Minerals found in nature form stones by combining with various elements. The rare ones among these minerals have been evaluated as precious stones by people throughout history. The features that make gemstones beautiful are their transparency, light transmittance and ability to reflect light. In this article, we will share with you 10 types of precious gemstones and the reasons why they are so popular…
Emerald
It consists of a combination of beryl mineral and chromium oxide in green and dark green colours. It is a glassy, shiny and hard gemstone. It is mentioned in the holy books. We mentioned that it is in shades of green, but grass green is the most valuable.
Aquamarine
This stone, ranging from the lightest shade of blue to sky blue, is in the colour of seawater, as the name suggests. It is rarely seen in yellow colour. An important feature in terms of visual beauty is that it appears blue or colourless depending on the angle and light. It is a type of stone preferred in jewellery making. The most valuable are those whose colour is the darkest blue.
Ruby
It is one of the most precious stones with its magnificent red colour. Ruby, which is transparent and crystalline, is red in colour due to chromium minerals. Although it is possible to come across many fakes, it is necessary to pay attention to the fact that there are no bubbles in the stone under the microscope to distinguish them. It represents love and beauty.
Sapphire
It is a type of crystalline, transparent or translucent stone. Sapphire, which has light to dark colours of blue, consists of a combination of iron and titanium minerals.
Diamond
It consists of pure carbon. It is considered the most precious stone in jewellery works. It is the hardest stone known. It is a stone with a value of 10 on the Mohs scale, which is a measure of hardness. This means that no substance can scratch it. The unit of measurement used for weighing is carat. 1 carat is 0.200 grams.
A diamond is a 57-sided cut diamond. It consists of 3 parts: diamond, crown, belt and cone. The belt is the lowest part, above it there is a crown with 33 edges and a cone with 24 edges at the top. The cone part is the source of the magnificent image formed by reflecting the light hitting the diamond. It is a very expensive stone.
Amethyst
It is a violet-coloured gemstone in shades of purple. The most valuable are the dark-coloured ones. Amethyst gets its colour from the manganese it contains.
Opal
It has a glassy but non-transparent appearance. Valuable species display magnificent light plays. It is a fragile and sensitive stone with a hardness value of around 6. One of its unique features is that it changes colour when rubbed in the palm of the hand. It is perhaps the most diverse type of stone. Total 99 pieces. The most valuable species are those that are black and contain shades of red, green and blue.
Pearl
It is an organic substance made by shellfish such as mussels and oysters. The common characteristics of creatures that can produce pearls are that they can produce mother-of-pearl. The formation of the pearl is the result of the shellfish producing nacre against foreign substances such as sand grains or parasites that have penetrated into it. The foreign materials we mentioned are surrounded by the produced mother-of-pearl and pearls are formed over time. The colour of the stone varies according to the type of oyster, the salt content of the water, the temperature of the water and the depth. The most accepted are the white ones. Of course, black pearls are very valuable because they are very rare.
Peridot
The most important feature is that it has only one colour. Its skin colour is green. It is a glass-shine, translucent stone with 7 degrees of hardness. It is thought to have existed for 4000 years. It has been understood that the stones known as emeralds in the treasures of ancient civilization are actually Peridot.
Citrine
What Is Citrine? Citrine is a popular type of quartz crystal often used to in conjunction with feng shui to welcome abundance, prosperity, and positivity. Natural citrine is quite rare, and most citrine is actually amethyst that has been heat-treated to alter its colour.
Do you know your birth gemstone? Which of these do you have in the home? Do let us know in the comments below!