Agate
No gemstone is more creatively striped by nature than agate, chalcedony quartz that forms in concentric layers in a wide variety of colors and textures. Each individual agate forms by filling a cavity in host rock. As a result, agate often is found as a round nodule, with concentric bands like the rings of a tree trunk. The bands sometimes look like eyes, sometimes-fanciful scallops, or even a landscape with dendrite trees.

Agate was highly valued as a talisman or amulet in ancient times. It was said to quench thirst and protect from fevers. Persian magicians used agate to divert storms. A famous collection of two to four thousand agate bowls, which was accumulated by Mithradates, king of Pontus, shows the enthusiasm with which agate was regarded. Agate bowls were also popular in the Byzantine Empire. Collecting agate bowls became common among European royalty during the Renaissance and many museums in Europe, including the Louvre, have spectacular examples.

The mining of agate in the Nahe River valley in Germany, which was already documented in 1497, gave rise to the cutting center of Idar-Oberstein, Germany. Originally, the river was used to power the grinding wheels. When the Nahe agate deposit was exhausted in the nineteenth century, Idar cutters started to develop the agate deposits of Brazil, which also sparked exploration and discovery of Brazil's rich deposits of amethyst, citrine, tourmaline, topaz, and other gemstones.

Although the small town of Idar-Oberstein is still known for the finest agate carving in the world, today Idar imports a huge range of other gem materials from around the world for cutting and carving in Germany and Asia. Cameo master carvers and modern lapidary artists flourish along with rough dealers who scour the world for the latest gem discoveries for export.

Amber
Thousands of years since the dawn of mankind, Amber has held the secrets of a mystic past. From its health giving qualities, to a coveted treasure adorned by women for centuries past, the trading commodity of early man maintains its value and fashion appearance.

Amber is yellow to brown fossil resin exuded by coniferous trees now extinct; the best amber is transparent. Highly polished amber is used to make small decorative objects, e.g., beads and amulets. When rubbed with a cloth, amber becomes charged with static electricity. Bubbles of air, leaves, bits of wood, or insects, sometimes of extinct species, are often found trapped in amber. The chief source of the world's amber is the Baltic coast of Germany.

Commercial mining and gathering activities have been recorded from as early as 1264 AD and in various guises continue to this day. Imagine, how much amber has been extracted over a period of 700+ years? It is also true to say that the majority of this extraction was subsequently turned into varnish and shellac. We will never know what wonders have been lost. Amber is a strange and attractive gem. Its golden transparency lends it a quality which even diamonds do not share. For the artisan it provides a remarkable medium to work with and create some of the most beautiful objects for us to enjoy. For the scientist it provides a glimpse into the past, a window into history.

Most of our understanding, beliefs and research on amber have been based upon the work of European and American cultures. The Chinese shared our fascination with amber and the earliest written references go back to AD 92. They believed that amber was the soul of a tiger which had died and passed into the earth and the Tibetans had perhaps the most beautiful name for this gem; pö-she, which meant perfumed crystal.

The amber from the Samland Peninsula in the Baltic is actually a secondary deposit. The original amber forest was probably located further South. The resin was subsequently carried South probably by two great rivers from its original site and deposited in a great estuarial drift of silt and clay. (At the moment this is still speculation as many scientists disagree on this point). This deposit site extends some way out under the sea. This is also the likely source of amber washed up onto the Norfolk, Suffolk beaches. Autumn and Spring storms together with complimenting tides tears pieces of raw amber from the sea bed and strands them on the shore line. If you look for amber it is usually mixed in with the stranded seaweed, litter and of course obligatory dead seagull!

Amethyst
Purple has long been considered a royal color so it is not surprising that amethyst has been so much in demand during history. Fine amethysts are featured in the British Crown Jewels and were also a favorite of Catherine the Great and Egyptian royalty. Amethyst, transparent purple quartz, is the most important quartz variety used in jewelry.

Because amethyst was thought to encourage celibacy and symbolize piety, amethyst was very important in the ornamentation of Catholic and other churches in the Middle Ages. It was, in particular, considered to be the stone of bishops and they still often wear amethyst rings.

The Greek work "amethystos" basically can be translated as "not drunken." Amethyst was considered to be a strong antidote against drunkenness, which is why wine goblets were often carved from it! The gemstone still symbolizes sobriety.

Amethyst ranges in color from pale lilac to deep purple. The pale colors are sometimes called "Rose de France" and can be seen set in Victorian jewelry. The deep colors are the most valuable, particularly a rich purple with rose flashes.

Amethyst is mined in Brazil, Uruguay, Bolivia and Argentina, as well as in Zambia, Namibia and other African countries.

The legend of the origin of amethyst comes from Greek myths. Dionysius, the god of intoxication, was angered one day by an insult from a mere mortal and swore revenge on the next mortal that crossed his path, creating fierce tigers to carry out his wish. Along came unsuspecting Amethyst, a beautiful young maiden on her way to pay tribute to the goddess Diana. Diana turned Amethyst into a stature of pure crystalline quartz to protect her from the brutal claws. Dionysus wept tears of wine in remorse for his action at the sight of the beautiful statue. The god's tears stained the quartz purple, creating the gem we know today.

Blood Stone
Bloodstone, green jasper dotted with bright red spots of iron oxide, was treasured in ancient times and long served as the birthstone for March. This attractive chalcedony quartz is also known as Heliotrope because in ancient times polished stones were described as reflecting the sun: perhaps the appearance of the gem reminded the ancients of the red setting sun reflected in the ocean.

