Emerald Stone
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Gemstones : Emerald (Beryl)
Source : Afghanistan, Brazil, Canada (Regal Ridge), Columbia, Madagascar, Pakistan, Zambia
Birthstone : May
The name "Emerald" (French: Emeraude, German: Smaragd, Spanish: Esmeralda) comes from the Greek word smaragdos; a name that was given to several gemstone minerals having little in common chemically, but sharing a similar bluish-green color. An emerald is a form of Beryl, a mineral group that includes aquamarine and Morganite. Emerald's leaf-green color is partially due to allochromatic coloration from trace amounts of chromium (Cr) and vanadium (V) impurities. Emerald is transparent to translucent member of the beryl family of minerals (aquamarine, morganite, goshenite, red beryl), and is typically associated with igneous rock. Emerald is a cyclosilicate of beryllium and aluminium, and owes its green color to chromium and vanadium, along with other trace coloring agents which include beryllium (berillium) (Be) aluminum silicate and iron (Fe).
Heaxagonal Prism Flat & Beryl Crystal habit
Many varieties of emerald have a leaf-green to yellowish-green hue, but Columbian emeralds form Muzo and Chivor have a particularly intense greenish hue with a bluish-green overtones, which makes their color very difficult to capture in photographic images.
Emerald Inclusions : Jardin
Emerald is one of the most difficult gemstones to cut because of the many fluid inclusions found in rough crystals which can make them very brittle. These multiphase inclusions are like fingerprints and can reveal the geographic location of their origin. The French refer to the large number of inclusions in the stone as "jardin," or "garden," because they can resemble plant foliage. These inclusions can be two-phase tubes that run parallel to the c-axis, or two to three-phase secondary healed fractures or basal cleavages.
Emeralds with many inclusions should be treated with care and be protected from direct blows to the stone. Oils are commonly used to fill-in the fissures (see "emerald enhancements" below). The extreme rarity of transparent, inclusion-free emeralds can make them more valuable than diamonds.
Emerald (Beryl) Crystallography, Chemistry, Physical Properties
Crystal System - hexagonal Crystal Habit - hexagonal prism, pincoid terminationsSpecific gravity (SG) - 2.67 to 2.78Mohs Hardness Scale - 7.5 to 8.0Toughness - fair to poor Fracture - conchoidal Cleavage - poor, basal Streak - white Chemical Composition - Al2Be3[Si6O18]
Emerald (Beryl) Optical Properties
Optical Properties - double refraction Refractive Index - 1.576 - 1.583Birefringence - 0.005 - 0.009 Pleochroism - distinct (w=yellowish-green, e=green) Surface Luster - vitreousDiaphaneity - transparent to opaque Gem Color - green, bluish-green, greenish-blue, yellowish-green
Ancient Egyptian Emerald Mining
The ancient Egyptian, Babylonian, Roman and Byzantine cultures obtained their emeralds from the Sikair-Zubara (Sikait-Zabara) region in the eastern part of Upper Egypt, near the Red Sea town of Berenice. This emerald-mining region became known as the Mons Smaragdus or 'Emerald Mountains" and after the conquest of Alexander the Great, and was also referred to as the "Cleopatra Mines" in latter years.
Cleopatra Mines in Egypt : Sikair-Zubara
The Egyptian mines may have been worked as early as 1800 BC, but most likely were at peak production during the Ptolemaic period from 330 BC to 30 BC. The first mines to be re-discovered were at Gebel Zabara, uncovered on an expedition by French mineralogist F. Cailliaud, in 1816. Sikait was identified two years later. The Wadi Gimal and Wadi Sikait mines are adjacent to the ancient roman mining villages of Nugrus and Sikkait.
Colombian Emerald - The Gemstones of 'El Dorado' - Colombia: Chivor, Coscuez, Muzo & Trapiche Emeralds
Dating back as far as 10,000 BC, tribes of hunter-gatherers traded with one another along the Magdalena River Valley, in what is now northern Colombia. The Chibchas, Cañaris and Muisca peoples of the Boyacá and Cundinamarca highlands were one of the first pre-Columbian civilizations to settle along the tropical Magdalena Valley, ruled by the two kings, Zipa (of the south, near Bogotá) and Zaque (of Hunza in the north).
