this real hematite?

No. Natural hematite is barely magnetic. Anything that snaps to a magnet is manufactured material, usually called hematine. These are that, honestly labelled and priced.

Can I use them near a pacemaker?

No. Keep strong magnets away from pacemakers, implanted defibrillators, and other medical devices.

What are they good for?

Grid points, layouts, and fidgeting. The pull between them is a nice physical demonstration of attraction, which suits a drawing working.

How do I care for them?

Keep them dry; the finish dulls and rusts. Cleanse with smoke or moonlight rather than water.