Actinolite Cat’s Eye
Actinolite is a rare translucent variety of chatoyant actinolite. It is an amphibole silicate that is sometimes mistakenly called ‘cat’s eye jade’.
Agate
Agate is a form of chalcedony quartz that forms in concentric layers in a remarkable variety of colors and textures.
Agate Geode
Agate Geodes are a form of chalcedony quartz that forms in concentric layers in a remarkable variety of colors and textures within rock cavities or vugs with internal crystal formations.
Alexandrite
Alexandrite is one of the rarest of all colored gemstones and is famed for its color change from green in daylight to red under incandescent light.
Almandine Garnet
Almandine garnet the most common garnet, is dark-brownish or purplish-red. Garnet is very popular for its excellent hardness and brilliance.
Amazonite
Amazonite is a gemstone variety of green microcline, a feldspar mineral. It is named after the Amazon River in Brazil, although no deposits have been found there.
Amber
Amber, the fossilized, hardened resin of the pine tree, is one of the few gemstones of organic origin. Most amber is found in the Baltic, where it formed about 50 million years ago.
Amethyst
Amethyst is the most precious gemstone within the quartz group. Amethyst ranges in color from pale lilac to deep reddish-purple.
Amethyst Geode
Amethyst Geode is a trade name for violet quartz that forms within rock cavities and is often traded under names such crystal clusters or crystal plates.
Ametrine
Ametrine is a form of quartz that occurs in bands of yellow and purple, a combination of the colors of amethyst and citrine.
Ammolite
Ammolite is a rare gemstone of organic origin that is fairly new to the market, with commercial mining beginning only in 1981.
Andalusite
Andalusite is a strongly pleochroic gem, which means that it can display different colors when viewed from different angles.
Andesine-Labradorite
Supplies of andesine-labradorite are quite recent, with the mineral found in a range of colors, including red, yellow, champagne and green.
Apatite
Apatite, a stone seldom found in jewelry stores, is beloved by collectors for its many different colors and forms.
Aquamarine
Aquamarine is best known for its breathtaking range of blue colors and belongs to the same family as emerald (beryl). Aquamarine is colored by trace amounts of iron.
Aventurine
Aventurine is a type of green quartz often used for carvings and cabochons.
Axinite
Axinite is a group of brown to violet-brown or reddish-brown minerals that sometimes occur in gem quality. Axinite is distinctive for its strong vitreous luster.
Azotic Topaz
A new high tech enhancement process using thin film deposition has created this new-look topaz.
Beryl
Beryl is one of the most important gem minerals. The most famous beryl is emerald, but other beryl varieties include aquamarine, heliodor and morganite.
Bloodstone
Bloodstone, also known as heliotrope, is a green gemstone dotted with bright red spots of iron oxide.
Boulder Opal
Boulder opal is the second most prized form of opal, after black opal. The name is derived from the fact that boulder opal is found embedded in ironstone boulders.
Calcite
Pure calcium carbonate is colorless, but calcite is often colored by various impurities, including iron, magnesium, manganese, zinc or cobalt.
Carnelian
Carnelian is a brownish red to orange variety of chalcedony quartz, colored by trace amounts of iron. Darker colors (red-brown to brown) are often referred to by the name sard.
Cassiterite
Cassiterite is one of the densest gem materials known. It also has a very high refractive index, higher than zircon, sphene and demantoid garnet.
Cat’s Eye Apatite
Chatoyancy (the cat’s eye effect) in cat’s eye apatite is the reflection of light by parallel fibers, needles, or channels, which resemble the slit eye of a cat.
Cat’s Eye Aquamarine
Aquamarine is best known for its breathtaking range of blue colors and belongs to the same family as emerald. Cat’s eye aquamarine is quite rare.
Cat’s Eye Diaspore
Diaspore, sometimes marketed under the name zultanite, is a color change gem from Turkey. Cat’s eye diaspore is fairly rare.
Cat’s Eye Scapolite
Scapolite is a sodium calcium aluminum silicate with a hardness of 5.5 to 6 on the Mohs scale. It is named after the Greek word for “stick”, since its crystals grow in columns.
Cat’s Eye Tourmaline
Tourmaline with tiny parallel inclusions sometimes displays a strong cat’s eye effect when polished.
Chalcedony
Chalcedony is the fine-grained variety of the silica mineral quartz. It has a waxy luster and appears in a great variety of colors.
Charoite
Charoite is a new gem on the market, first appearing in 1978. It is found only in one location in Siberia, Russia. The swirling shapes of lavender and violet are quite unique.
