Emerald: the last among the first. The magical properties of the emerald stone for the signs of the zodiac

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Greetings, you, my reader, on my pages! For amateurs and, in general, for the curious, this article, which will focus on the emerald.

The emerald stone is one of the varieties of beryl, which has a green color with different shades.

By itself, beryl has no color, however, the presence of impurities in its composition gives the stone various shades, for example, chrome is the source of the characteristic shade of emerald. In addition to chromium, the stone contains iron and vanadium.

The name of the stone has Persian roots, which has survived in the modern world of jewelry. The old Russian name for the stone is smaragd.

Emerald deposits

The value and beauty of the stone was appreciated even in Ancient Egypt and Babylon. The main deposits of stone in those distant times were considered the world-famous Cleopatra mines, which were located in Africa. Already in 1650 BC. mining of emeralds was established.

Despite the fact that Pliny saw stones of not the highest quality, according to his estimates, the emerald deserved third place, second only to diamond and pearls.

Emperor Nero preferred to follow the course of gladiatorial battles through the mysterious and alluring emerald crystal.

On the territory of Russia, the stone was first discovered in 1830 in the Urals, on the banks of a small river called Tokovaya. While uprooting trees, the peasant was lucky to find several fragments of a beautiful emerald.

All over the world, the most popular are emeralds, the deposit of which is located in Colombia. During the conquest campaigns of the conquistadors from Spain, that is, in the 16th century, the Colombian emerald was recognized as the best, the characteristics and properties of the stone surprised even specialists in the field of precious stones. Today, the main places for mining stones in Colombia are: Kosques, Muzo and Chivor.

Emerald color

The assessment of a stone, and not only an emerald, but also a sapphire and a ruby, can be given, knowing the place of its extraction. For example, rubies of the best quality are mined in Burma, sapphires in Kashmir, but for an emerald, the best grade is a deposit in Colombia. It is here, in the Muzo mine, near Bogota, that you can find a mineral of a unique, bright, fresh, herbaceous hue.

Such a rich green color is rightfully considered the only one in the whole world among the whole variety of precious minerals. Considering the fact that it is very difficult to find an emerald in nature without a single error, the presence of small inclusions does not in any way affect its quality and cost.

Moreover, an emerald with a bright, green hue with small inclusions will be rated higher than a stone without defects, but of a pale color.

Due to the fact that emerald belongs to rather soft minerals, it cannot be stored with stones whose hardness is higher. As a result, the mineral can become dull and lose its unique shine. In particular, an emerald cannot be stored in the same container as rubies, diamonds and sapphires.

Emerald stone characteristics, quality assessment

If we talk about an ideal stone, it is a transparent emerald with an evenly distributed color throughout the entire volume of the mineral.

First of all, the color of the stone is assessed, then its transparency. Natural stones almost always have some defects in the form of cracks or splits. They are treated with cedarwood oil, which has a similar refractive index. Thus, the oil somewhat dampens the amazing brilliance of some emeralds.

In order to get rid of cracks in the stone as much as possible, specialists use vacuum and thermal installations and epoxy resins.

It is important to note that the method of stone processing also depends on its deposit: emeralds from Colombia and Brazil need to be treated with resins, but stones, whose homeland is Zambia, are processed with oil.

The presence of inclusions in almost every stone is the reason that a special method of cutting emeralds - emerald - has appeared among professional cutters. The result is a rectangular or square stone with rounded corners.

It is this cut that allows you to best demonstrate all the advantages and all the beauty of the stone. In addition, in this way it is possible to protect the mineral from mechanical damage. However, cutters use other methods of cutting the stone, making cabochons or unusual emerald pearls.

The healing properties of emerald

The unique properties of emerald are completely unusual and beneficial to human health.

With the help of a mineral, you can:

• normalize blood pressure,
• get rid of headaches,
• relieve bladder inflammation.

Also, the mineral heals diseases of the gastrointestinal tract and is famous for its antibacterial properties. Putting a stone in a glass of unboiled water for a while, you can safely drink it without heat treatment.

In ancient times, the stone was credited with properties that relieve night blindness, thorns and even epilepsy.

Lithotherapists advise using the healing properties of emerald in cases of insomnia, unreasonable fears and fatigue.

The magical properties of emerald

According to legend, the emerald was on the head of Lucifer, however, during his expulsion from paradise, the stone fell. Since then, the mineral has been credited with the properties of one of the most powerful and powerful talismans.

Emerald is able to awaken everything good and positive in a person. Even in the Holy Scriptures, you can find a mention of this stone.

For example, the emerald is ranked among the biblical stones, which adorned the robe of the high priest Aaron.

