Last Updated on 12/10/2022 by Above Diamond

Emerald Gemstone – Everything You Need to Know

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‘Diamond, red ruby, glowing and green – emerald’ from an old Thai poem. Many of us may be familiar with the ‘Noppakao’ gems or the nine auspicious gems of Thailand. The more I follow the imagery of the poem, the more it is alluring. Emerald, elegant on any wearer, with its green like no other.

‘Emerald’ or the green gem, it is well known to gem collectors that it can emit a green glow, unlike any other gems. Many collectors keep them as classic jewelry that will help your skin look radiant regardless of your skin tone.

That is why in this article, we want to tell to you the story of emeralds, its origins, how to select the finest emeralds, and how to wear them most elegantly. It matters not what your question on the subject of emerald is because, today, we have the answers.

Emerald Origins

natural raw emerald crystal

Emerald is a green variation of ‘Beryl’ (Beryl comes in many colors, in its pink variation it is called ‘Morganite’ but in its blue variation it is called ‘Aquamarine), its green color comes from a mixture of Chromium and Vanadium. Other than that, emerald is also the most valuable gem of all Beryl variations, it is also one of the most valuable gems in the world.

Most emeralds will come with flaws. Flawless emeralds are considered extremely rare and highly valuable. Because of this ‘always flawed’ characteristic, gem collectors will often buy slightly flawed emeralds rather than flawless emeralds – that way, they know they are receiving real gems.

Even though Columbia could be called the source of high quality emeralds that have deep and clear green colors, currently, there is a new mine from Zambia whose emeralds are just as green but with fewer flaws.

zambian emerald

Types of Emeralds

Emeralds are green in color, has a hexagon crystal structure, and are usually clear or translucent.

However, there is another type of rare and uncommonly known emeralds called ‘Trapiche Emerald’ that has a star-like crystal structure rather than a hexagon, with the area surrounding the carbon is what dictates the star-like shape of the Trapiche Emerald.

Trapiche Emerald

Trapiche Emeralds can be only found at the ‘Boyaca Emerald Mine’ in Columbia. They are usually shined to have a ‘Cabochon’ shape.

cabochon shape emerald

Beliefs About Emeralds

Because of the green color of emeralds, it is a symbol of Mercury which affects the wearer’s studies, business, and writing. If you are someone who believes in fate and holds Mercury as your ruling planet, you should wear emeralds to enhance your fortune and wealth.

Read more: Navaratana the 9 gems ring, its story and meaning

Wearing Emerald

women wearing emerald

Emerald is a gem that is unique in itself because of its special color that is like no other gem. If you want to wear this gem, ‘simplicity’ is the essence of your attire.

You can decorate your emerald jewelry with smaller diamonds or halo diamonds to make it even more outstanding because of the attractive nature of the gem, plainclothes or deeper colored clothing will be highly suitable when worn together with emerald. If your outfit is too overbearing from wearing patterned shirts or bright colored clothes or accessory overload, it could make everything stand out – making your beautiful green jewelry lose its radiance.

The same goes for makeup, you should select the classic make up tone for a more elegant look. Neglect using fiercer shades of lipsticks or prominent black eye shadows. Keep the makeup adequate, and then have this jewelry be the star of your show. That is all you need to look more outstanding than everyone.

And if you were to choose a piece of jewelry that fits the green of the emerald, you should choose diamond jewelry with silver metals as it will bring out the radiance of your gem.

wearing emerald

Other than this, most will only wear emeralds on special occasions. They do not wear emeralds every day because of its unique and outstanding colors and so the gem is suitable for occasions where you need to attend a social event whilst wishing to keep a simple and elegant look. Add a halo emerald ring, and your look is complete, with style.

Read more: How to wear your diamond jewelry for party and look fabulous!

Purchasing Emerald

emerald quality grades

Similar to buying diamonds, when you buy an emerald, you will depend on the 4Cs. The principles are similar but the weight put on different factors is different from the 4Cs of diamonds.

