Emeralds

Question: What are emeralds?

Answer: Emeralds are green gemstones of the beryl family of minerals, known for their exotic beauty and highly prized by those who are graced with the good fortune to own them.

The name emerald comes from the Greek word "smaragdos" which simply means "green stone."

As the present day birthstone for the month of May, the emerald signifies eternal joy, faithfulness, and love.

Emeralds are worn on brooches, bracelets, rings, cameos, pendants, and other pieces of jewelry, or kept independently as an unmounted jewel.

Some emeralds have been kept in families for hundreds of years and serve as special family heirlooms.

Like diamonds and rubies, there are many, very valuable and well known emeralds kept by collectors and museums, or as crown jewels, around the world.

Emeralds are relatively hard stones but due to their brittle nature, they are sensitive to stress and bumps so care must be taken when they are worn.

The cutting of emerald must be done by skilled and specialized cutters who are familiar with the cleavage and fracture points of the stone.

The highest quality emerald has a fresh green color and some have a faint tint of blue.

Emeralds have been mined and collected for thousands of years and are still one of the most awe inspiring gemstones.

Columbia is one of the most valuable sources of emeralds in the world but many other countries produce gemstone quality emeralds including the USSR, Zambia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Brazil, and the United States produce some high quality emeralds, too.

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