How many gemstone

Here we have showcased a comprehensive list of crystals and gemstones by their name in A to Z order. You can click on the pictures of gemstones to read their comprehensive buying guide and browse their impressive catalogue.

The products enlisted in our catalogue contain images of each gemstone from different angles and a high-definition video of the front and back to provide a real-time shopping experience.

Different stones are categorised into different species, varieties and groups based on their composition, market value, purpose and cutting style. Here you can find a simplified categorisation of different types of gemstones which are available on our website.

At GemPundit, we have featured a quality selection of the rarest to the most common gemstones to suit varying customer needs. Since antiquity, gemstones have served mankind in different ways. Many people find gemstones as an attractive form of investment. Here, we have differentiated various types of stones and gems based on their use or purpose.

A gem color largely depends on its chemical composition and crystalline structure. Different gemstones contain element traces in varying amount which lend them a unique colour. The colour of different types of gemstones is so enormous that no exact term defines every individual tone. At GemPundit, you can find genuine gemstones in over different colour varieties, combinations and tones. A gemstone is a rare, precious and durable mineral, organic material or rock which can be cut and polished to be used in jewelry and other decoratives.

In the market, gemstones can be found in different colors, shape and size. Humankind has always been fascinated by gemstones and their beauty. Since ancient times, this gemstone has been used for astrological, healing and jewelry purposes. Beside its innate beauty, gemstones are said to have an extra layer of meaning. In Indian traditional, gemstones are considered quite sacred and are regarded as a source of positivity, power and healing.

Topaz also occurs as a primary mineral within rhyolite flows. A fluorine-enriched belt of Cenozoic rhyolite units rich in topaz occurs in the western United States and Mexico. The topaz occurs within lithophysae small gaps in volcanic rocks and more rarely in fractures or within the rhyolite. Textures indicate that the topaz formed over a range of time from early in the extrusive events to later in the process, and at temperatures ranging from to degrees, with most crystals forming at the lower end of this range.

Neither greisens nor veins are important sources of gem topaz, although one exception may be Ouro Preto in Minas Gerais, Brazil. A number of hypotheses have been proposed for the origin of these deposits, ranging from pegmatitic to a hydrothermal vein. The latter is supported by high concentrations of hydroxyl in the topaz. Jadeitite is harder than nephrite, but the fracture toughness and surface energy of nephrite is approximately twice that of jadeitite.

Jadeitite is less common and more valuable than nephrite and is used more in jewelry than in sculptures. A piece of carved Mayan jade is the rock jadeitite. Jade can also be the mineral nephrite. Many gems are still mined in remote places by individuals, but the gem industry has become modern and systematic in its methods of discovering new deposits.

Since the s, when images from the Landsat Earth-observing satellite were declassified and made cheaply available, high-tech prospectors have been able to use its visible-spectrum photos, as well as spectroscopic images of areas without vegetation to directly map minerals.

Newer satellites have greatly improved image resolution. In Canada, satellite and aerial images have been used to search for potential sites of diamond-containing kimberlites, as these volcanic formations have a different chemical and magnetic reading than that of the surrounding rock.

Searching for magnetic signatures helps particularly in the discovery of kimberlites that are covered over or underwater. In , million acres of possible kimberlite area in Canada were identified. This region was narrowed down to 8 million acres by direct sampling. Exploration companies have now identified 22 kimberlites that are expected to be high in diamond content. Other physical and chemical properties of rocks can be used for exploration.

Pure jadeite is white. Green and blue colors are attributed to iron substituting for aluminum in the jadeite crystal structure. A mauve color is attributed to manganese when iron contents are very low. Nephrite rarely displays an intense emerald-green color from chromium substitution.

There are only about 14 documented jadeitite occurrences. Another important source of jadeitite is the middle Motagua Valley in Guatemala, where two belts associated with serpentinite oppose each other across the boundary between the North American and Caribbean plates.

The evidence suggests that all jadeite and many nephrite deposits form at the edges when fluids interact with serpentinizing peridotites and surrounding rocks, from a depth of 50 kilometers up to the near surface.

