Gemstones have always been highly prized and revered possessions for people of almost all civilizations. Out of all vivacious and coveted gemstones, emeralds are arguably the most delightful and sought-after ones because of their vivid color saturation and clarity. The emergence of emeralds can be traced back to Egpyt in 2000 BC and timeless beauty like Cleopatra embraced this stellar stone which signifies its imperativeness.
The world of emeralds is packed with eyeballs grabbing marvels and anomalies as well. Emeralds come in weight from as low as 1 carat to as towering as 1000 carat, and in the vibrant color range of green hues to bluish-green. To make our readers conversant with different types of emeralds as well as those emeralds that are one of their kind, we have carved a comprehensive and intriguing blog post that covers almost all possible types of emeralds with the relevant information associated with them. From historic significance to precise value, we ensure to state information that is enriching for emerald lovers and worth jotting down to expand the knowledge base.
Brazilian Emeralds:-
Brazil is the place where the whole story of emeralds began. The first recorded discovery of emeralds was in Brazil dating back to the year 1920. Initially, the extracted emeralds were not up to par in terms of quality so Brazilian emerald were not high in demand. However, in the late 1980s, more emeralds mines were discovered that are still well known for giving some of the most exalted and exquisite emeralds to the world. Nova Era and Mianis Gerais mines in Brazil have roped in umpteen accolades for giving some of the rarest and the highest-quality emeralds.
Colombian Emeralds:-
Best known for exuding the most brilliant green color hues with deep saturation, Colombian Emeralds are pure delight and a sight to behold. Colombian mines primarily offer lush green color to bluish-green color emeralds in umpteen color variations and that’s what makes them one of the most revered emerald types.
If we hop on to the price part, Colombian emeralds are arguably the most exorbitant ones as their quality, color, and clarity are of the next level. Colombian emeralds coming from Chivo mines enclose tints of blue. On the other hand, emeralds coming from Muzo mines exhibit tints of yellow color. If you are a gemstone enthusiast or connoisseur, you would to have your hands on Colombian emeralds.
Zambian Emeralds:-
After Colombia, Africa is unquestionably the second largest producer of emeralds in the world and Zambian emeralds are one the most sought-after types. The key difference between Colombian emeralds and Zambian Emeralds is the degree of green color. While Colombian Emeralds are leafy green in color on the surface, Zambian emeralds are deep green to the core. Moreover, Zambian emeralds are puny in price if compare to Colombian emeralds, hence, they are easy to afford for all classes. The eye-balls grabbing lustre and deep green color can enchant anyone in no time.
Untreated Emerald:-
They are widely known as no-oil emeralds as these emeralds don’t undergo any kind of treatment to enhance clarity and color. Untreated emeralds are quite rare, extremely valuable and daunting to rope in even at a mouth-watering price. Untreated emeralds are often roped in for Astrological benefits and for collection purposes as well. Most untreated emeralds exhibit an eye-pleasing deep green hue with profound lustre and often come with a beginning price of $1000 per carat.
Synthetic Emeralds:-
Synthetic emeralds are also referred to as lab-created emeralds as they are synthesized at avant-garde laboratories to satiate the ever-increasing demand for emeralds in the global market. Synthetic emeralds are created using just a seed of beryl crystal and nutrients that are dissolved in a molten flux and left until the crystallization takes place.
Synthetic emeralds resemble so perfectly with natural emeralds that sometimes it becomes mind-boggling to distinguish between the two of them. Earlier, the production of synthetic emeralds was fettered because of the dearth of mass-production technology. The major breakthrough came in 1960 when a new technique was invented that was economically frugal as well as capable of producing umpteen emeralds at a startling rate.
With origin lies in Bahia, Brazil, the Bahia emerald is one of the largest and perhaps the most majestic emeralds in the world. This Emerald Stone weighs approximately 341kg and was under a long ownership dispute before the case settled down and ownership to the FM holdings. Bahia emerald is valued to be somewhere near $400-450 million, however, the true value of this mighty gemstone is still unclear.
Read More:- A Complete Guide To Zambian Panna
Some Famous Emeralds:-
Duke of Devonshire Emerald: Without a shadow of a doubt, the Duke of Devonshire is one of the most fabled and biggest uncut emeralds in the world with a mammoth weight of 1384 carat. This captivating emerald was mined in the Muzo region of Colombia and made its way to Emperor Pedor 1 of Brazil then onto the sixth duke of Devonshire in 1831. For more than two decades, this unique emerald was escalating the glory of the British empire and then made its way to the Natural History Museum in 2007.
Carolina Emperor Emerald: Carolina Emperor emerald is the result of years of the bone-crunching hunt in the vast mining area of the western part of North Carolina. Initially, the prime motive of the search was to find the rarest sapphires, rubies, and emeralds in existence. The jackpot hit in the year 2009 when a mammoth 314-carat emerald was found in North Carolina and named after the emperor of Carolina.
It was later cut down to around 64 carats to make it ready for market sale. The hunt to find ingenious, rare, and fascinating emeralds like the Carolina emperor emerald is still going strong and at a rapid pace in most of the mining areas of North Carolina.
Mogul Mughal Emerald: With its origin rooted to Colombia, this perfectly rectangular cut was sold to one of the prominent Mughal rulers in India and is known as one of the largest maragatham stone (emerald) in existence. The exact weight of the Mogul Mughal emerald is 217.80 carats. This highly revered emerald was sold to an individual in 2001 who later paved its way to the majestic art museum of Doha, Qatar in 2008.
Emerald of Saint Louis: Not many individuals know that the emerald of Saint Louis once used to be the shining pride of the French crown as it was encrusted in the crown and umpteen French kings and queens have embraced it.
This full of grandeur emerald was unearthed in Austria after years of meticulous and relentless search. Currently, the emerald of Saint Louis is residing in the treasury vault of the national museum of history. This marvellous emerald once used to be the shining star of the glorious set of diamond pins of Queen Marie Antoinette, Ruspoli sapphire, and the emerald of Saint Louis.
Rockefeller Emerald: A gargantuan emerald by appearance, this stone was mined in Colombia weighing 18.04 carat. Later, the stone was purchased by the American business magnate John D. Rockefeller for his stunning wife. She cheerfully wore it for decades in a brooch.
It is the apple of the eye for emerald lovers because of its natural clarity, minimal inclusions, and uniformly saturated color. Recently, it was sold in an auction at a staggering price of $5.5 million.
Patricia Emerald: What distinguishes the astounding Patricia emerald from the rest of the emeralds is its di-hexagonal or 12-sided crystal structure. It was first discovered in a mine in Colombia in 1920 and is widely considered one of the most profound emeralds of all time.
This emerald is deeply regarded for its outrageous durability and it can withstand great temperatures, and pressure, and is resistant. It got the name Patricia after the name of the daughter of the mine owner. Currently, this ethereal emerald is residing at the American museum of national history in New York City.
Gachalá Emerald: This intriguing and fascinating emerald stone mine is located in Gachala, a small town near Bogota, Colombia. The pure and lush green of Gachala Emerald can stun anyone. It weighs about jaw-dropping 858 carats and it was donated to the Smithsonian institute by one of the most renowned jewelrs in the world, Harry Winston. Gemologists firmly believe that Gachala emerald got its pure and deep green color from the atoms of Vanadium and Chromium blending with beryl crystals.