Beryl Species Part 2 Aquamarine

Hi everyone,

Today I would like to talk about the next gemstone in the beryl family which is Aquamarine.  For those of you who have a March birthday like me then you know that this is your birthstone.  When I was growing up I hated my stone.  I thought it's colour was like a washed out sapphire.  I had always wanted to be a May baby because their birthstone was emerald.  But as I grew up, I began to realize what a special colour the aquamarine is and now I do not mind having it as my birthstone.  So I would like to discuss my birthstone today.  I hope you will join me on this journey of learning and discovering.

So let's talk aquamarine.  The colour is light blue to dark blue, blue-green.  The colour streak is white.  The Mohs hardness is 7.5-8 and the density is 2.68-2.74.  The cleavage of the aquamarine is indistinct. The crystal system is hexagonal, hexagonal prisms.  The chemical composition is aluminum beryllium silicate.  Transparency is transparent to opaque.

 In his book Gemstones of the World Walter Schumann goes into great depth about aquamarine.  This is where I am getting my information from. The meaning of aquamarine comes from Latin meaning water of the sea.  This is because of the aquamarines seawater colour.  Aquamarines of dark blue are the most desired. Iron is the colouring agent of aquamarine.  Since aquamarine is sensitive to pressure and brittle care must be taken when heating or making jewellery with it.  There are a few trade names out there in regards to aquamarine.  The first one is Santa Maria for really fine aquamarines.  It is so named because of the mine which carries the same name.  This mine is found in Ceara, Brazil.  The second trade name is Santa Maria Africana.  This is for the fine aquamarine that is mined from Mozambique.  It takes its name from the Santa Maria like quality that is found in Brazil.  The third trade name is Maxixe.  The colour of this aquamarine is deep blue beryl.  Since 1917 is has only been found in the Maxixe mine in Minas Gerais, Brazil.  Since the 1970s it is more widely available.  However it has been made more beautiful through irradiation and unfortunately the colour does not last.

The largest aquamarine that was of gemstone quality was found in Marambaya, Minas Gerais in Brazil.  The weight of the stone was 243 lb, was 18 inches long and 15.5 inches in diameter.  This stone was cut up into many different stones with a total weight of over 100,000cts.

In conclusion, I hope everyone enjoyed themselves today learning about aquamarine.  I hope the information that was presented was both enlightening and fun.  Please let me know what you think about this blog or any of the others that have been prepared for you.  I had fun learning about my birthstone and what it is all about.  I would love to hear from you.  Until next time.

The rare gem lady