Most nephrite is produced by contact or infiltration metasomatism in two different ways: the replacement of serpentinite by calcium at contacts with more silicic rock, and the replacement of dolomite by silicic fluids associated with granitic magmas.

The serpentine- replacement deposits are larger and more abundant than the dolomite- replacement types. The mineral assemblages for nephrite associated with serpentinite suggest that they underwent metamorphism and metasomatism at temperatures from about to degrees down to perhaps to degrees. The most important serpentine-replacement deposits are found at mines in northern British Columbia and in the East Sayan Mountains in Siberia.

Dolomite-replacement mines occur in the Kunlan Mountains of China and the Cowell province in southern Australia. Another approach is geochemistry, looking for telltale mineral compositions that are the signature of certain gem deposits.

In Colombia, host rocks that are high in sodium but depleted in lithium, potassium, beryllium and molybdenum have been found to be good indicators of emerald deposits.

Surveys have tested the streams and sediments that drain from known emerald deposits and found them to be good indicators of the composition of the gem-laden rock, demonstrating that streambeds could be tested to find nearby emerald deposits.

Anomalous sodium content in sediments has been successfully used to find several new emerald occurrences. A map of the Yukon territory in Canada shows regions high in beryllium found in mid-Cretaceous Anvil-Cassar suite rocks and plutonic rocks and others high in chromium and vanadium found in ultramafic rocks, volcanic rocks and Earn group rocks.

Regions where all these deposits come together are potentially good sites to search for emeralds. Berylometers are helpful instruments for emerald and beryl searches.

These machines use antimony-sourced gamma radiation to excite a response from beryllium atoms, so its content can be mapped in host rocks. There are two models currently available; one weighs only about five pounds but takes several minutes to read results and has a relatively high detection limit.

The other weighs 38 pounds, but is much faster and more sensitive. Their respective drawbacks currently limit the application of these machines to field studies. The vast expanses of black shale in northwestern Canada would seem to have potential for Colombian-style emerald mineralization. Our group is currently studying how to go about exploring for such deposits, starting with geochemical analyses that look for regions high in sodium and low in beryllium and potassium. Other studies have shown that for pegmatite sources of emerald, the pegmatites must be fractionated their constituent elements separated based on their different solubilities to become enriched enough to reach beryllium saturation.

Ratios of potassium to rubidium and rubidium to strontium are some of the geochemical signatures that can be used to find such pegmatites. Satellite imagery may help to identify plutons that have been buried and overlooked. However, there must be some caution used in applying technology to the search for gems. Our group has found that some commercial analyses of samples that are looking for beryllium and chromium may not adequately dissolve the mineral phases containing these elements, leading to inaccurate readings.

In addition, we have found that the use of mass spectrometry to look for beryllium, which is a very light element, in an analytical program that includes numerous heavy elements may decrease the sensitivity of the beryllium analyses. As technology improves, it may become easier to locate regions where gemstones could be found. Will this make them less rare, and perhaps less valuable? Skip to main content. Login Register. Page DOI: Photos courtesy of the author. Photo courtesy of the author. Bibliography Brand, A.

Canadian Mineralogist — Forrest, M. Tanzanite comes of age. Materials World — Barriuso, J. Aramburu and M. Origin of the different color of ruby and emerald. Physical Review B — Giuliani, G. Oxygen isotopes and emerald trade routes since antiquity. Science — Groat, L. The Geology of Gem Deposits. Giuliani, D. Marshall and D. Emerald deposits and occurrences: A review. Ore Geology Reviews — Kievlenko, E. Geology of Gems. Moscow: Ocean Pictures.

Russell, J. Kimberlite ascent by assimilation-fuelled buoyancy. Nature — The same quartz that covers white sandy beaches, is the source of glass, and is one of the most common minerals on Earth.

Specifically, an amethyst is produced when there are certain impurities in quartz that gives it the purple coloration. The deep purple of an amethyst gemstone has long signified royalty and adorns many crowns and royal jewelry. It is meant to exude wealth and power with its warm and cool color. You can often find amethyst in geodes at your local rock shop. I did remember the film but I didn't watch it going into 'Aquamarine.

Aquamarine is the birthstone for those lucky enough to be born in March. The word aquamarine is a combination of two words, aqua meaning water, and marina , meaning the sea. Therefore, the gem is named after the beautiful blue sea.

Part of the history of this gem is that it was used by sailors to give them good luck on the seas and to ensure a safe voyage. Aquamarine is in fact a type of beryl, a rare silicate mineral that is found in igneous and metamorphic rocks around the world.

Specifically, it is found in granite rhyolites and granite pegmatites. A primary source of beryl is mined at Spor Mountain in Utah, albeit that is typically not for gemstone quality. Beryl can be found in a variety of colors and each color is given a different name. Beryl colors and their names are as follows: emerald green , aquamarine blue , red beryl red , heliodor yellow , morganite pink to orange , maxixe dark blue , green beryl light green , and the rare colorless version goshenite colorless.

You've surely heard of or even own a diamond, the birthstone for the month of April. Diamonds are one of the rarest gemstones in the world and certainly one of the most prized. They earn that recognition partially for how hard they are, in fact they are 58 times harder than any other mineral on Earth. That is why you will often see diamond coated blades and bits as they are able to cut or grind through anything.

Diamonds are a pure carbon lattice as shown above and come in a range of colors from yellow to red, pink, green, and blue. However, you likely are interested in the pure colorless variety of diamonds, which are extremely rare as most diamonds have a hint of yellow to them. Diamonds are carbon that undergoes extreme temperatures and pressures below the surface of the Earth.

They are then exhumed to the surface often times through volcanic magma pipes called kimberlite pipes. They have been valued for thousands of years in civilizations around the world and were once thought to be lightning on Earth.

Today, they're commonly given as engagement rings as popularized by De Beers. I particularly love emeralds and black diamonds, and I'm always wearing large cocktail rings. Emerald is the birthstone for those born in the month of May like myself. The word emerald is derived from the Greek word smaragdus which translates to green.

Similar to aquamarine as mentioned above, an emerald is a green variety of beryl based on the impurities found in the beryl. Emeralds are found commonly in Brazil, Colombia, Zambia, and Afghanistan.

Most emeralds are heat treated to deepen their green color as high-quality emeralds are very rare. Cleopatra is known to have loved emeralds and claimed ownership of every single emerald mine in Egypt during her rule. The emerald is part of the " big three " colored gemstones in addition to ruby and sapphire.

These big three gemstones create more economic value than all other gemstones combined. Beryl picks up its green color from trace amounts of chromium or vanadium along with trace amounts of iron to give it a bluish green color. Who on earth would claim that the pearl expresses the oyster? Day Lewis. Pearls are your lucky birthstone if you were born in the month of June. The word pearl comes from the French word perle which means led. This refers to the leg shape of a mollusk shell. Pearls are gemstones but not minerals as pearls are formed by living organisms, mollusks.

A mollusk will form a pearl if there is a nucleus to start, sometimes an individual grain of sand. The mollusk will then corm layers of calcium carbonate around that sand grain sequentially over time. Actually, the mollusk does this because the grain is an irritant and this is the reaction to ease that irritant by adding a smooth coating around it.

The majority of pearls you find in the marketplace today are actually cultured in a pearl farm where people artificially induce creation of a pearl through insertion of an irritant into the mollusks shell. The extremely rare stone only one stone is mined for every 10, diamonds then became intensely sought-after. In very similar turquoise-colored tourmalines were found at mines in the mountains of Nigeria and Mozambique, although some say they are not quite as striking as the Paraiba tourmaline.

This extremely rare blue-green mineral has been found in a number of places around the world, but so far only Madagascar and Sri Lanka have produced any gem-quality stones, and these are still extremely scant. The majority of the known stones are translucent, but the most rare, and therefore most valuable, example ever found was transparent. In fact, the stone was initially assumed to be another rare gem, serendibite, because grandiderite of that color and transparency had yet to be seen.

The gem was only identified as grandiderite after expert analysis and was subsequently sold for an undisclosed sum. The degree of color change varies from stone to stone, with some only showing marginal change, but the most valuable are clear stones that demonstrate complete color change.