Chrome Diopside
Chrome diopside is colored by chromium and displays a rich forest green that has similarities with tsavorite garnet and chrome tourmaline.
Chrome Tourmaline
Chrome tourmaline is a distinct variety of tourmaline colored by chromium. It is sometimes referred to as chrome dravite and is known for its rich forest green color.
Chrysoberyl
Faceted chrysoberyl is a beautiful gem which is not as well known as it deserves. Apart from the very good hardness (8.5 on the Mohs scale), it has excellent luster.
Chrysoberyl Cat’s Eye
The most famous and valuable cat’s eye gemstone is chrysoberyl cat’s eye. It is valued for its excellent hardness (8.5) and sharp cat’s eye.
Chrysocolla
Chrysocolla is hydrous copper silicate. Often confused with turquoise, chrysocolla is found in unusual multicolor combinations as well as blue or green.
Chrysoprase
Chrysoprase is a gemstone variety of chalcedony or cryptocrystalline quartz, colored by trace amounts of nickel. Its color varies from apple-green to deep green.
Citrine
Named after the French word for lemon, citrine is yellow, gold or orange-brown transparent quartz.
Clinohumite
Clinohumite is a rare mineral and an especially rare gemstone. Only three sources of gem-quality clinohumite material are known; in Tajikistan, Siberia and Tanzania.
Color-Change Diaspore
Diaspore, sometimes marketed under the name zultanite or csarite, is a natural color change gemstone mined from Turkey, which was recently introduced to the international market.
Color-Change Garnet
Color-change garnet is a mix of spessartite and pyrope garnet. This garnet presents a color change from brownish in daylight to rose pink in incandescent light.
Color-Change Sapphire
Some rare sapphires exhibit a color change under varying lighting conditions. Color change sapphires are typically blue in natural light and purple under incandescent light.
Coral
Precious coral is a species of coral that grows in rocky seabottoms. Coral exhibits a range of warm reddish-pink colors ranging from salmon pink to deep-red.
Danburite
Danburite gets its name from Danbury, Connecticut, where it was first discovered in 1839. It is quite hard, with a rating of 7 to 7.5 on the Mohs scale.
Demantoid Garnet
Demantoid garnet is the rarest and most valuable of the garnets. Found in green to emerald green, demantoid garnet is scarce and is typically only seen in small sizes.
Dendritic Agate
Dendritic agate is a whitish-gray or colorless chalcedony with fern-like inclusions known as dendrites. The inclusions look like plant material, but they are actually iron or manganese.
Diamond
Diamond, the hardest known natural material, is a transparent carbon crystal. Diamond is famed not only for its superb hardness, but also for its high refractive index and dispersion.
Dumortierite Quartz
Dumortierite quartz is an unusual quartz that is intergrown with the mineral dumortierite. The inclusions of dumortierite give it a deep blue color that is unique in the world of quartz.
Emerald
Emerald is the most precious stone in the beryl group. The wonderful green color of emerald is unparalleled in the gem world.
Enstatite
Enstatite is a rare gemstone that belongs to the pyroxene group of minerals. It is typically brown-green with a vitreous luster and is a collector’s gem.
Fire Agate
Fire agate is a type of opaque, limonite-bearing chalcedony with an iridescence caused by the diffraction of light in its layered structure.
Fire Opal
Fire opal is an unusual variety of opal from Mexico, which can be yellow, orange or orange-red. Some fire opal gemstones are clear enough for facets.
Fluorite
Fluorite is a mineral with a veritable plethora of brilliant colors that include purple, blue, green, yellow, colorless, brown, pink and orange.
Fossil Coral
Fossil coral is a decorative material that is formed when ancient coral is gradually replaced with agate. The proper name for this material is agatized coral.
Gaspeite
A recent discovery (1966), gaspeite is a very rare nickel carbonate mineral named after the place in Eastern Canada where it was first described.
Goshenite
The colorless precious beryl is known as goshenite. It is named after the small town of Goshen in Western Massachusetts where it was first described.
Grossularite Garnet
Grossularite (or grossular) garnet is a calcium-aluminium garnet. The name grossular is derived from the botanical name for the gooseberry, grossularia.
Hackmanite
Hackmanite exhibits an unusual phenomenon known as reversible photochromism, where a mineral changes color when exposed to sunlight.
Hambergite
Hambergite is one of the lesser-known gemstones. It is usually nearly colorless, with the vitreous luster of glass when cut. It is quite a hard material, with a hardness of 7.5.