Emerald is a symbol of nobility, love and success, courage, loyalty, faith and foresight. Whoever owns an emerald will certainly become famous - so the legends say.

In ancient times, the mineral was called the stone of truth, the stone of the prophet. To predict the future, magicians put a stone at the bottom of a vessel with water and only then began the ritual.

Nero revered the emerald more than other precious stones. With his help, he calmed down, got rid of bad thoughts and tuned in to perform in front of a large number of people, since he believed that the emerald was a source of eloquence.

However, in order for the beneficial effect of the stone to manifest itself in full force, one should be a pure spiritually and noble person. In this case, the emerald will cleanse the mind, strengthen memory, revive creativity, ingenuity. At the same time, the mineral will relieve boredom, melancholy and return joy.

In order for harmony to reign in the life of lovers, it is necessary for the groom to give the bride a ring with an emerald. This means that two people will always be united in opinions and views, are loyal to each other and strong against any malicious intent against them.

The emerald was called the stone of Isis, which means that the mineral protects future mothers and jewelry with it must be given to a woman who is about to give birth to a baby. Also, in ancient times, a stone was placed in the cradle of a baby, as a talisman.

And rubies. In some cases, a pure emerald can be worth more than a diamond. In accordance with Russian law, this jewel is equated to a convertible currency. If you decide to purchase such a gem, you need to know how to choose the best one, what values ​​of its parameters are considered good. To do this, you need to learn to understand the most elementary things: how many grams does 1 carat contain, what is the classification of these green stones, and some other points. The emerald purity table and other quality parameters are below in our article.

Criteria for determining quality

To select the best stone, you need to know how to test its quality. This is within the power of specialists with knowledge in this field. The check is carried out using professional equipment. But there are basic characteristics that determine the value of an emerald, the knowledge of which will help everyone when choosing a stone.

What criteria are considered decisive?

1. Colour.
2. Transparency.
3. Origin.
4. Cut.
5. Weight and size.

Knowing about all these characteristics will come in handy when shopping for items with emeralds.

Clarity and clarity of stones

When choosing jewelry, you should pay attention to purity, which also affects the quality of the emerald, although this characteristic is not dominant. Clarity, or clarity, can be determined visually without the use of magnifying devices.

If the stone being tested has the same characteristics (density, size, color) in comparison with others, then it is better to choose the one that has a higher transparency. The value of the cloudy mineral is much lower.

In nature, it is almost impossible to find ideal purity emerald minerals without any flaws (this is due to the methods of their extraction). The presence of visual defects indicates a real, not fake emerald. But there are inclusions that create a unique pattern on the surface of the gem, and jewelry made from it is unique, and their cost is several times higher than jewelry made from pure emerald.

Emerald Purity Chart

An emerald, which reaches 5 carats, should only be cut if its color matches the first three groups.

Colour

Many people think that emerald is a green stone. This statement is only partially true, since minerals are colored in different shades of green. Color is largely determined by their value. The more impeccable the color, the more the gem is valued.

The color characteristic includes several parameters.

Shade

The most common color for emeralds is green. But this tone is the main one, which in most cases is combined with additional shades. Most often, yellow or blue shades are added to the dominant color. On the whole, the tone of the whole stone depends on the secondary color.

Yellowness gives the mineral warmth, and blue gives a cold tint. The color and clarity of an emerald are interrelated concepts. The purity of an emerald is determined by the presence of green colors in it. The presence of yellow, red or blue undertones in a mineral indicates its belonging to different types.

Consumer demand for jewelry of different colors varies depending on fashion trends, but interest in emeralds of the highest purity remains unchanged at all times.

Saturation and tone

These are the defining features of color depth. Shallowly saturated stones are grayish in color and are not suitable for jewelry. Their place among collectibles. The high color density gives the mineral a dark, almost black color; a stone of this color is of great interest to jewelers. But the most optimal value in terms of value is the saturation, which gives the stone a common background with the traditional green color.

The color scheme can vary from light tones to dark ones. Gems with low saturation, pale green tones are not highly valued - they can cost only a few dollars per 1 carat. Excessive color saturation is in greater demand than light shades. But minerals of the purest color are truly precious (this is evidenced by the readings of the tonality scale of emeralds, the value of which should not go beyond 70%). They are more expensive than others.

Origin

The place of origin is largely reflected in the value of the gemstones. Color professionals can identify where emeralds are mined. Colombian ones have additional yellow tones, blue tones are present in Zambian gems.

Stones extracted from Colombian deposits are in high demand among buyers. But this figure does not mean that the properties of emeralds from Colombia are superior to those from Zambia. It's all about advertising.

