Sixteen Jaredite Stones are small stones made by the brother of Jared to provide light in eight prepared vessels. He “did molten out of a rock sixteen small stones” on mount Shelem, and they were “white and clear, even as transparent glass” (Ether 3:1).
The brother of Jared asked the Lord to “touch these stones” so that they would “shine forth in darkness” while the vessels crossed the sea. The Lord “touched the stones one by one with his finger” (Ether 3:4-6).
After the Lord prepared the stones, the brother of Jared put them into the vessels, “one in each end thereof.” The stones “did give light unto the vessels” for men, women, and children crossing the great waters (Ether 6:2-3).