Hematite
Hematite is iron oxide that is typically blackish-gray. When highly polished it can sometimes look like silver. Hematite is a remarkably dense material.
Hemimorphite
Hemimorphite is usually found in aggregate form with blue and white bands, or mixed with a dark matrix.
Hessonite Garnet
Hessonite is an orange-brown variety of garnet colored by traces of manganese and iron. It is sometimes known as cinammon stone.
Hiddenite
Hiddenite is a form of spodumene containing chromium. The green color varies from a yellowish to a bluish-green.
Howlite
Howlite is an interesting grayish-white mineral that is sometimes referred to as white turquoise because of its distinctive veining.
Idocrase
Idocrase is also known as vesuvianite, since it was originally found on Mt. Vesuvias. The color is normally green, but it can also be brown, yellow, blue or purple.
Imperial Topaz
The most sought after of all natural topaz is called imperial topaz. Its rich golden color with reddish and orange overtones is generally not enhanced by any kind of treatment.
Iolite
Pleochroism is very pronounced in iolite and is seen as three different color shades in the same stone; violet, yellow-gray and blue.
Jadeite
Jadeite is found in most colors, including pure white, pink, brown, red, orange, violet, blue, black and a range of greens.
Jasper
Jasper is usually considered a type of chalcedony, however, scientists put it in a group by itself because of its grainy structure.
Kornerupine
Kornerupine is a rare transparent to translucent, typically brownish-green collector’s gem. It was named after Danish naturalist, artist and explorer, Andreas Nikolaus Kornerup.
Kunzite
Kunzite is the pale pink-violet to light-violet species of the mineral spodumene. Kunzite is named in honor of the mineralogist George F. Kunz.
Kyanite
Kyanite is a layered crystal with a vitreous to almost pearly luster that is usually found in a sapphire-like blue color.
Labradorite
Labradorite is a member of the plagioclase feldspar group and displays a distinctive schiller in lustrous metallic tints.
Lapis Lazuli
Lapis lazuli has been used for thousands of years in jewelry and ornamental objects. The unique deep blue color has never lost its attraction.
Larimar
The blue variety of pectolite has become known as Larimar. A very rare mineral, it has only been found in the Dominican Republic, where it was first discovered in 1974.
Lepidolite
Lepidolite is a lilac-gray or rose-colored lithium-bearing mineral of the mica group. It is one of the major sources of the rare alkali metals rubidium and caesium.
Malachite
Malachite is copper carbonate with distinctive green veining. Though not a particularly hard stone, it takes an excellent polish.
Mali Garnet
Mali Garnet is one of the hybrid garnets, a mixture of grossular and andradite garnets. It gets its name from the African country where it was first discovered.
Maw-Sit-Sit
Maw-sit-sit is an unusual gemstone often classified as a member of the jade family. It was first discovered in 1963 and was named after a village in Northwestern Burma.
Melanite
Melanite is the black variety of the rare andradite garnet. It is sometimes known as titanian andradite.
Moldavite
Moldavite is a bottle-green to brown-green gemstone belonging to the tektite group. It is formed from condensed rock vapors after a meteorite impact.
Moonstone
Moonstone is a unique stone that reflects light in a distinctive shimmering phenomenon known as adularescence.
Morganite
The pink form of beryl was named morganite, after the American banker and collector J.P. Morgan. A soft pink to violet, morganite belongs to the same family as emerald.
Moss Opal
Moss opal is a milky white opal with unique inclusions of green hornblende in moss-like patterns.
Mystic Quartz
Mystic quartz is the product of a new high tech enhancement process, whereby a coating is applied to colorless quartz.
Mother of Pearl
Mother of Pearl is an organic gemstone that comes from the inside of some mollusk shells. Mother-of-pearl is made from nacre, which is mainly calcium carbonate.
Mystic Topaz
Colorful mystic topaz is the product of a high tech enhancement process that is stable and permanent.
Nuummite
Nuummite is an opaque metamorphic rock with an iridescent play of color. Its chief constituent minerals are gedrite and anthophyllite.
Obsidian
Obsidian is naturally occurring volcanic glass. It is formed when felsic lava extruded from a volcano cools without crystal growth.
Onyx
Onyx is the black form of chalcedony, a cryptocrystalline form of quartz.
Opal
More than any other gem, each opal is unique. No other stone has such rich and varied folklore. Opals are also the most delicate gems commonly worn.