After mining, the gems are processed to correct flaws, brought to almost perfection. It is extremely rare to find an emerald without flaws (cracks) in nature. If this happens, then its cost is incredibly high, since it is considered almost an emerald of pure water.

At affordable prices, emerald minerals are available for sale with an impregnated defect that is not visually noticeable. But this does not diminish their beauty. Craftsmen often use cedar oil as an impregnation.

Cut, weight and size

Good cutting and polishing can determine the price of stones. This is due to the fact that excellent processing will succeed only on stones with high performance. Correct grinding will improve the characteristics of the emerald, highlighting its radiance, brilliance and nobility.

As for the weight, let us immediately clarify that 1 carat is 0.2 grams. The more carat an emerald, the more expensive it is. This expression is true with one caveat. It is true when stones of different weight have the same indicators for other characteristics.

The selected stone should be examined with a magnifying glass to see the imperfections in the cut. Emerald cut is often used to shape the mineral. It looks like a rectangle with rounded corners. Jewelry cut in this way looks amazing, but other types of cuts are also used.

If the emerald contains a significant number of defects or large areas of other inclusions, which hinders the play of light, then a cabochon is made from it - a rounded shape without edges.

With too obvious flaws (for example, through cracking), which threaten the breaking of stones, they are simply not used.

Even children know what the green gem is called. Emerald - one of the varieties of beryl, has a green color that is sometimes diluted with an admixture of bluish tints. By itself, beryl is a mineral that does not have a specific tone, but with the help of chromium or vanadium, it acquires a characteristic emerald hue. Natural mineral contains the following impurities:

• Chromium - 0.14%.
• Vanadium - 0.05%.
• Iron - 0.12%.

On the Mohs scale, the emerald reaches up to 8 units.

The green gemstone got its name after going a long way. The ancient Greeks called him smaragdos, the Persians - zumurrud, the Slavs - smaragd, in Sanskrit the mineral is called marakata, in Latin - smaragdus, and medieval Europe called him Esmeralda.

In the modern jewelry market, emerald is highly prized, and its most refined and pure colors are worth more than the king of precious stones - diamond.

Who suits

It is not suitable for every owner. Due to the fact that the properties of the stone are inclined to such qualities as honesty and kindness, it can create a lot of problems for a dishonest person. But for virtuous individuals who live by conscience and defend the truth, this precious mineral is ideal.

For people inclined to study the subtle matters of the universe and having excellent intuition, an emerald will be a good help, the magical properties of which activate the extraordinary abilities of its owner. Under the influence of the gem, they will discover in themselves talents for spiritualism and will be able to see the secrets of the universe.

The emerald is suitable for delicate and sensual natures. He helps them to steadfastly meet the whims of fate, to see deceit and betrayal in advance, and also significantly balances their state of mind.

Sailors, travelers and nursing mothers are also among those who are suitable for the emerald. It will be a strong talisman for adolescents who do not have well-established moral values. With its properties, it will save them from reckless actions and help them find a life orientation.

Emerald and zodiac signs

Any gem has both a positive and a negative impact on certain people. The same is the case with the meaning of the stone for certain signs of the zodiac. Therefore, it is very important to study the astrological compatibility with a mineral before making a purchase.

Astrologers identify Cancer, Leo, Taurus, Sagittarius, Pisces and Aquarius as the most suitable signs of the zodiac for the emerald. The stone will give them strong help in matters of family, love and friendship. It is recommended for these signs to wear jewelry with a mineral in the form of a ring or a ring on a certain finger:

• Taurus is average.
• Aquarius is nameless.
• Sagittarius and Leo are indicative.
• Pisces and Cancer - the little finger.

Another zodiac sign of the stone is Gemini. Green color helps women twins to maintain their youth, beauty and health for a long time, and also protects their personal well-being from the interference of envious people.

The zodiac sign can also have a dual relationship with the mineral. Since the stone carries a strong energy, a person may not be able to cope with it due to his personal qualities. This risk group includes Libra, Aries, Virgo and Capricorn. For Scorpios, due to their tendency to negative moods and actions, natural emerald is completely contraindicated.

Magical properties

There are many legends and stories associated with the green emerald. One of them was recorded in the Bible. It describes the overthrow of Satan, during which he lost the most beautiful decoration of his crown - the emerald. From this lost jewel, a bowl was subsequently carved, which the Queen of Sheba brought as a gift to Solomon. It was this cup that was the main attribute of the Last Supper of Jesus, and in it, at the execution of Christ, Joseph collected the blood of the Savior. This cup in world history has remained known as the holy grail, endowed with the strongest magical properties.

