While it may seem Greek to some, the grandidierite, majorite
or painite are just a few of the world's rarest gemstones. And while some may
be considered costly, others are surprisingly affordable thanks to their
general anonymity to the public. However, each of these rare gemstones
represents an exclusivity that can only be attributed to a handful of gems.
The Guinness Book of World Records has declared the painite
the rarest of all gems in years past. In fact, less than 20 of the specimen
were known to exist. The painite gem which has been tagged as Specimen No. 5
was fashioned into an oval weighing 2.54 carats. It is the painites' few
numbers that make it rare, not necessarily its coloring, which appear brownish
in color. However, the gem also has pleochoric attributes, meaning it changes
hues from different angles. At the right angle, a painite can also appear pink
to red. The painite was named after Arthur Charles Davy Pain, the British
gemologist who discovered the gem in Myanmar.
Found primarily in Madagascar, the grandidierite's
bluish-green characteristics can easily be mistaken for a serendibite gem. In
fact, one such grandidierite stone was mistaken for a serendibite and sold just
a few years ago. Considered trichoric, the gems emanate a blue, green and white
light.
Easily confused with serandite, the serendibite comes from Sri Lanka and
displays a cyan color. Only three have been discovered thus far and occur in
.33, .55 and .56 carats. This stone possesses an unusual combination of
calcium, aluminum, boron, silicon, magnesium, and oxygen. The smaller .33-carat
stone was sold for approximately $14,300 per carat.
With only a handful in existence, the taafeite reflects a
mauve-purple-red color. Fewer than ten of the red variety have been discovered.
The first taaffeite, discovered by Irish gemologist Edward Taaffe, was uncovered
in a box of spinels in Sri
Lanka in 1945. Uncharacteristic of spinels, the taafeite displays a double
refraction. The lighter colored stones can sell on market for as little as
$500.
Some taaffeite owners may actually be in the possession of a
musgravite, which is considered even rarer than the taaffeite. Similar in
appearance to the former, less than 10 were known to be in existence just a few
years ago. Discovered in the early 1990s at the Musgrave
Range in South Austrailia, the
musgravite mineral has also been found in Greenland,
Madagascar and Antarctica.
Designated California's
state gemstone 20 years ago, the benitoite has a blue appearance and a
dispersion characteristic similar to a diamond. Found only in San Benito County,
the largest benitoite stone is more than 15 carats, however, they rarely occur
larger than one carat. These smaller stones retail between $500 to $2,000 per
carat.
While diamonds are not all that rare, fancy diamonds, are
those that are strongly colored are quite exceptional. Red is considered the
most rare of the fancy colored diamonds.
Less than 35 are known to exist. They are considered so priceless; these
stones are largely unavailable for sale. The Moussaieff Red, the largest fancy
red diamond at 5.11 carats was cut from a 14-carat rough found in Brazil and
displayed at the Smithsonian. Other fancy diamonds occur in shades of yellow,
green, orange, blue, gray, black, and pink, to name a few. Nearly 10,000
colorless diamonds are sold to nearly one carat fancy diamond.
Formed hundreds of miles beneath the earth's surface or from
the blast of a meteorite's impact, the majorite, or a purple form of garnet,
was discovered in the Coorara meteorite near Eucla, Western Australia
in 1970. Just a few years ago, the uncut majorite from the Chantonnay meteorite
in France
was being sold for $2,400 per carat.
Lewis Jewelers is proud to carry
the full line of Pandora Jewelry. Pandora bracelets, Pandora charms and
Pandora beads are only a part of the collection. For more
information, contact Lewis Jewelers, 2000 West Stadium Blvd., Ann Arbor,
Michigan, 48103, 877-88-LEWIS or visit http://www.lewisjewelers.com/pandora_bracelets/,
http://www.pandorabraceletsusa.com,
or http://www.lewisjewelers.com. |
