Make every monday joyful with Alexandrite!

 

Check out our newest collection of beautiful natural Alexandrite!

 

For those of you who haven’t heard about Alexandrite, here’s a little piece that will tell you all you need to know.

 

“Alexandrite is the color-change variety of the mineral species chrysoberyl, and is the one of the birthstones for June. Alexandrite is said to enable its wearer to foresee danger.

The most sought after alexandrite’s are a lovely green in daylight or fluorescent light, but change to red or slightly purplish red in the incandescent light from a lamp or candle flame.

Abundant alexandrite deposits were first discovered in 1830, in Russia's Ural Mountains. Those first alexandrite’s were of very fine quality, and displayed vivid hues and dramatic color changes. The gem was named after the young Czar Alexander II, and it caught the country’s attention because its red and green colors mirrored the Imperial Russian flag.

The spectacular Ural Mountain deposits didn’t last forever, and now most alexandrite comes from Sri Lanka, Brazil, India, Tanzania, and Madagascar. The newer deposits contain some fine-quality stones, but many possess less precise color change and muddier hues than the 19^th century Russian alexandrite’s. You may still find some of the famed Ural Mountain alexandrite’s in estate jewelry. They remain the quality standard for this phenomenal gemstone.

Gemology
Alexandrite has a hardness of 8.5 on the Mohs hardness scale, and has excellent toughness. Alexandrite’s are typically transparent, and may contain fingerprint and silk inclusions. 

Typical size range
Alexandrite’s typically come in sizes from melee to 5 carats. Larger stones are rare.”

-Facts above are taken from GIA.