Areia de Ouro Negro (Black Gold Sand)

On the secluded beaches of the northern coast of Brazil, the waves wash up a special kind of sand—they are inherently a deep mocha brown, but are inlaid with countless golden pyrite crystals. When the fiercest midday sun shines directly, the entire beach not only shimmers with a metallic luster, but when you grasp it, a highly condensed, shimmering golden-brown cat-eye light band flows out from between your fingers, as if mastering the secret of turning stone into gold.