Medieval Christians often used bloodstone to carve scenes of the crucifixion and martyrs, leading it to also be dubbed martyr's stone. The legend of the origin of bloodstone says that it was first formed when some drops of Christ's blood fell and stained some jasper at the foot of the cross. A beautiful example of carved bloodstone with the seal of the German Emperor Rudolf II can be seen at the Louvre museum in Paris.

Even today, finely powdered bloodstone is used as a medicine and aphrodisiac in India. Perhaps that explains why today it is difficult to find fine specimens of bloodstone on the market. Bloodstone is mined in India, Australia, and the United States.

Cat's Eye
Like the eye of a panther, cat's-eye chrysoberyl seems almost supernatural in origin. How could something so feline be mineral and not animal? Cat's-eye chrysoberyl, a cousin of color-changing alexandrite, is a variety of chrysoberyl, which has a distinct band of light across its face, which sweeps from side to side.

The color ranges from a honey-brown to an apple green with rich gold colors generally the most valued. The most important value factor is the strength and sharpness of the eye. Fine cat's-eye chrysoberyl often also shows the "milk and honey" effect. When a bright light source is directed at the side of the stone, one side of the eye will be milky white and the other remains gold. When the stone is rotated, the colors switch. Cat's-eyes are especially popular in men's jewelry.

Cat's-eye chrysoberyl has the presence of a familiar, a powerful talisman that can direct fortune. Put it to work for you!

Chrysoberyl can also seen in a faceted variety, which has a honey-gold color. It may remind you of yellow sapphire, topaz, or citrine.

Diamond

See special section for Diamonds.

Emerald
Because the rich green colour of emerald is the colour of spring, the ancients prized it as the gemstone symbolizing love and rebirth. Treasured for at least 4,000 years by different cultures all around the world, emerald is said to quicken the intelligence as well as the heart. Legend gives its owner the gift of eloquence.

Emerald is the birthstone for May, the month of springtime romance, and the anniversary gemstone for the twentieth year of marriage, the perfect emblem of an enduring love.

What is the source of the timeless appeal of emerald? Today scientists tell us that the human eye is more sensitive to the color green than to any other. Perhaps that is why green is so soothing to the eye, and why the color green seems to complement every other color: think of the beauty of a garden.

Spring can also be seen in the network of inclusions in the depth of the emerald that the French call the "jardin," or "garden," because it resembles foliage. The inclusions are like a fingerprint, giving each emerald a distinct personality. The extreme rarity of transparent emerald is why emeralds can be more valuable than diamonds.

Emerald is a beryl, a mineral that is normally colorless. Emerald's rich green color is caused by minute traces of chromium. Chromium is the rare Midas element of gemstones: its presence also gives rubies their firey redness. Crystals of emerald grew long before human history in metamorphic rocks, which usually restricts the size of emerald crystals, making them even rarer in large sizes. Other beryls, emerald's cousins, like pale blue aquamarine, pink morganite, golden heliodor, and pale green beryl, grow in pegmatites which allow larger crystals to form. There is even a bright red beryl found in Utah in the United States.

Emeralds are cut in Jaipur, India and Tel-Aviv, Israel as well as in the mining countries. Emerald is one of the most difficult gemstones to cut because of the high value of the rough stone and the many inclusions found in crystals. Small changes in orientation can make a large difference in the final appearance of the gem. Skilled craftsmen who specialize in cutting emerald can be found in cities around the world for jewelers who insist on having stones perfected for the optimum brilliance and vibrancy.

When choosing an emerald, the most important value factor to consider is color. The more vivid the green, the more valuable the emerald. There are also attractive bright stones with a lighter green color that often make a spectacular piece of jewelry. Darker green emeralds may also make up in rich color what they lose in brightness.

Because emeralds are so rare without inclusions, some inclusions are expected and do not detract from the value of the stone as much as with other gemstones. However, you should look to make sure that fissures and inclusions do not go too deep into the stone so that it might be weakened enough to break if it were hit accidentally. The fissures and fractures that are characteristic of emerald are traditionally filled with oil to minimize their impact. You should avoid cleaning emerald with hot soapy water or steam and never clean an emerald in an ultrasonic cleaner because this oil could be removed or damaged, making the fissures more visible.

Emerald is most often cut in a rectangular step-cut, which is now popularly known as the emerald cut. Smaller sizes are also found in rounds, ovals, pear shapes and marquise cuts. You may have to look a while for an unusual shape in a larger size. Due to their rich color, emeralds are also spectacular when cut in a smooth-domed cabochon cut.

Cleopatra prized her emeralds more than any other gem. She may have dropped her pearls in her wine for Mark Anthony but she kept her emeralds for herself! The ancient emerald mines of Cleopatra, long a mystery, were discovered again a hundred years ago near the Red Sea. Some tools found in the mine were dated at 1650 B.C. but no quality emeralds were found: the mines were exhausted thousands of years ago. Mummies in ancient Egypt were often buried with an emerald on their necks carved with the symbol for verdure, flourishing greenness, to symbolize eternal youth.

The Romans also loved emeralds because, as ancient scholar Pliny said, "nothing greens greener." Pliny said that emerald was the only gem which delighted the eye without fatiguing it. He said his eyes were restored when gazing at emerald. Emperor Nero wore emerald sunglasses to watch the gladiators.

One legend says that Satan lost the emerald from his crown when he fell. The emerald was shaped into a bowl which the Queen of Sheba sent to Nicodemus. Christ used the bowl at the last supper and Joseph of Arimathea used the bowl to catch blood from the cross, founding the order of the Holy Grail.

The Moguls of India, including Shah Jahan, the builder of the Taj Mahal, loved emeralds so much they inscribed them with sacred text and wore them as talismans. Some of these sacred stones, called Mogul emeralds, can still be seen in museums and collections today.

