Brazilian EmeraldThe emerald is one of the most ancient precious stones. It was discovered the Egypt desert about
5,000 years ago. The deposits were known throughout the world as "Cleopatra's mines", as the
Egyptian queen deeply loved the stone. Its name originates from the Greek smaragdos, which means
"green stone “
The emerald is considered the fifth
most expensive stone in the world, only
losing to the diamond, the ruby, the
alexandrite and the sapphire.
Colombus would have to be credited with the renaissance of
the emerald in the new world. Had he not discovered the Americas,
the new and abundant source might never have come to the
attention of Europe’s wealthy gem lovers. South American Indian
tribes highly revered and sought out the green crystals many
centuries before western man walked their shores
Brazil is the world’s largest
producer of colored gemstones, more than half the world’s colored gems
are mined in this country .
Brazil counts as a gemmological province
because of the variety of gem minerals present in the
country. Most Brazilian states and territories
produce gemstones, the State of Minas Gerais being
the most important producer both in volume and in
number of species. Diamonds are chiefly
derived by panning from alluvial deposits in Minas Gerais, Mato Grosso and
Goiás. Among other gemstones, the most
important are aquamarines, beryls, chrysoberyls, topazes, amethysts,
tourmalines, emeralds and agates, and their respective
varieties. The occurrences of these gemstones, as well as of a great number of others, are described for each state
in which they are found.
A gemstone is a mineral that is prized for its beauty, due to its rarity, color, luster,
brilliance, transparency and hardness. The basic considerations of a fine gemstone are
color, cut, clarity and carat weight
Amethyst
Top Related