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Their use is as old as civilisation itself. The Bronze Age Sumerians made magic potions using quartz, the Ancient Greeks wore amethyst amulets, and jade is an ingredient in Chinese medicine. Today, however, a belief in the power of crystals is increasingly the domain of showbiz luvvies who have embraced crystal healing with the zeal of the converted. Richard Price examines the stars who are reluctant to go anywhere without their rocks...

Miranda Kerr (pictured), the ex-wife of Orlando Bloom, says her most treasured possession is a clear quartz crystal 'wand' that is studded with rose quartz

Adele

The North London-born singer is famed for her down-to-earth manner, but she has recently become a rather unlikely poster girl for the healing power of crystals.

Adele's experience of crystal power began when she was doing vocal exercises with a specialist in New York and her teacher handed her some crystals. The singer has since said: 'I thought: 'This is awkward, I'm not a hippie.' But I took them and felt amazing.'

It was a transformative moment. 'I was so nervous about my comeback show and I was panicking. I was out of practice and I was busy being a mum. But it was one of the best shows I've ever done and I had these bloody crystals in my hand.

'Then the Grammys [awards] came and I lost my ****ing crystals! It turned out to be the worst, the most disastrous performance I have ever done.'

That night, sound issues marred her performance. But she says: 'I've got some new crystals now and everything has been going well.'

Her endorsement is priceless to the crystal industry — although, much to the frustration of those looking to boost their profits, she has refused to reveal which crystals she uses.

Katy Perry

The American pop star attributes her crystal obsession to a tip from Madonna. The older singer also introduced her to a crystal healer.

Despite coming from evangelical Christian stock (both her parents are pastors), Katy has developed a distinctly pagan devotion to her collection of healing rocks.

Her favourite is rose quartz, the 'love stone', but she also uses other crystals such as amethyst, which is said to promote clarity of thought.

'I don't stay single for long,' she told Cosmopolitan magazine. 'I carry a lot of rose quartz, which attracts the male. Maybe I need to calm it down with amethyst.'

Adele's experience of crystal power began when she was doing vocal exercises with a specialist in New York

Victoria Beckham

Posh's preoccupation was revealed when she opened her handbag for a Vogue feature article. There, nestled among the cosmetics, was an odd-shaped black stone.

'I currently carry a black obsidian skull crystal — it's for protection and strength,' she explained. 'I'm really into crystals. I'm a real positive thinker. I believe in creative visualisation — the glass is always half full. I have no time for anything negative.

'I bought crystals for all my team, so they carry them, too.'

Backstage at her fashion shows, the area is dotted with various crystals to ward off negativity and promote the creative process.

'I've got all different colours,' enthuses Victoria. 'I am quite a superstitious person. I don't walk under a ladder. If I see a magpie I salute.'

Miranda Kerr 

The Australian model and ex-wife of actor Orlando Bloom says her most treasured possession is a clear quartz crystal 'wand' that is studded with rose quartz.

'Clear quartz is a great stone for gathering, directing and transmitting energy,' she says. 'It can also transform negative energy into positive energy.

Backstage at Victoria Beckham's fashion shows, the area is dotted with various crystals to ward off negativity and promote the creative process

'I hold my crystal during meditation, prayer, deep belly breathing, and use it to infuse my rosehip body oil with positive vibrations prior to a massage.' Whatever that means.

In Miranda's case, there is a commercial aspect to her enthusiasm — the oil can be bought from her organic cosmetics line, Kora. At £60 a bottle it doesn't come cheap. But can you really put a price on what Miranda calls 'the vibration of self-love'?

Naomi Campbell

The South London-born supermodel may not be exactly renowned for her Zen-like calm — but imagine what she'd be like without her crystals.

'I couldn't even start to tell you how many crystals I have,' she says.

'I keep a black tourmaline and a rose quartz in my bag, always. They signify protection and love, which is nice to have with you when you're travelling around the world every two seconds — not that I'm complaining. And then I bring others in my luggage.'

Goldie Hawn and Kate Hudson   

Glamorous Goldie and her actress daughter, a fan of meditation, straddle the crystal-obsessed generations.

Goldie, 71, was introduced to crystals when the New Age movement was in full swing during the Seventies — the era when Stevie Nicks sang about seeing 'crystal visions' in the Fleetwood Mac hit Dreams.

Her house is strewn with crystals, including some near man-sized specimens she picked up on trips to Brazil, a centre for crystal mining.

Kate, 37, belongs to a different generation of crystal users, having become accustomed to the absurdly expensive spas of Los Angeles.

By her bed she keeps a crystal bowl filled with rose quartz heart crystals, which Goldie gave her as a Mother's Day present.

'I also have a crystal my mom gave me for Christmas years ago and I take it everywhere with me,' she says. 'She's really into energy and stones. It's rose quartz and heart-shaped and it represents love.'

With sons by two rock star fathers, neither of whom is in her life anymore, perhaps Kate could do with buying a few more chunks of rose quartz.

Gwyneth Paltrow

A keen adopter of every zany lifestyle trend, the actress was never going to shy away from healing crystals.

Still, even she surprised some when her oft-lampooned Goop website recommended that women insert jade eggs into their most private parts to strengthen their pelvic floor muscles and improve their sex life.

Also known as Yoni eggs or Chakrubs, they are designed to 'cleanse the womb space and provide healing power'.

However, gynaecologists have warned that as jade is a porous rock, it could carry bacteria and potentially cause infections — which is a concern when one of the recommended uses is to leave them in overnight.