The Treasures of the Incas and Aztecs

Ancient emeralds were from mines in Egypt and perhaps what is now Afghanistan. But Spaniards arriving on the continent of South America were stunned to see emeralds finer and larger than any ever seen before. The Spaniards spent years searching for the source of the fantastic green stones favored by the Incas. They found it finally in what is today Colombia: Chivor, also known as Somondoco or "God of the green gems," then later Muzo and Cosquez, the richest emerald mines in the planet and still the source of the finest stones today.

Hernando Cortes, the conquerer of Mexico, was carrying carved emeralds taken from the Aztecs in the shapes of fish and flowers and a carved emerald bell, and an emerald the size of a man's palm when he was shipwrecked. Many of the finest stones were lost forever. The Incas had an emerald goddess, a fabulous emerald the size of an ostrich egg. In tribute they sacrificed her children: smaller emeralds which were presented to the goddess. Treasure hunters seeking wrecks of Spanish galleons are occasionally rewarded with the ultimate treasure: emeralds lost by the conquistadores long ago. Emerald connoisseurs today are lucky because a relatively new find in Zambia has made emeralds much more available on the market today. Zambian emeralds have captured a large portion of the market because they have a rich deep color and sometimes have very few inclusions. Zambian emeralds tend to be a slightly darker green than emeralds from Colombia and some have a bluish tone. Fine specimens have a clear true green which deserves its place near the top range of quality in the market.

Long thought of as a producer of lower quality emerald, Brazil today now produces fine emeralds that rival those of its famous neighbor. A mine called Nova Era has produced some top gem quality emeralds that are changing Brazil's reputation. Brazil now produces more emeralds than any other country.

Zimbabwe's famous Sandawana mine is known for producing top quality emeralds in small sizes. Other potentially important producers of emerald are Pakistan, Afghanistan, Madagascar, Nigeria, and Russia.

Garnet
The oranges of autumn leaves, the glowing red coals of a winter fire, the sparkling green of a summer field, and the beautiful pinks and of spring flowers, garnet is a gemstone for all seasons. Garnets are a closely related group of gemstones that are available in every color. Dark reds, tangerine orange, vivid lime green, soft bluish-pink, garnet is all these colors and more.

There are garnets that change color in different light, translucent green garnets that look like jade, garnets with stars, garnets that have been mined for thousands of years and garnets that were just discovered in the last decade.

The name garnet probably comes from pomegranate. Many ancient pieces of garnet jewelry are studded with tiny red stones that do look a lot like a cluster of pomegranate seeds! Jewelry set with garnets from Czechoslovakia was extremely popular in the nineteenth century and Bohemian garnet jewelry is still popular today, although today the garnets are mined elsewhere. When you say garnet, most people think automatically of small dark red gemstones, even though this is only one aspect of the world of garnets.

Garnet is the birthstone for January, which means that January babies have a lot of choices! Varieties available, some mineral differences and some color descriptions, include rhodolite, malaya, demantoid, grossular, hessonite, spessartite, hessonite, almandine, mandarin, and combinations between these varieties.

One of the most popular is rhodolite garnet,which ranges from pink to purplish red in color and is mined in Africa, India, and Sri Lanka. Tsavorite garnet is a bright yellow green to grass green, and is mined in Tanzania and Kenya. Legendary demantoid garnet combines a bright green with dazzling brilliance that won over the Tsars of Russia, who used it lavishly. In the past, demantoid garnet was only ever available in small sizes and was extremely rare, but a new deposit was found in 1998 in Namibia, southern Africa. However, it is still quite rare today.

Malaya garnet, another popular mixed variety, ranges from orange to gold and is mined in Tanzania and Kenya. Pyrope garnet is a very saturated red: beautiful small pyrope garnets found in Arizona are called anthill garnet because they are mined by ants, who carry them up when they are excavating their anthills.

One garnet growing in popularity is a newly discovered garnet from Namibia, which is a bright orange spessartite, is called mandarin garnet because its color is a true orange. Hessonite and Spessarite garnets mostly come in golds and oranges and browns that are sometimes called cinnamon garnets. Grossular, the variety of garnets that gives us tsavorite, also is available in pale pinks and greens and yellows.

Garnets have long been carried by travelers to protect against accidents far from home. In ancient Asia and the American Southwest, garnets were used as bullets because the glowing red color was said to increase the ferocity of a wound. Garnets in legend light up the night and protect their owners from nightmares. Noah used a garnet lantern to navigate the Ark at night. The ancient world is full of praise for the carbuncle, the glowing red coal of a gemstone we now know as garnet.

Iolite
Iolite has different colors in different directions in the crystal. A cube cut from iolite will look a violetish blue almost like sapphire from one side, clear as water from the other, and a honey yellow from the top. This property led some people to call iolite "water sapphire" in the past, a name that is now obsolete.

The name iolite comes from the Greek ios, which means violet. Iolite is usually a purplish blue when cut properly, with a softness to the color that can be quite attractive.

Iolite is readily available and surprisingly affordable. The better and richer the blue, the better. It is mined in India, Sri Lanka, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and Brazil. The Vikings probably mined iolite from deposits in Norway and Greenland.

Iolite is relatively hard but should be protected from blows. With its attractive colour and reasonable price, it may become a jewelry staple in the future.

When Leif Eriksson and the other legendary Viking explorers ventured far out into the Atlantic Ocean, away from any coastline that could help them determine position, they had a secret gem weapon: iolite. The Viking mariners used thin pieces of iolite as the world's first polarizing filter. Looking through an iolite lens, they could determine the exact position of the sun, and navigate safely to the new world and back.

The property that made iolite so valuable to the Vikings is extreme pleochroism.

Pleochroism may have been helpful in navigation but it makes things difficult for a gem cutter. If iolite is not cut from exactly the right direction, no matter the shape of the rough, its color will not show to its best advantage.

Pearl

See special section on Pearl

Lapis Lazuli
Lapis is a dark blue microcrystalline rock composed primarily of the mineral lazurite.
It often sparkles with golden pyrite inclusions.

Lapis lazuli is still mined at the deposits of the ancient world in Afghanistan. Lapis is also mined in Chile. Small quantities are also produced in Siberia, in Colorado in the United States, and in Myanmar.

Lapis lazuli is somewhat porous and should be protected from chemicals and solvents. Warm soapy water is the best way to clean it. Lapis is not very hard at 5.5 and should be protected from other jewelry when stored to avoid scratches.

The beautiful blues in paintings from the Renaissance are thanks to the blue of lapis lazuli, the blue rock loved by the ancients, from Mesopotamia, to Egypt, to Persia, to Greece and Rome. The ancient city of Ur has a thriving trade in lapis as early as the fourth millennium B.C. The name is international, from the Latin, lapis, which means stone, and from the Arabic, azul, which means blue. When lapis was first introduced to Europe, it was called ultramarinum, which means 'beyond the sea'. Ground lapis was the secret of the blue in ultramarine, the pigment which painters used to paint the sea and the sky until the nineteenth century. Lapis was also popular for inlays.

The columns of St Issac's Cathedral in Petersburg are lined with lapis and the Pushkin Palace in Petersburg has lapis lazuli paneling!

The Romans believed that lapis was a powerful aphrodisiac. In the Middle Ages, it was thought to keep the limbs healthy and free the soul from error, envy and fear

Moonstone
Moonstones come in a variety of colors. The body color can range from colorless to gray, brown, yellow, green, or pink. The clarity ranges from transparent to translucent. The best moonstone has a blue sheen, perfect clarity, and a colorless body color.

Sometimes moonstone will have an eye as well as a sheen. Another related feldspar variety is known as rainbow moonstone. In this variety of labradorite feldspar, the sheen is a variety of rainbow hues.

Moonstones are usually cut in a smooth-domed cabochon shape to maximize the effect. Sometimes they are carved to show a man-in-the-moon face. Moonstone beads also display the sheen very well and are simply stunning against a black dress.

Fine moonstone is quite rare and becoming rarer. It is mined in Sri Lanka and Southen India. The rainbow variety can also be found in Madagascar.

The Romans thought that moonstone was formed out of moonlight. Moonstone is a variety of feldspar and the shimmer, which is called schiller or adularescence, is caused by the intergrowth of two different types of feldspar, with different refractive indexes. In Europe, moonstone is considered the birthstone for June, although in the United States it shares that distinction with alexandrite and pearl.

Onyx
In jewellery design as in fashion, colors look crisper against a background of black, and black and white always looks right. In fine jewelry, the black backdrop is often supplied by onyx, a chalcedony quartz with a fine texture and black color. Some onyx also displays white bands or ribbons against a black background. If the layers are even, this type of onyx can be carved into cameos.

Onyx was very popular with the ancient Greeks and Romans. The name comes from the Greek word onux, which means fingernail. The story is that one day frisky Cupid cut the divine fingernails of Venus with an arrowhead while she was sleeping. He left the clippings scattered on the sand and the fates turned them into stone so that no part of the heavenly body would ever perish. True, black isn't normally the color one associates with fingernails. (Did Venus wear Vamp?) But in Greek times, almost all colors of chalcedony from fingernail white to dark brown and black were called onyx. Later, the Romans narrowed the term to refer to black and dark brown colors only.

Onyx which is reddish brown and white is known as sardonyx. Sardonyx was highly valued in Rome, especially for seals, because it was said to never stick to the wax. Roman General Publius Cornelius Scipio was known for wearing lots of sardonyx.

Black onyx especially shines when used a backdrop for color play. Its fine texture also makes it ideal for carving, making it a favored material for today's lapidary artists. In the pin by designer Susan Helmich, a carved piece of onyx with threads of white provides a stunning backdrop for a flash of color. Onyx was often used as the perfect foil for carved rock crystal or the drop dead red of rubies in Art deco designs. It is also popular in marcasite jewelry. So if you would like to add a little black magic to your jewelry design, consider onyx.

Opal
Mysterious opals contain the wonders of the skies - sparking rainbows, fireworks, and lightning - shifting and moving in their depths. Opal has been treasured throughout history around the world. Archaeologist Louis Leakey found six-thousand year old opal artifacts in a cave in Kenya!

Opal was much loved and valued highly by the Romans, who called it opalus.

At the same time, opal was also sought in what would become the Americas. The Aztecs mined opal in South and Central America.

The story of opal in Australia begins more than 100 million years ago when the deserts of central Australia were a great inland sea, with silica-laden sediment deposited around its shoreline. After the sea receded and disappeared to become the great Artesian basin, weathering 30 million years ago released a lot of the silica into a solution which filled cracks in the rocks, layers in clay, and even some fossils. Some of this silica became precious opal. Opal is one of the few gemstones that is sedimentary in origin. Opal still contains 6 to 10 percent water, a remnant of that ancient sea.

Gold panners in Australia found the first few pieces of precious opal in 1863. Mines at White Cliffs began producing in 1890.

Only opal with a perfectly aligned grid of silica spheres will show play of color, which is created through diffraction. The size of the spheres determine the wavelengths and therefore the colors seen. The brilliance of the colors are determined by the regularity of the grid.

The strength of the colors seen in opal also depend on the background body color and the transparency of the stone. The body color determines the variety of opal and has a large impact on the value.

Black opal, opal with a black to dark gray body color, has the most brilliant colors and is the most valuable. Crystal opal, the next most costly type of opal, is transparent with flashes and is highly valued due to the brilliance of its colors and the fact that many layers of color within the stone can also be seen. White and milky opals tend to have more diffused colors due to the light background color. This is the most affordable type of opal.

Another more unusual type of opal is boulder opal, which has opal with an ironstone host rock matrix which creates a natural dark background to view its fire. These sometimes occur in "splits" a matched pair of opals created when a piece of boulder opal is split along the opal vein. These are particularly favored for earrings, since they are mirror images of each other.

Within each opal variety, the brilliance of the play of color is the most important value factor. After this consideration, the colors seen and the pattern of the colors will also influence value. Generally, opal with red fire is the most valued because opal that shows red will also show other colors when rolled back and forth: it contains the whole spectrum. The pattern of the play of color also influences value. Generally large flashes and broad patterns are more rare and valuable than small pinfire patterns.

Opal was also treasured in the Middle Ages and was called ophthalmios, or eye stone, due to a widespread belief that it was beneficial to eyesight. Blonde women wore opal necklaces to protect their hair from losing its color. Some thought the opal's effect on sight could render the wearer invisible.

Opal as Muse
A beautiful opal called the orphanus was set in the crown of the Holy Roman Emperor. It was described as follows: "as though pure white snow flashed and sparkled with the color of bright ruddy wine, and was overcome by this radiance." This opal was said to guard the regal honor.

Opals are also set in the crown jewels of France. Napoleon gave Josephine a beautiful opal with brilliant red flashes called "The burning of Troy," making her his Helen.

Shakespeare found in the opal a symbol of shifting inconstancy, likening play of color to play of mind in one of the most apt uses of gemstone symbolism in literature. In Twelfth Night, he writes: "Now the melancholy God protect thee, and the tailor make thy garments of changeable taffeta, for thy mind is opal."

In the nineteenth century, opal was considered unlucky due to the plot of a popular Sir Walter Scott novel of the time. The heroine of the novel has her life force caught in the beautiful opal she wears in her hair and she dies when the fire in the opal is extinguished. Queen Victoria loved opals and often gave them as wedding presents. She and her daughters created a fashion for wearing opal.

Queen Victoria was one of the first to appreciate opals from an exciting new source: Australia. Ancient opal came from the mines near Cervenica, Hungary, in what is now Eastern Slovakia, where hundreds of men mined the stone.

Ancient opal fanciers never had the chance to see the opal of Australia, where the opal of today was born, which far surpasses the beauty of Hungarian opal in fire and brilliance.

Black opal is found only in Australia in Lightning Ridge, the most famous opal deposit in the world since it was discovered in 1903, and in Mintabie, which also produces large quantities of light opal.

Another large opal producing area in Australia is Coober Pedy, which produces light opal. The name Coober Pedy is an Aboriginal name meaning "white man in a hole." If you visit Coober Pedy, you will understand how it got its name: many houses - and even a church! - are burrows dug into the ground called dugouts. This type of dwelling is quite practical and cool as temperatures soar in the daytime.

Andamooka is known for producing crystal opal and light opal. Boulder opal is produced in several areas in western Queensland.

In addition to Australia, a small quantity of precious opal is produced in Brazil. Mexico and the state of Oregon in the United States produce a volcanic opal called fire opal. Fire opal is transparent opal ranging in color from colorless to yellow, orange, and red. Sometimes it also shows play of color in addition to its bright orange body color. Low quality opal was recently discovered in Ethiopia.

Opal is cut in Australia, Hong Kong, Mexico, Germany, and other places. Calibrated sizes are widely available in light opal, which is very popular with jewelry manufacturers around the world due to the beauty even of inexpensive pieces. Black opal is cut in free sizes due to its rarity and high value. Boulder opal is often available in the natural shape of the rough. Fire opal can be found in both faceted and cabochon cuts, including many interesting fancy shapes.

A green translucent opal that resembles chrysoprase or jade, which is called prase opal, is found in Tanzania. A beautiful blue-green opal is found in Peru in the Andes Mountains. These types of opal do not display play of color.

The hardness of opal ranges from 5.5 to 6.5 on the Mohs scale. It should be protected from heat and strong light, which can dry it out, causing cracks. Ultrasonic cleaners, metal polish, acids, and any strong solvents should be avoided. Exposed corners or points on pear or marquise shape opals may chip if hit while they are being worn. Opal is best set in a protected mounting.

Roman historian Pliny described the beauty of opal as the combination of the beauty of all other gems: "There is in them a softer fire than the ruby, there is the brilliant purple of the amethyst, and the sea green of the emerald - all shining together in incredible union. Some by their splendor rival the colors of the painters, others the flame of burning sulphur or of fire quickened by oil."

Peridot
Peridot, the birthstone of August, this gemstone is born in fire: the volcanic gem. Small crystals of peridot are often found in the rocks created by volcanoes and also can be found in meteors that fall to earth! A few samples of extraterrestrial peridot have even been faceted into gems!

Peridot is the gem form of the mineral olivine. Because the iron which creates the color is an integral part of its structure, it is found only in green, ranging from a summery light yellowish green to a 7-up bottle green.

Peridot was mined in ancient Egypt on an island called Zeberget.

