Chinese Name：薩滿魔石/魔奇瑪瑙
English Name：Shaman Stones / Moqui Marbles / Moqui Balls
Chemical Composition：Outer hematite shell(iron oxide) with a concretion of sandstone in the centre
Related Chakra：All
Astrological Sign: Libra, Aquarius and Aries
Locality：Utah
Colour：Dark Brown to Black (Metallic Lustre)

Remarks：They were formed perhaps 25 million years ago when minerals precipitated from groundwater (flowing through much older Navajo sandstone), the spectacular red rock in southern Utah.
Shaman stones formed in the lower part of the Navajo Sandstone

This is yet little geological information to provide an explanation on how these stones are formed. It is highly likely that they formed at a time when the original sand dunes, now the Navajo Sandstone formation, were underwater.

The iron in the shaman stones may originally have been a substance called Limonite. This is a hydrous ferric iron oxide, which is known to form a gel when under pressure. The sand in the Navajo formation ranged between 300 - 600 metres (1000-2000 feet) deep with a sea above it. At these depths there would have been a tremendous amount of pressure produce; enough to cause the limonite to form a gel. It is also known that heat can change Limonite to Hematite, a stable form of Iron oxide. This then solidified around a core of compressed sand.

Name Source: They are believed to represent an extension of Hopi Native American traditions regarding ancestor worship ("moqui' translates to "the dead" in the Hopi language). Informally, they are called 'Moqui marbles' after the local Moqui native American tribe.