Opal Doublet
An opal doublet consists of a slice of natural opal glued to a black backing, which causes the color to become more vibrant.
Orthoclase
Orthoclase is a transparent yellow feldspar resembling citrine quartz or yellow beryl, found primarily in Madagascar.
Paraiba Tourmaline
Paraiba tourmaline is a rare copper-bearing gem with a vivid neon blue color. First found in Brazil in 1989, similar material has since been found in Africa.
Peanut Wood
Peanut wood is a variety of petrified wood, where the shape and structure of the wood is pre- served when the original organic material is replaced by quartz.
Peanut Wood Gems
Pearl
Pearls are products of bivalve mollusks (mainly oysters and mussels). They are built up of nacre, which is mainly calcium carbonate in the form of aragonite crystals.
Peridot
Peridot belongs to the forsterite-fayalite mineral series. It is an idiochromatic gem, meaning its color comes from the basic chemical composition of the mineral itself, rather than impurities.
Pietersite
Pietersite is a breccia aggregate of hawk’s eye and tiger’s eye, with swirling colors of blue, rusty red, gold and brown.
Prehnite
Prehnite, a form of calcium aluminum silicate, has a vitreous to pearly luster. Affordably priced for its size, prehnite makes distinctive and interesting jewelry.
Pyrope Garnet
Pyrope garnet is the most famous of the red garnets. Its dark, blood red color often resembles the color of ruby.
Quartz
Quartz is one of the most common minerals on Earth and is well known in the gemstone world in its many forms including amethyst, citrine and ametrine.
Quartz Cat’s Eye
Quartz cat’s eye is quartz in which inclusions of rutile create chatoyancy (the cat’s eye effect). Usually found in white, green, yellow or brown.
Rainbow Moonstone
A combination of orthoclase and albite arranged in layers cause the lovely sheen. Despite the name, rainbow moonstone is actually a variety of labradorite with a multicolored adularescence.
Rainbow Pyrite
Rainbow pyrite is a recent find from Russia. The material comes in the form of druzy – a layer of miniature pyrite crystals coating a matrix.
Rhodochrosite
Rhodochrosite is usually found in an aggregate form with alternating light and dark stripes in zigzag bands.
Rhodolite Garnet
Rhodolite garnet is the name applied to a mixture of pyrope and almandite. Rhodolite tends to be lighter in color than most other kinds of red garnet.
Rhodonite
Rhodonite is a manganese iron magnesium calcium silicate, and a member of the pyroxenoid group of minerals.
Rose Quartz
The unique soft pink color of rose quartz is thought to be derived from tiny traces of titanium. Rose quartz crystals tend to be cloudy, which deepens its color.
Rubellite Tourmaline
Vivid pink to red tourmaline, often with a violet tinge, is known as rubellite. It is one of the most valuable tourmaline colors.
Ruby
Ruby is the red variety of corundum, the 2nd hardest substance on the Mohs scale, with a rating of 9. It is the combination of hardness and rich color that makes fine ruby so valuable.
Ruby-in-Fuchsite
Ruby-in-fuchsite is a natural combination of ruby and fuchsite in the same specimen. It is an interesting and colorful stone, with blue to emerald-green fuchsite and pink, purple or red ruby inclusions.
Ruby-Zoisite
Ruby-zoisite is the natural combination of ruby and zoisite crystals in a single specimen. It is often used for carvings.
Rutile Quartz
Rutile quartz is clear or smoky quartz with inclusions of rutile crystals.
Rutile Topaz
Rutile topaz is colorless topaz with inclusions that look like rutile crystals. But the inclusions are actually thin channels of limonite staining.
Sapphire
Sapphire, with its excellent hardness, second only to diamond, is one of the four traditional precious gemstones.
Scapolite
As a gemstone scapolite is not well known, but it can be a very attractive stone. Its color, which is usually a vibrant yellow, orange, pink or violet, is its best feature.
Seraphinite
Seraphinite is a trade name for a particular form of clinochlore. The dark-green color of seraphinite is enhanced by a silvery and feathery shimmer caused by mica inclusions.
Serpentine
Serpentine is a type of green magnesium silicate aggregate. It is used as a decorative stone or for carvings.
Sillimanite Cat’s Eye
Sillimanite is a type of aluminum silicate that is related to both andalusite and kyanite. In fact, these three minerals share the same chemical composition but have different crystal structures.
Smithsonite
Smithsonite is one of two zinc-containing minerals discovered by the British mineralogist James Smithson. The zinc silicate was named smithsonite in his honor.