The Romans called peridot "evening emerald," since its green color did not darken at night but was still visible by lamplight. Peridot later was also often used to decorate medieval churches, probably carried back to Europe by the Crusaders. Large peridots, more than 200 carats in size, adorn the shrine of the three magi at the Cologne Cathedral.

Today most peridot is mined by Native Americans in Arizona on the San Carlos Reservation. Fine large peridot are found in Myanmar (formerly Burma) and peridot is also mined in China and Sri Lanka.

In 1994, an exciting new deposit of peridot was discovered in Pakistan, and these stones are among the finest ever seen. The new mine is located 15,000 feet above sea level in the Nanga Parbat region in the far west of the Himalaya Mountains in the Pakistanian part of Kashmir. Beautiful large crystals of peridot were found, some that cut magnificent large gemstones. One stone was more than 300 carats! This new discovery, combined with fashion's passion for lime green, has revived interest in peridot and increased the popularity of this gemstone.

Although peridot is treasured in Hawaii as the goddess Pele's tears, almost all of the peridot sold in Hawaii today is from Arizona, even though peridot is produced by Hawaii's volcanoes. The island of Oahu even has beaches made out of olivine grains but unfortunately they are much too small to cut into peridot!

Mining was done at night because legend said that peridot could not be easily seen during the day. The island was infested with serpents who made peridot mining a very dangerous occupation until one Pharoh finally had them all driven into the sea.

Peridot had the power to drive away evil spirits and the power was considered to be even more intense when the stone was set in gold. Peridot was also said to strengthen the power of any medicine drunk from goblets carved from the gemstone

Sapphire
Sapphire, the birthstone of September known as the celestial gemstone, has been treasured for thousands of years. The ancient Persians believed that the earth rested on a giant sapphire and its reflection colored the sky. Sapphire is found in all the colors of the heavens: from midnight blue to the bright blue of noon sky in the Mediterranean, golden sunrise to firey reddish-orange sunsets, and the delicate violet of twilight. The most famous and valuable sapphires are a rich intense blue, a truly royal hue.

Sapphire is also the birthstone for September, the month when the most babies are born. Ancient lists also name sapphire as a birthstone for April and the gemstone for the sign of Taurus.

The most valuable sapphires have a medium intense, vivid blue color. The best sapphires hold the brightness of their color under all different types of lighting. Any black, gray, or green overtones mixed in with the blue will reduce a stone's value. In general, a more pastel blue would be less preferred than a vivid blue but would be priced higher than an overdark blackish blue color. As with all gemstones, sapphires which are "clean" and have few visible inclusions or tiny flaws are the most valuable. However some very fine sapphires, in particular those from Kashmir, have a velvety mist-like texture which enhances the richness of the blue.

Sapphires are most often cut in a cushion shape - a rounded rectangle - or an oval shape. You can also find smaller sapphires in round brilliant cuts and a wide variety of fancy shapes, including triangles, squares, emerald cuts, marquises, pear shapes, baguette shapes, and cabochon cuts, or smooth domes.

Some sapphires with an unusual kind of tiny needle-like inclusions can be cut in a cabochon shape to display a dancing six-rayed white star. Star sapphires, which are becoming more rare, are very popular for men's rings. Star sapphires are judged by the sharpness of the star, the eveness of the rays or "legs" of the star, and the body color of the sapphire. It is extremely rare to find a star-sapphire with a sharp star and a bright blue body color. The ancients regarded star sapphires as a very powerful talisman, a guiding star for travelers and seekers of all kinds. They were so powerful, they were said to continue to protect the wearer even after being passed on to someone else.

In addition to blue, sapphires are available in every color but red simply because a red sapphire would be called a ruby! Both of these gemstones are a gem variety of the mineral corundum: the only difference is the trace elements which give them their rich colors. Pink shades of corundum are known either as pink ruby or pink sapphire. Sapphire in colors other than blue is often referred to as fancy sapphire.

Sapphires have become more available in the past twenty years because some light, cloudy, or overdark sapphire can now be heated at very high temperatures to improve the color or clarity. This process, which dissolves trace elements already present in the sapphire, is completely stable. There is no price difference between heated and non-heated material except for at the very top of the market, where the country of origin will also make a difference in the price. About 90 percent of the sapphire on the market today has been heated to make sure it has reached the best possible color and clarity.

Sapphire is perhaps the toughest and most durable gemstone available on the market. With a hardness of 9 on the Mohs scale, sapphire is harder than any other gem but diamond and it has no cleavage plane so it cannot be cut with a single blow like a diamond. In fact, synthetic sapphire is used for scratch-resistant watch crystals, optical scanners, and other instruments because its durability can be trusted. That durability ensures that sapphire jewelry will be treasured for generations.

Sapphires come from Sri Lanka, Thailand, Australia, and Cambodia. Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania, China, Vietnam, Madagascar, and the United States also produce some sapphire. The deposits in Montana in the United States produce a range of fancy colors, mostly from alluvial deposits in the rivers, and deep blue sapphires from one of the world's largest deposits at Yogo Gulch. The sapphires from Yogo Gulch are small in size but they have a beautiful blue. Unfortunately they are found in a hard rock that makes mining difficult, limiting production.

The most famous sources for sapphire are Kashmir and Burma, which is now known as Myanmar. Kashmir sapphire, which was discovered in 1881 when a landslide in the Himalayas uncovered beautiful blue pebbles, has a rich velvety color prized by connoisseurs. Burma sapphires, from the same region that produces fabulous rubies, are also very fine. However, today, these two sources account only for a very small quantity of the sapphire on the market.