In ancient Egypt, mines for the extraction of this mineral first appeared. In Egypt, the value of the mineral was associated with eternal life and youth, thanks to its green color. The great queen Cleopatra believed that the emerald has magical love properties. She not only loved to wear emerald jewelry, but also demanded that furniture and even the doors of the palace be inlaid with a gem.

The inhabitants of ancient Rome, like the Greeks, preferred the carving of gems on a green gem, and some Indian tribes worshiped the emerald as a deity and believed that it was able to heal the human body from any disease.

The value of the amulet is very multifaceted. Many cultures attribute to it the ability to recognize adultery. This property is supported by a legend, in which the king of Hungary, Bella, the fourth, once embracing his unfaithful wife, noticed that the emerald on his ring had split in several places.

In other beliefs about the stone, its property is enmity with snakes, which immediately go blind at the sight of this jewel. It also talks about the ability of a green gem to heal from snake venom.

In the old days, it was considered a symbol of honesty and justice. Even the most inveterate robbers never stole this mineral because they believed that the punishment for stealing a green gem would certainly fall on their heads. But the rightful owner of the emerald stone with properties will give poise, sobriety and purity of thoughts.

Emerald also has a beneficial effect on a person's home. With its magical properties, stone cleans the house of negative energies, preserves the warmth of the family hearth.

The color of the stone helps to relieve fatigue and tension from the eyes, as well as relieve its owner from sleepless nights and nightmares. The stone heals from overwork, tidies up the nervous system and relieves depression. With the help of a green gem, you can disinfect water, and its frequent use as a decoration normalizes the functioning of the internal organs and systems of the human body.

Since ancient times, people believed that the emerald with its magical properties drives away death and misfortune, brings wealth and good luck to the house. All that is required from its owner is honesty and purity of soul.

Emerald colors

The color directly depends on its field. For example, in Colombia there are mines for the extraction of deep herbaceous shades of this mineral. What kind of stone can be extraordinary, you can understand when you get acquainted with its special type - Trapiche. This variety is also mined in Colombia, but has one very unusual feature - a six-pointed star is clearly displayed in its center.

Emerald yellow can be found in Zimbabwe. A mineral with this shade is highly prized in jewelry.

The purest and most transparent shades are endowed with the emeralds of Zambia. Their colors are darker than Colombian emeralds, but blue hues can also be found among them.

Natural or synthetic

Synthetic emerald was first obtained in 1935, in one of the laboratories in Germany. Artificial stones are very similar to natural emeralds, but often lose to them in density and refraction of rays. In addition, the harmful effects of filtered ultraviolet radiation on artificial minerals have been identified. Under its influence, they change their emerald tones to faded brown shades.

Modern technologies are gradually improving the quality of artificial emeralds. Some of them even bypass the indicators of natural emeralds. At the same time, their pricing policy is more humane to the consumer: the cost of an artificial mineral is from 5 to 10 times lower than that of a natural stone.

Place of Birth

The cost and quality of stones depends on the color, cut, clarity of the emerald, where it is mined. Beryl of the highest quality is found in the mines of Colombia (Muso, Tunja), Zambia, New Granada, Egypt, Brazil. Medium quality mineral is mined in Ireland, Austria, Norway.

Deposits of emerald, where it is mined in large quantities, are also found in Russia, China, USA, Zimbabwe, Madagascar, Cambodia, Spain, Australia and many other countries.

In Russia, emeralds are mined in the Urals. The sizes of stones found here often reach unique ones. The emerald deposit, where other precious stones (phenakite, alexandrite) are mined, has brought Russia about fifteen tons of green beryl over a hundred years of its work.

One of the most expensive precious stones in the world is an emerald stone, the price of which is higher, the greater its weight. Gem weight is measured in carats. 1 carat is equal to 0.2 g. You can calculate the cost of a gem as follows:

• For 1 carat of weight, a stone weighing 1 carat - $ 1000.
• For 1 carat of weight, a stone weighing 2 carats - $ 1500.

The price of an emerald depends on the saturation of its shade. For example, stones of deep grassy tones can reach up to 120,000 rubles per carat. At the same time, pale colors are estimated at only 3,200 rubles for the same weight. The cost of artificial emeralds is about 1,300 rubles per carat.

Another factor in the cost of a mineral is its purity. The more heterogeneities a stone contains, the more valuable it is.

The price of an emerald directly depends on its cut. The better it reveals the dignity of the stone, the more expensive it will be.

Emerald is a mineral, truly a precious stone, included in the beryl group. According to Fersman's classification, emerald, like sapphire, the adored diamond, alexandrite, spinel, euclase and other valuable stones, belongs to the group of semi-precious stones of the so-called first order.

