Etymology From Latin obsidianus; named after Obsidius, who was, according to Pliny, the Roman who discovered the stone in Aethiopia.
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Chemistry, Geography, Geology, Mineralogy, Natural sciences, Physical sciencesUsually A type of naturally occurring black glass produced by volcanoes.
The Neolithic culture from 8000 to 6000 B.C., however, was a brilliant period of the revival of crafts, the transformation of gathering into gardening, the growth of a cross-cultural obsidian trade, and the rise of towns.1981, William Irwin Thompson, The Time Falling Bodies Take to Light: Mythology, Sexuality and the Origins of Culture, London: Rider/Hutchinson & Co., page 130:
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Usually A slightly bluish black, the color of obsidian glass.
Looks like a yellow biscuit of a buttery cue ball moon / Rolling maverick across an obsidian sky1975, “Nighthawk Postcards (From Easy Street)”, in Nighthawks at the Diner, performed by Tom Waits: