Gemstone Reference

1. Alexandrite

2. Almandite Garnet

3. Amber

4. Amethyst

5. Aquamarine

6. Cat's Eye Chrysoberyl

7. Citrine

8. Emerald

9. Jade (Jadeite)

10. Lapis Lazuli

11. Moonstone

12. Opal

13. Peridot

14. Ruby

15. Blue Sapphire

16. Smokey Quartz

17. Spinel

18. Tanzanite

19. Topaz (Blue)

20. Tourmaline

21. Zircon

1. Alexandrite

First discovered in the Russion Ural Mountains. It's a rare and valuable variety of chrysoberyl. Alexandrite gets it's name from Czar Alexander II of Russia.

2. Almandite Garnet
Almandite Garnet is the most known of the garnet species. Almandite is names after the ancient city of Alabanda in Asia.

3. Amber

4. Amethyst

5. Aquamarine

Aquamarines name comes from the Latin word meaning "sea water"

6. Cat's Eye Chrysoberyl

The cat's eye effect, also known as chatoyancy is caused by parallel needle-like inclusions in the stone. In ancient times the gemstone was called cymophane, the Greek word for "waving light."

7. Citrine

Citrines name originates from the Latin word "citron" meaning citrus.

8. Emerald

Emerald gets it's name from the ancient Greek word for green.

9. Jade (Jadeite)

Jade comes in a wide variety of colours. The most common colours are of course green, reddish orange, white, gray, black and lavender. The finest quality jadeite, which is almost transparent with a vibrant emerald green colour is known as Imperial Jade.

10. Lapis Lazuli

Lapis Lazuli is part of a small category of gems knowns as 'rocks'. Lapis is usually opaque, and it's colours are medium to dark greenish blue, royal blue and violetish blue.

HARDNESS AND TOUGHNESS

Hardness - 5 to 6 on Mohs scale (FAIR TO GOOD)
Toughness - Fair

CARE AND CLEANING

Karat Jewellers Gem & Jewellery Cleaner - safe
Ultrasonic Cleaning - Risky
Steam Cleaning - Never
Warm water with soap - Safe

SOURCE: Afghanistan, Chile and Russia.
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11. Moonstone
Moonstone ranges from semitransparent to opaque. It's usually colourless, white, bluish gray. It is also found in green, yellow, brown and sometimes gray or black.

12. Opal
There are many types of opals, but there are 3 major categories. White opal, Black opal and Fire opal.
Play of colour: This phenomenon occurs because opal is made up of sub-microscopic stacked in a grid-like pattern. This structure breaks up light into spectral colours. The colour intensity depends on the size of the sphere found on the opal.

13. Peridot
Peridot gemstones are usually transparent and come in a wide variety of colours. It ranges from brownish to yellowish green to greenish yellow. Customers are more aware of the bright lime green and olive coloured variety of the peridot.

14. Ruby
The name ruby comes from the Latin word for rubber, which means red.

15. Blue Sapphire

16. Smokey Quartz
Smokey quartz is one of the most common gemstones found on the market. Its colour varies from light to dark brown.

17. Spinel
Spinel is one of the most undervalued and unappreciated gemstones on the market. The red variety of Spinel is often confused with ruby. In fact, with the advent of gemology it was discovered that some of the world's most magnificent rubies where actually spinels.

18. Tanzanite
Tanzanite is a new introduction into the gemstone market. Tanzanite was not discovered until 1962, full scale mining didn't commence until 1968. Tanzanite is named after the country it's mined in, Tanzania.

19. Topaz (Blue)
The name topaz originates from the ancient Greek word Topazios, name for an island in the Red Sea. The ancient Greeks believed topaz gave them strength. Topaz has an exceptionally large colour range. Topaz comes in green, yellow, orange, red, pink and purple. The most popular and available is blue.

20. Tourmaline
Tourmaline comes in a wide variety of colours. Tourmaline has one of the widest colour ranges of any gemstone species.

21. Zircon
The most widely available colour for zircon found on the market place is greenish blue. Other colours include green, yellow, orange, red, brown and purple.