Smoky Quartz
Smoky quartz is fast becoming a designer favorite for its earthy tone and tribal look. It is one of the few gemstones that is gray or brown.
Snowflake Obsidian
Obsidian is a naturally occurring volcanic glass. In some stones, the inclusion of white crystals of cristobalite produce a blotchy pattern, known as snowflake obsidian.
Sodalite
The mineral sodalite gets its name from its sodium content. As a gemstone, sodalite is usually blue, often with a violet tint, and frequently contains white veins of calcite.
Spessartite Garnet
The most valuable spessartite garnets display a bright, orange-red. The best specimens come from Namibia.
Sphalerite
Sphalerite is a rare collector’s gem which has exceptional dispersion (also known as fire). In fact its dispersion rating is three times as high as that for diamond.
Sphene
Sphene is a brilliant yellowish-green, green or brown gemstone of high luster, unique color shades and, with brilliant cut, an intense fire.
Spinel
Due to its excellent hardness and clarity, spinel is an excellent gemstone for all types of jewelery. Spinel is never treated in any way.
Spodumene
Spodumene is a relatively new mineral to science, with gem varieties discovered only in the last 120 years. Spodumene occurs in white, gray, pink, lilac and green.
Star Diopside
Diopside is best known for the vivid green chrome diopside, but the black diopside exhibiting asterism (also known as the star effect) is also important.
Star Garnet
Star garnet is a rare and unusual garnet, found only in Idado in the USA and India. It displays a four-rayed star due to aligned inclusions of rutile.
Star Lemon Quartz
Star lemon quartz is a lemon-yellow variety of quartz that displays asterism (the star effect).
Star Moonstone
Moonstone is a combination of orthoclase and albite arranged in layers which cause the lovely sheen. Star moonstone exhibits a stunning four-rayed star effect.
Star Rose Quartz
Rose quartz displaying asterism or the star effect is rare. The unique soft pink color of rose quartz is thought to be caused by tiny traces of titanium.
Star Ruby
Star ruby is a ruby that displays asterism, a six-rayed star that shimmers over the surface of the stone when it is moved.
Star Sapphire
Star sapphire is a sapphire that contains unusual tiny needle-like inclusions. These needles produce a phenomenon called asterism.
Star Sunstone
Sunstone is plagioclase feldspar with a unique glitter from platelets of hematite. Typically it has a red glitter, and more rarely a blue or green glitter. Star sunstones are known but rare.
Strawberry Quartz
Quartz with red inclusions of lepidocrosite, hematite or goethite is often sold under the name strawberry quartz.
Sugilite
Sugilite is an obscure and quite rare mineral named after the Japanese geologist, Ken-ichi Sugi, who discovered it in 1944.
Sunstone
Sunstone is a type of plagioclase feldspar that exhibits a spangled appearance, due to reflections of red hematite.
Tanzanite
Tanzanite is a variety of zoisite. Colors of tanzanite include blue, purple and green. The highly coveted color is deep blue, which has a purple pleochroism.
Tashmarine Diopside
Tashmarine diopside is a brilliant yellow-green diopside from a recent discovery in Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Western China.
Tiger’s Eye
Tiger’s eye is a type of opaque macrocrystalline quartz with a fibrous structure. It typically displays chatoyant stripes, because structural fibers are crooked or bent.
Tiger’s Eye Matrix
Tiger’s eye matrix is the name given to tiger’s eye that is cut and finished with some of its host rock intact.
Topaz
Topaz is an important gem due to its hardness and high refractive index. Topaz comes in many colors and blue topaz is especially popular.
Tourmaline
One of the most versatile of gems, tourmaline is found in every color. It can show every tone from pastel to dark, and can display various colors in the same stone.
Tsavorite Garnet
The green species of garnet known as tsavorite was discovered in 1967 by British geologist Campbell R. Bridges in the bush along the frontier between Kenya and Tanzania.
Turquoise
Turquoise, the blue cousin of lapis lazuli, has been known and valued for thousands of years. The early mines in Sinai, Egypt, were already worked out in 2000 B.C.
Variscite
Variscite is a relatively rare type of phosphate mineral. High quality specimens are used as gemstones and for carvings. Variscite is colored by traces of chromium.
Verdite
Verdite is light to dark-green serpentine rock that is often spotted or variegated. Most specimens come from South Africa and Zimbabwe.
Zircon
Zircon has great brilliance and intensive fire, due to its high refractive index and strong dispersion.
