A crystal ball reading, also known as crystallomancy or crystal gazing, is an ancient method for
foretelling the future. Before crystal balls, psychic readers looked at reflective surfaces and bodies of water to make predictions. Next, a transparent stone called beryl came to be an early crystal ball used by many psychics, but crystal balls as we know them today appeared only in the middle ages.
While some crystal ball readers see images inside the ball (called “scrying”), others use the crystal ball as a tool to focus and clear their minds so they can have better psychic vision. The crystal ball is also known as “shew stone” or “show stone,” and these stones are typically large enough for the reader to be able to engage in scrying easily.