Most fine sapphire on the market today comes from Sri Lanka, which produces a wide range of beautiful blues from delicate sky blue colors to rich saturated hues. Kanchanaburi in Thailand and Pailin in Cambodia are renowned for deep blue, even colors. Two relatively new mining localities are showing promise: Madagascar, which has produced some exceptionally fine stones in small sizes but has no organized mining yet, and Tanzania, which has long produced sapphire in other colors but is starting to produce blue colors as well from a new deposit in the south.

Sapphire has long symbolized truth, sincerity, and faithfulness. Tradition holds that Moses was given the ten commandments on tablets of sapphire, making it the most sacred gemstone. Because sapphires represent divine favor, they were the gemstone of choice for kings and high priests. The British Crown Jewels are full of large blue sapphires, the symbol of pure and wise rulers.

Spinel
Spinel is the great imposter of gemstone history: many famous rubies in crown jewels around the world are actually spinel. The most famous is the Black Prince's Ruby, a magnificent 170-carat red spinel that currently adorns the Imperial State Crown in the British Crown Jewels after a long history: Henry V even wore it on his battle helmet! The Timur Ruby, a 352-carat red spinel now owned by Queen Elizabeth, has the names of some of the Mughal emperors who previously owned it engraved on its face, an undeniable pedigree!

In Burma (Myanmar), where some of the most beautiful colors are mined, spinel was recognized as a separate gem species as early as 1587. In other countires the masquerade lasted for hundreds of years after that. Spinels were most often referred to as "balas rubies" which may have referred to color or to country of origin.

Now treasured for its own sake, spinel is a favorite of gem dealers and gem collectors due to its brilliance, hardness and wide range of spectacular colors. In addition to beautiful rich reds, spinel can be found in a range of beautiful pastel shades of pink and purple. Of particular interest is a vivid hot pink with a tinge of orange that is mined in Burma that is one of the most spectacular gemstone colors in any gem species. Spinel also comes in beautiful blues which are sometimes called cobalt spinel, but these are very very rare.

Because spinels made in a laboratory are often used for imitation birthstone rings, many people think "synthetic" when they hear the name "spinel." They have often never even seen the real thing.

In fact, the main thing holding back greater recognition for spinel is rarity. Fine spinels are now more rare than the rubies they used to imitate. Strangely, they are also more affordable: in the gem world, too rare can be a drawback because so few people even get a chance to grow to love these gem varieties.

In addition to Burma, now known as Myanmar, spinel is mined in Sri Lanka, Tanzania, and Tadjikstan, part of the former Soviet Union. Spinel is a durable gemstone that is perfect for all jewelry uses. It is most often faceted in oval, round, or cushion shapes and is not currently found in calibrated sizes due to its rarity

Tanzanite
Thousands of years since the dawn of mankind, Amber has held the secrets of a mystic past. From its health giving qualities, to a coveted treasure adorned by women for centuries past, the trading commodity of early man maintains its value and fashion appearance.

Amber is yellow to brown fossil resin exuded by coniferous trees now extinct; the best amber is transparent. Highly polished amber is used to make small decorative objects, e.g., beads and amulets. When rubbed with a cloth, amber becomes charged with static electricity. Bubbles of air, leaves, bits of wood, or insects, sometimes of extinct species, are often found trapped in amber. The chief source of the world's amber is the Baltic coast of Germany.

Commercial mining and gathering activities have been recorded from as early as 1264 AD and in various guises continue to this day. Imagine, how much amber has been extracted over a period of 700+ years? It is also true to say that the majority of this extraction was subsequently turned into varnish and shellac. We will never know what wonders have been lost. Amber is a strange and attractive gem. Its golden transparency lends it a quality which even diamonds do not share. For the artisan it provides a remarkable medium to work with and create some of the most beautiful objects for us to enjoy. For the scientist it provides a glimpse into the past, a window into history.

Most of our understanding, beliefs and research on amber have been based upon the work of European and American cultures. The Chinese shared our fascination with amber and the earliest written references go back to AD 92. They believed that amber was the soul of a tiger which had died and passed into the earth and the Tibetans had perhaps the most beautiful name for this gem; pö-she, which meant perfumed crystal.

The amber from the Samland Peninsula in the Baltic is actually a secondary deposit. The original amber forest was probably located further South. The resin was subsequently carried South probably by two great rivers from its original site and deposited in a great estuarial drift of silt and clay. (At the moment this is still speculation as many scientists disagree on this point). This deposit site extends some way out under the sea. This is also the likely source of amber washed up onto the Norfolk, Suffolk beaches. Autumn and Spring storms together with complimenting tides tears pieces of raw amber from the sea bed and strands them on the shore line. If you look for amber it is usually mixed in with the stranded seaweed, litter and of course obligatory dead seagull!

Topaz
The Egyptians said that topaz was colored with the golden glow of the mighty sun god Ra. This made topaz a very powerful amulet that protected the faithful against harm. The Romans associated topaz with Jupiter, who also is the god of the sun. Topaz sometimes has the amber gold of fine cognac or the blush of a peach and all the beautiful warm browns and oranges in-between. Some rare and exceptional topaz are pale pink to a sherry red.

Wear topaz only if you wish to be clear-sighted: legend has it that it dispels all enchantment and helps to improve eyesight as well! The ancient Greeks believed that it had the power to increase strength and make its wearer invisible in times of emergency. Topaz was also said to change color in the presence of poisoned food or drink. Its mystical curative powers waxed and waned with the phases of the moon: it was said to cure insomnia, asthma, and hemorrhages.

Perhaps the most famous topaz is a giant specimen set in the Portuguese Crown, the Braganza, which was first thought to be a diamond. There is also a beautiful topaz set in the Green Vault in Dresden, one of the world's important gem collections.