SO WHICH ROCK IS RIGHT FOR YOU?   

Strictly speaking, a crystal is any solid material in which the atoms are arranged in a particularly regular way. Table salt, for instance, is composed of crystals. But when healers talk about them, they are generally referring to semi-precious gemstones. Here are some of the most popular:

Clear quartz is commonly used in conjunction with other stones to enhance their effect

Rose quartz

Considered to be good for the emotions — the crystal equivalent of a love potion. This fashionable crystal du jour is also recommended to reduce '21st-century stress' by Philip Permutt, Britain's leading crystal expert, whose books on the subject have been translated into six languages.

Clear quartz

Said to promote awareness, attention and understanding. Clear quartz is commonly used in conjunction with other stones to enhance their effect. Considered to be 'programmable' (you can choose which area of your life you want it to improve) and able to infuse water with its power.

Black Tourmaline

While most crystals are used to impart specific qualities, tourmaline's role is to protect you from negative energy. Believers will place tourmaline at strategic points around a room to ward off 'bad vibes'. Trendy yoga instructors embed them in the sprung floors of their studios.

Amethyst is a violet-coloured crystal, a jewellery favourite, which can be used to guide you along the correct path

Amethyst

Expert Philip Permutt says this violet-coloured crystal, a jewellery favourite, can be used to guide you along the correct path.

'It's very good for finding your spiritual way in life,' he says. It is also used to help develop clarity of thought and to treat headaches.

Citrine

Said to carry the Sun's energy, this yellow stone is thought to enable people to turn their ambitions into tangible forms. A favourite of the singer-songwriter and actress Sheryl Crow, citrine is referred to as 'the merchant's stone' for its alleged wealth-bringing properties. Believers will carry it in their purses.

Aquamarine

Commonly associated with the throat area (or 'chakra' point, according to yoga teaching), aquamarine is said to encourage qualities of self-determination, inspiration, communication and discipline. Crystal healers often prescribe it for treating allergies, auto-immune diseases, sore throats and thyroid problems, despite a total lack of supporting scientific evidence.

Citrine is a yellow stone which is thought to enable people to turn their ambitions into tangible forms

GIVE IT A BATH - OR A WAFT OF BURNING SAGE  

Choosing your rock is just the first step. To use crystals effectively, exponents say, it is important to 'set your intention' first. In other words, if you don't know what you want, then the crystal cannot help you.

You must treat it correctly, they add. Since a crystal is believed to carry energy, it is vital to rid it of any negative vibrations before you begin using it. This could mean soaking it overnight in a salt bath or setting fire to some sage, a cleansing herb, and wafting the smoke around it.

Some therapists say it is vital to expose crystals to sunlight or, better still, a Full Moon, because they are products of Nature which need to be recharged with the energy of the Universe.

Quite how this tallies with most crystals being formed in the pitch-black depths of the Earth is not clear.

While some users are soothed by the simple act of carrying crystals around with them or placing them in strategic points around a room, the true connoisseur will line them up with the seven 'chakra' points on the body.

Rose quartz (pictured) is considered to be good for the emotions — the crystal equivalent of a love potion

For example, a stone placed just below the stomach will supposedly stimulate the sacral chakra, which is linked to creativity and sexuality.

Or if you are feeling confused, a crystal between the eyebrows, on the anja chakra (centre of intuition) ought to clear things up.

Finally, you have to imagine them working — results are achieved only if you have faith that the crystals work. Whether this is natural crystal magic in action or a more humdrum placebo effect is up for debate.

TV STAR WHO BLEW £400K ON THEM  

A small piece of crystal that slips easily into your pocket can be bought for as little as 60p. However, ask a specialist in crystal healing for advice and they will tell you that the size and shape of the rock will make a big difference to how much energy it imparts.

For unscrupulous crystal traders, this can be a licence to print money. Spencer Pratt, a reality TV star from California who has twice appeared on Celebrity Big Brother in Britain, has confessed to spending £400,000 on crystals in a single year.

By last year his belief had waned, leading him to examine his impecunious lifestyle and finally conclude: 'If they had powers, I would be Kim Kardashian right now and not Spencer.'

Nevertheless, the gravy train rolls on and some crystal merchants, such as the owners of LA celebrity favourite Spellbound Sky — which boasts model Cara Delevingne and It-girl Alexa Chung as clients — are making a very good living out of it.

True believers think nothing of spending £2,000 on an Amethyst Biomat, a mattress filled with crushed crystals, which is supposed to soothe 'jangled nerves and knotted muscles'. And online you can buy a 16in polished quartz stone for £7,500 from purveyors of luxury crystals, Big Quartz.

BUT IS IT ALL A LOAD OF CRYSTAL BALLS?

Believers point to the fact that crystals are used in modern technology such as watches, radios and computers as proof that they can transmit energy into the body.

It is, indeed true that quartz crystal, which is composed of silicon dioxide, can generate a charge or voltage.

Yet laboratory trials have found no evidence that crystals provide anything more than a placebo effect for humans.

The most recent trial, conducted at Goldsmiths, University of London, found that even the most ardent believers couldn't tell the difference between real quartz crystals and glass fakes when they held them.

Professor Christopher French, who led the research, says: 'Most of the time there's nothing wrong with this kind of belief, especially if it helps people relax and feel calmer and happier.

'But if people are using crystals instead of traditional medicine when they are ill, that would be dangerous.'