Tales of riches from the mythical kingdom of El Dorado, meaning the "golden one" or "gilded man" (aka: el indio dorado or "the golden Indian," el rey dorado or "the golden king") drove Spanish Conquistadors like Hernando Cortés, Francisco Pizarro, and Sebastian de Belalcazar to explore, and ultimately conquer this region in the early 1500s.
Map of Boyacá Mines : Laguna de Guatavita (c. 1860)
Belalcazar's legendary tales of Cañaris and Muisca kings being coated with "sticky earth," then painted with gold dust and emeralds; or of emeralds and gold being thrown into Laguna de Guatavita (above and below, right) as a sacrafice to the gods, were enough motivation to find the source for such wealth.
Although Laguna de Guatavita is located in the modern-day municipality of Sesquilé, Colombia, the "golden city" of El Dorado is believed to have been either the Incan city of Coricancha (meaning "Golden Courtyard") in modern-day Cusco, Peru, or at the location of the Incan city of Tomipamba, which later became the Colonial city of Cuenca ( Santa Ana de los cuatro rÃos de Cuenca), in Azuay Province, Ecuador.
Wherever the actual location of El Dorado may have been, the quest for its ultimate riches, and the source location for the Guilded Man's emeralds would elude the Spaniards for decades. The native Muisca Indians had carefully concealed the openings to their underground resting place, allowing the jungle to obliterate any remaining evidence of their whereabouts. Even torture was employed, but to no avail [5]. In 1555 however, the emerald mines of Muzo were finally uncovered.
In 1580, Conquistador Antonio de Sepulvada even attempted to drain Guatavita (located in Sesquilé, Cundinamarca) by cutting a channel in one side of the crater-lake's rim, in order to salvage the imagined treasures that lay at its bottom. During this period, offerings of gold, and an emerald the size of a "hen's egg," were recovered from the shallower edges of the lake.
The Spanish spent the next 200 hundred years plundering the wealth of the Boyacá highlands, undeterred until the early 1800s. The Spanish colonial territories of Viceroyalty and New Granada became the independent nation of Colombia in 1810, under the leadership of Simón BolÃvar.
Emerald Mining in Colombia's 'Emerald Belt'
Colombian emeralds are located in an area known as the 'Emerald Belt' (Cinturon EsmeraldÃfero). This area is in the sedimentary basin of the Cordillera Oriental mountain range in the Gobernación de Boyacá and Cundinamarca districts, at the base of the Andes Mountains.
The Spanish Inquisition Necklace - Muzo Emerald Necklace
Indian emeralds, with their distinct bluish hue, were found near Ajmer and Udaipur in north-western Rajasthan State. The Mughals of India, including the builder of the Taj Mahal, Shah Jahan, loved emeralds so much they inscribed them with sacred text and wore them as talismans. These sacred stones were called Mughal emeralds. Cordillera Oriental emeralds were created by hydro-thermal activity generated from the forces that created the Andes mountain range. Columbian emeralds tend to have more inclusions which are fairly light (jardin). The color tends to be darker than emeralds from other locations. The principle mining areas in Colombia are the Somondoco and Muzo mining regions northeast of the capital of Bogota. The richest emerald mines in the Muzo region are the Muzo Mine, Cosquez Mine, and Pena Blanca Mine.
The Muzo Mackay Emerald Necklace - The Gachala Emerald from Muzo, Colombia
One of the largest emeralds ever recorded was the 218 carat tablet-cut rectangular "Mogul Emerald," possibly belonging to the last great Mogul ruler of India, Emperor Aurangzeb from the late 1600s. The 858 carat "Gachala Emerald" (above, right), from the Vega de San Juan mine in Gachalá (municipio de Cundinamarca), is one of the largest emeralds found to date. It was unearthed in 1967, and donated to the Smithsonian Institution by Harry Winston.