Distinctive features of an emerald are, first of all, its color and shades, and then - transparency. Ideally, an emerald looks like a transparent gem with a uniformly distributed rich hue. A large, defect-free, dark-colored emerald weighing more than 5 carats is even more expensive than a diamond.

Name

As you know, the name "emerald" owes its origin to the Persian and Turkish languages, through the transformed forms of which it got into the English language, receiving the name emerald (emerald). The old Russian name for the emerald is also known - smaragd.

The physical properties of this stone

Emerald is a transparent version of beryl, with a characteristic herbaceous green color obtained from chromium oxide or vanadium oxide.

Natural emerald is very rarely found without defects, most of it is covered with cracks and splits with a complex network of thin veins and cracks. An essential characteristic of the stone is increased fragility; it is especially afraid of heating and squeezing. If the quality of a diamond can be assessed only with a 10-fold magnification under a magnifying glass, then an emerald can practically be assessed by eye: when, upon close examination, no cracks are noticed on the stone, then it can be considered flawless. Such a pebble bears the highest value.

Colour

The color of the stone is distinguished by three components: tone, saturation and lightness. There are various shades of emeralds - in the palette from yellow-green to deep blue-green, nevertheless, green always acts as the main tone, with a thickening to the darkest green tones.

The colors of the emerald are unevenly distributed: the color at the free edges of the crystal looks lighter than at its base. Brightly colored stones are prone to dichroism, that is, a change in tones from yellowish to bluish-green, and is especially noticeable when the stone is turned over to the other side. Quality stones are characterized by intense colors with a piercing green tint. However, sometimes you can find crystals with a dull green or grayish-green color.

Transparency

The highest quality emeralds belong to transparent stones. Often stones contain inclusions of small bubbles and inclusions of liquid and gas, healed cracks. There are almost no stones that do not have surface disturbances, and therefore, many emeralds today are processed by specialists in laboratories with various chemical compositions in order to give them a beautiful appearance.

Origin

Emerald is produced by the reaction of acid magma and ultrabasic host rocks. However, emeralds are more commonly found in hydrothermal veins in shallow carbonaceous shales.

Known deposits

A perfect emerald is very rare. Its main production is organized in Colombian mines, as well as in various areas of Egypt, Zambia, Brazil. 50 - 95% of all emerald mining is carried out in Colombia, however, there are mining sites in Russia, the USA, France and many other countries.

It was highly prized and considered a royal stone

Jewelry with emerald can be found in many portraits of representatives of the royal houses and the highest aristocracy, exhibited in museums. In largeThe paintings depict jewelry with Colombian emeralds, which are still considered the best.

Large emeralds(over 5 carats) good quality more valuable than diamonds, since stones with such characteristics are extremely rare. Small cracks and defects are considered normal for emeralds. In connection with these m many stones (according to some sources up to 90%) are refined: cracks are impregnated with oil, waxor special synthetic compounds. These compounds are used not only to give a better appearance, but also to protect the stone from cracking. In contact with water (especially with the addition of cleaning agents), this impregnation can be washed out. Do not forget thatspecial care is needed for jewelry with emeralds, they must be worn very carefully, avoiding shock, heating and contact with aggressive chemicals (including any household cleaning agents, powder, soap, etc.).

Emeralds, like diamonds, have their own characteristics that affect cost: weight, color, clarity and cut. All this data can be found on the product tag. The weight stone is indicated in carats. Colour emeralds vary in numerical values ​​from 1 to 5, where 1 corresponds to a deep dark green color, and 5 - a light green color. The more saturated color a stone has, the higher it is valued. For cutting, the standard is most often used stepped emerald cut... This type of cut allows not only to reveal the beauty of the stone, but also to preserve its integrity (emerald is a very fragile stone), and beveled corners prevent the inevitable chipping of sharp corners. The most common type of cutting in the old days is also used - cabochon... Often, opaque stones with sufficiently strong visible defects are cut this way. Purity emeralds are determined in accordance with the degree of transparency of the stone and the number of defects visible to the naked eye. At the same time, for cut stones, the numerical values ​​of purity range from 1 to 3 (the lower the indicator, the better the quality), and for cabochons there are only 2 purity groups. On the tag, the first number stands for color, the second for purity. For example, 2/3 means that the emerald has a reasonably good color, but there are defects visible to the naked eye. If these values ​​are not indicated on the tag, then this emerald is declassed, i.e. it is a real emerald, but of poor quality. Typically, these stones are inserted into inexpensive silver jewelry.

Characteristics of emeralds by color and clarity groups