TANZANITE
A blue purple night, with streaks of moonlight, will remind you of the lush Tanzanite.
A blue purple night, with streaks of moonlight, will remind you of the lush Tanzanite.
Tanzanite is believed to have been formed about 585 million years ago, but it was only discovered in 1967. Another example of a recently discovered gemstone that has gained fame. The gemstone was given the name 'tanzanite' by Tiffany & Co. after Tanzania, the country in which it was discovered. Found in a range of colours between lush blue, vibrant violet and rich purple, Tanzanite is definitely a feast for the eyes.
Amongst the Maasai, the colour blue is seen as sacred and spiritual, and this coupled with its characteristics of new life have brought about a tradition where Tanzanite is given to Maasai women after the birth of a child as an offering of health, positivity and prosperity to the child. Tanzanite ranks 6 to 7 on the Mohs Scale of Hardness. Because Tanzanite and Sapphire share the same rich bluish hues, Tanzanite if often used as a cheaper but stunningly similar substitute for the more popular gem.
Tanzania
| Mineral Family Zoisite |
Refractive Index 1.691 to 1.700 |
Mohs Hardness 6 to 7 |
|---|---|---|
| Birthstone December |
Chemical composition Ca2Al3(SiO4)3(OH) |
Briefringence 0.008 to 0.013 |
| Specific gravity 3.35 |
Calibrated sizes are available in all shapes and sizes, both in faceted and cabochons. Some vibrant pieces with extraordinary deep blue hues are cut and preserved to join our one-of-a kind collection.
Colour is the determining criteria for Tanzanites. Its colour ranges in hues, between bluish-violet, indigo and violet-blue. The most sought after Tanzanites are intensely saturated, vibrant, deep blue with hints of purple but as always, colour is a personal choice and subjective and even the lighter, pale and more delicate colours are becoming increasingly popular.
Tanzanite is graded as eye-clean standard, which is considered flawless with no visible inclusion to the unaided eye. While in production, raw Tanzanites are cleared of any cracks and bubble inclusions as heat treatment may otherwise lead to fissures.
Originally ‘trichroic’, means it shows three colours – blue, brown and violet. The artificial heat treatment removes the brown and the burgundy colour components to produce a stronger, more pure, violet-blue hue and makes it ‘dichroic’ that is, it only reflects blue and violet. Since the majority of the stones are heat treated, price is unaffected.
