Natural citrine can also be found in the Ural Mountains of Russia, in Dauphine, France, and in Madagascar. Most citrine comes from Brazil, but almost all of the Brazilian material is heat-treated amethyst. Citrine crystals can form together with amethyst or smoky quartz to form a bi-colored quartz called ametrine. It is also the birthstone for the Sun Sign of Virgo and the accepted gem for the 13th and 17th wedding anniversary.Ĭitrine is a variety of quartz ranging in colors of yellow, yellow-brown, orange, dark orange-brown, reddish-brown. It is said to increase intelligence and make one youthful! As a healing stone, it is said to be effective as a treatment for anxiety and in the Middle Ages it was thought that aquamarine would reduce the effect of poisons.Ī legend says that sailors wore aquamarine gemstones to keep them safe and prevent seasickness. Since early times, aquamarine has been believed to bestow the wearer with foresight, courage, and happiness.

Its crystal system is hexagonal so therefor may sometime contain striations know as “rain” if heavily included enough and cut en cabochon may display chatoyancy giving a “cats-eye” effect.Īquamarine folklore and possible healing qualities This results in a permanent color change. Some gemstones are heated to high temperatures to enhance the color and/or clarity of a stone.Īquamarines are often heat treated to change a blue-green or teal colored stone to a pure blue. The most valuable aquamarines come from Brazil, but it is also mined in Kenya and Nigeria, Madagascar, Zambia, Tanzania, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Russia.Īquamarines can be facetted or cut en cabochon. Mohs scal of hardnes is 7.5-8 and gets its name from Latin words meaning water and sea. The most prized color is a deep-blue aqua color. Aquamarine is suggested as a gem to give on the 16th and 19th wedding anniversaries.Īquamarine is a member of the Beryl family and ranges in color from an almost colorless pale blue to blue-green or teal. It is also the birth stone for the Zodiac sign of Scorpio. Throughout history amethyst has been used to guard against drunkenness! It has been used for hearing disorders, insomnia, headaches and other pain. Unless otherwise stated, assume that any amethyst you purchase today has been heat treated to increase the depth of color.Īmethyst folklore and possible healing properties: Heat treating is permanent and these stones will not fade over time. Most amethyst gemstones on the market today are heat-treated to produce a deeper color.

When manganese is present in clear quartz amethyst is produced, while the amount of the colouring element iron will account for the depth of purple. It can be found inside geodes and in alluvial deposits all around the world and occurs in both crystalline or massive forms. It also forms as drusy which are crystalline crusts covering the host rock. Top quality amethyst is a deep medium purple with rose-colored flashes.Īmethyst can occur as crystals that are six sided on either end. It must be purple to be amethyst, but it can display a range of shades including deep purple, light lilac, lavender and mauve. Amethyst is suggested as a gem to give on the 4th, 6th and 17th wedding anniversaries.Īmethyst is the purple variety of quartz and the most valued member of the quartz family.

It is also the birth stone for the Zodiac sign of Pisces.

Properties of heat treated amethyst