Brown, yellow, orange, sherry, red and pink topaz is found in Brazil and Sri Lanka. Pink topaz is found in Pakistan and Russia.

Today we also have blue topaz, which has a pale to medium blue color created by irradiation. Pale topaz which is enhanced to become blue is found in Brazil, Sri Lanka, Nigeria, and China. In early 1998, a new type of enhanced topaz made its appearance, the surface-enhanced topaz, with colours described as blue to greenish-blue or emerald green.

Topaz is a very hard gemstone but it can be split with a single blow, a trait it shares with diamond. As a result it should be protected from hard knocks.

Tourmaline
Tourmaline's name comes from the Sinhalese word turmali, which means mixed. Bright rainbow collections of gemstone varieties were called turmali parcels. Tourmaline, occurring in more colors and combinations of colors than any other gemstone variety, lives up to its name. There is a tourmaline that looks like almost any other gemstone! Many stones in the Russian Crown jewels from the 17th Century once thought to be rubies are actually tourmalines.

Perhaps this is why this gemstone is said to encourage artistic intuition: it has many faces and expresses every mood.

The Empress Dowager Tz'u Hsi, the last Empress of China, loved pink tourmaline and bought almost a ton of it from the new Himalaya Mine, located a long way from the Middle Country in California. The Himalaya Mine is still producing tourmaline today but the Dowager went to rest eternally on a carved tourmaline pillow.

Tourmaline is also of interest to scientists because it changes its electrical charge when heated. It becomes a polarized crystalline magnet and can attract light objects. This property was noticed long ago before science could explain it: in the Netherlands, tourmalines were called aschentrekkers because they attracted ashes and could be used to clean pipes!

Tourmaline occurs in every color of the rainbow and combinations of two or three colors. Bicolor and tricolor tourmalines, with bands of colors are very popular. Sometimes the colors are at different ends of the crystal and sometimes there is one color in the heart of the crystal and another around the outside. One color combination, pink center with a green rind, is called watermelon tourmaline (seedless, of course!) Sometimes designers set slices of the crystal instead of faceted stones to show off this phenomenon.

Pink and green tourmaline are now widely available and are especially popular in designer jewelry. Blue tourmalines are also very much in demand but the supply is more limited.

Tourmalines are most often cut in long rectangular shapes because of their long and narrow crystal shape. Tourmaline crystals are beautiful, pencil thin and ridged, and they are also sometimes set in jewelry. Some designers also set rainbows of tourmaline in each color of the spectrum. Tourmaline is strongly pleochroic: the darkest color is always seen looking down the axis of the crystal.

One particularly beautiful variety is chrome tourmaline, a rare type of tourmaline from Tanzania which occurs in a very rich green color caused by chromium, the same element which causes the green in emerald.

Tourmaline is a hard and durable gemstone which can withstand years of wear. You might want to avoid steam cleaning or heat.

In addition to Brazil, tourmaline is also mined in Tanzania, Kenya, Madagascar, Mozambique, Namibia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and California and Maine in the United States. Maine produces beautiful sherbet colors of tourmaline and spectacular minty greens. California is known for perfect pinks, as well as beautiful bicolors. Almost every color of tourmaline can be found in Brazil, especially in Minas Gerais and Bahia. Pink and green colors are particularly popular. In 1989, miners discovered tourmaline unlike any that had ever been seen before. The new type of tourmaline, which soon became known as Paraiba tourmaline, came in incredibly vivid blues and greens. The demand and excitement for this new material, which soon fetched more than $10,000 per carat, earned more respect for the other colors of tourmaline.

Turquoise
Turquoise, was said in the 13th Century to have been named in the mistaken belief that it came from Turkey. That may be true or it may be that the name comes from the Persian word for turquoise, firouze, since Persia has been a major source of this gemstone for thousands of years. In any case, the blue of this gemstone is so vivid and distinct that it has given its name to the color.

Turquoise is one of the oldest known gem materials. The Egyptians were mining turquoise in 3,200 BC in the Sinai. The blue of turquoise was thought to have powerful metaphysical properties by many ancient cultures. Montezuma's treasure, now displayed in the British Museum, includes a fantastic carved serpent covered by a mosaic of turquoise. In ancient Mexico, turquoise was reserved for the gods, it would not be worn by mere mortals.

The Apache believed that turquoise helped warriors and hunters to aim accurately. The Zuni believed that it protected them from demons. In Asia it was considered protection against the evil eye. Tibetans carved turquoise into ritual objects as well as wearing it in traditional jewelry. Ancient manuscripts from Persia, India, Afghanstan, and Arabia report that the health of a person wearing turquoise can be assessed by variations in the color of the stone. Turquoise was also thought to promote prosperity.

In Europe even today, turquoise rings are given as forget-me-not gifts.

The most important turquoise deposits are in Iran, Tibet, China, and the Southwestern United States. Tuquoise is a mineral usually found in association with copper deposits. Turquoise is sometimes mined as a by-product of copper mining.

Turquoise from Iran is often said to be the best because it is sometimes a clear sky blue with no green modifying color and no black veins running through it. Turquoise just as fine is produced in Arizona and New Mexico. In general the bluer the blue, the more highly valued. A clear even texture without mottleing or veins is also preferred. However, some people prefer turquoise with veins, sometimes called spiderwebs, which set off the color.

Turquoise is porous and should be kept away from chemicals. Clean it with warm soapy water only.

This information is based on earlier research on the net.
I am unsure at this point in time as to who the credit ought to go to and would be happy to give it to the authors.
This is just a starting point and we hope to expand this information and filter out relevant facts as it relates to the precious metals and gem industry in India.