E is for Emerald

This was covered in B under beryl so I had to do some more digging to find more info on this one.

Impurities in beryl cause different colors that create different gemstones.  Beryl is a colorless mineral, but when chromium is added it becomes green and emerald.  Beryl with iron added becomes blue and is then aquamarine.

Isn't this beautiful?  This is from Musa Columbia

Emeralds are hard, but inclusions (flaws) can cause them to crack.  Sometimes gemstones are heated to increase color and clarity.  Of course caution has to be used during the heating process.  

I found this fact interesting.  Emeralds with fissures are treated with wax or oil that is colored.  This creates a stone with more clarity thus making it more desirable.

Raw uncut, unpolished emerald

Gemstones can be natural or lab created (synthetic).  It’s almost impossible to tell the difference between the two.  But synthetic gemstones are usually more perfect in color and clarity because they weren’t created by nature where impurities exist.

Most of the largest emeralds are in museums or private collections.

Most of the info and photos are from Wikipedia, GIA and Gem Select websites.