Muzo, Coscuez & Chivor Colombian Emeralds
At the north-western end of the Colombian emerald-belt, mining is conducted in three districts: Coscuez, Muzo, and Quipama. Emerald from the Muzo region is mined under the control of the 'Sociedad de Mineros Boyancences,' with many of the mines (Cortes) being worked by unauthorized miners (guaqueros). Muzo emeralds are known for their characteristically leaf-green color called "Muzo Green." Notable mines in the Muzo/Coscuez region are the Yacopi mines and Peña Blanca (Peñas Blanca) deposits.
At the south-eastern end of the emerald-belt, the Gachalá and Chivor region is mined mostly by private companies, and the Chivor stones have a bluish-green color similar to those mined in Zambia. Notable mines in the Chivor region are the Chivor, Matacana, Vega de San Juan, and Gachalá Mines.
Trapiche Emeralds
A very rare variety of emerald known as "Trapiche" (above), found at the Muzo, Chivor, Cosquez and Peña Blanca mines, has distinct carbonaceous shale inclusions that radiate from a hexagonal center point in a six-spoked star pattern. The name "Trapiché" (tra-pee-chee) comes from a type of wheel that is used to grind sugarcane in Colombia.
Characteristics of Muzo Emeralds
Typically, the transparency of Muzo emeralds is higher than emeralds from other regions, primarily due to due the lower volume of inclusions. Muzo emeralds tend to have a deeper, "herbaceous" green color. Muzo emeralds tend to have three-phase inclusions which contain fluid, gas vapor, as well as included crystals of calcite, halide, and yellow-brown rutile needles of parisite.
Canadian Emerald
Canadian emeralds were first discovered in 1998, in the 'Regal Ridge' area of the Yukon. Confirmation of the find at the University of British Columbia (UBC) created a 'emerald rush' to the area by several prominent mining companies. The first emeralds were found by Bill Wengzynowski, a prospector for Expatriate Resources in Vancouver.
Although the color of the stones is considered to be exceptional, it is yet to been determined if mining in the area will be commercially feasible. In 2003 preliminary exploration of Regal Ridge was begun by True North Gems Inc., who is also investigating areas of Ontario. The Yukon property is now known as "Tsa da Glisza," located in the Finlayson mining district of the Yukon Territory, Canada. Tsa da Glisza is situated on a high alpine ridge of the Pelly Mountain range.
Emerald Enhancements & Treatments
Clarity enhancement and surface treatment of emeralds using glycerin, Canada balsam oil, cedar wood oil or clove oil impregnation is practiced universally. The only way to confirm that an emerald hasn't been oil treated is if the cut stone has no fractures at the surface for oil to enter into the stone. If an emerald is cleaned in an ultrasonic or steam cleaner the oil can leach out of the fractures. This will make the surfacing inclusions appear more obvious. If this occurs, the emerald can be re-oiled to fill in the fractures. Fractures can also be filled with Opticon Fracture Sealer which is an epoxy resin.
Due to the typically high amount of inclusions within the stone, emerald has a lower durability than other varieties of beryl such as aquamarine. When an emerald is set in a ring with a prong setting extra care should be used.
Emerald Simulants & Soude Emerald
Simulated emeralds (simulants) made of glass or quartz are doublets or triplets with a transparent layer of green gelatin sandwiched between. These simulants are known as "soude emerald." A Chelsea Filter is used to differentiate and identify natural emeralds from simulants by isolating the chromium found in real emeralds, although some older soude emeralds may appear as red or pink.
Synthetic Emerald
Synthetic emerald was developed by Caltech graduate, Carroll Chatham in 1939. Synthetic emerald is created using the Flux-Growth, and Lechleitner Synthetic Overgrowth (hydro-thermal) methods and is sold under the trade names Chatham Created Gems and Gilson. Synthetic emerald can be identified by its characteristic inclusions. Initially, the only way to distinguish a Chatham emerald from a natural emerald was to heat the stone to the point where the natural stone would shatter due to moisture contained within the inclusions. Synthetic Emerald has a refractive index of 1.561.
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