Emerald: features and curiosities
We have already learned about the history and features of the ruby: this time we focus instead on the emerald, a very important precious stone with an intense green color, greatly loved by Cleopatra and the protagonist of a troubled love story that reminds us of a Shakespearean drama... are you ready to discover everything about the emerald?
The name and the history
A Hellenized name, this time, for the precious stone with the intense green color. The name 'emerald' indeed comes from Greek σμάραγδος (smaragdos) and means "green gem." Many scholars, however, believe that the true origin of the name would be izmargad, a Semitic term meaning "green stone".
Its history dates back to Ancient Egypt, where emerald mines in the southeastern region were active as early as 3500 B.C. Cleopatra, the last queen of Egypt, is known for her deep love of emeralds. Not only did she wear wonderful jewelry set with emeralds, but she also had the custom of giving her dignitaries an emerald engraved with her image as a sign of tribute. For the Egyptians, the emerald was a true national symbol.
The emerald was already considered a powerful talisman for fertility, immortality, rejuvenation, and spring.
What it is made of
The emerald is a variety of beryl, characterized by an intense green color. Beryl, literally "green-blue stone," is considered the mother of gems for its highly prized varieties. The intense green color of the emerald comes from traces of chromium, vanadium, and iron, whose concentrations within the stone determine its extraordinary range of shades. There are emeralds from pastel green to dark green, with various bluish, brownish, grayish, or yellowish hues.
Varieties of emerald
The Colombian Emerald is synonymous with superior quality, highly sought after on the market but hard to find. This type of emerald fascinates the whole world with its vivid green fire and an uncommon crystal purity. Zambia holds the second largest emerald deposit in the world. Other deposits are found in Afghanistan, Brazil, Pakistan, and Zimbabwe. The Nova Era Emerald is mined from the Brazilian Minas Gerais mine and closely resembles the Colombian Emerald for its classic beauty with tones ranging from soft green to a deeper green. Trapiche Emeralds are crystals with fine fibrous inclusions of dark carbon that spread from a naturally formed central hexagon. Another variety is mined in the Ural Mountains in Russia, where specimens stand out for their purity and a bluish-green color.
Its characteristics
As we said earlier, the presence of chromium, vanadium, and iron greatly influences the shade of green of the emerald. The most prized emeralds are undoubtedly those with a deeper and more intense hue. The transparency and clarity of the stone is another feature that signals its value. Many stones are treated through heat treatment, a heating process, to improve precisely these aspects.
Some small curiosities
In Buddhism, the emerald is considered one of the seven treasures and is equated with wisdom. It is also considered by many the stone linked to the month of May. In Colombia, the main current source of emeralds, there is a relic called Lettuce, set with 1486 emeralds, considered the best examples in the world. The relic is said to have been made in the 1700s and has been kept since then by Colombian Jesuits.
Also in Colombia, there are two emerald specimens called Tena and Fura: their origin comes from the troubled love story between, precisely, Tena and Fura, belonging to two feuding houses. The legend of the two lovers strongly reminds us of that of Romeo and Juliet, celebrated by Shakespeare. The young Tena, after secretly falling in love with Fura, took his own life: Fura’s tears, fallen to the ground as soon as she discovered the death of her beloved, are said to have produced wonderful green stones.
The emerald is also the only gem that gives its name to a color: the so-called emerald green. This is the story of one of the most beautiful and beloved stones in the world. The emerald, symbol of hope and youth, is definitely among the most precious gems!