Now, let us take a look at what the 4Cs are for this green gem. We will start with the most important factor.

1. Color

color of emerald

You will almost not have to guess that the color of the emerald is the most important factor of the 4Cs. What makes emeralds standout is nothing other than its translucent color. In examining the quality of the emerald’s color, there will be 3 aspects of color to take into consideration – hue, tone, and saturation.

Hue: The hue will tell us the type of green the emerald has. The emerald could have a yellowish-green or a bluish-green, and most of the emeralds in the market will come from Columbia which exports bluish green emeralds.

Tone: An emerald is deep or light in its green, a natural emerald could have many colors from very light green to very deep green. Most will misunderstand that mid-green colors to deep green colors are better for emeralds, but in reality, it is not always like that because you will also have to take other aspects of its color into consideration.

Saturation: This aspect will dictate whether or not an emerald is beautiful. For example, if you select an emerald that has a mid-green tone with low saturation, its overall look will appear dim and rather boring.

On the other hand, if you were to purchase a light-tone emerald with high saturation, the gem will be instantly eye-catching.

Therefore, color is the most important factor when choosing an emerald. Before you decide to buy the gem, you can take a preview at the gem’s picture to see if its color tone fits your desire or not, and if you are suspicious whether or not that gem is of high quality – you can ask for a certificate from the seller.

2. Clarity

clarity of emerald

This will have the same principles of examining the clarity of diamonds. Emeralds that have higher clarity will also have higher prices, however, the difference between diamond and emerald clarity is that you can easily compare the grades of diamond clarity whereas emeralds do not have a clear ‘grade’ that is set.

Another important difference is that in emeralds, over 99% of them will have flaws. If you find an emerald without any flaws, you should be suspicious that it may be a fake.

However, even if flaws can be found in almost all emeralds, you should not look over the types of flaws an emerald has. If the flaws have similar appearances to a bubble within the gem that looks manufactured or if there is a black spot on the gem – it should be avoided.

Other than this, you should select an emerald with flaws far beneath the surface because the closer the flaw is to the surface the higher the chance of it fracturing or breaking when it is set into a ring or when worn. It is an important warning to keep in mind, this gem is not as durable as a diamond and may break easier.

If you want to take care of your emerald with these locations of flaws so that it may be by your side for a long time, you can use oil or resin to plate it to make it more durable.

Read more: How to instantly clean your ring in the safest method

3. Cut

emerald cut

Similar to the cut of a diamond, there are many aspects to the cut of an emerald – shape, width, and depth. If possible, the table of the emerald should be symmetrical to make the green even more radiant.

However, if the cut is too deep, the light coming in will reflect off of the sides of the gem – making the emerald appear dim. If the cut is too shallow, it will not sparkle because the light will escape at the bottom of the gem.

Read more: What are Triple Excellent cut diamonds? Let’s get to know them more!

Most emeralds will have the emerald cut or a rectangle cut. The name of this type of cut comes from emeralds and is often used on other gems as well.

Other than the emerald cut, you can also cut your emerald into a circular or oval shape but those shapes will be higher priced and much rarer because a lot of raw emerald ore has to be used in making those cuts. Other than that, there are also the pear cut and the ‘Cabochon’ as well as other cuts.

Read more: 12 Fancy diamond cuts and tips on how to purchase

4. Carats

Even though the carat is an important factor in setting the price of a diamond, it is not as important for setting the price of an emerald. Even though the gem’s value will increase with its weight, the value must also be considered with other more important aspects that are color, clarity, and cut quality.

Therefore, the size and the weight is not ‘that’ important of a factor when choosing an emerald. It is better if you chose a smaller emerald gem with great color quality than a bigger emerald gem with poor color quality.

1 carat emerald ring

Other than this, you can also purchase this type of gem at a lower price when they are under 1 carat. When its carat weight exceeds 1, its price will be much higher because 1 carat emeralds will need to be taken out from approximately 5 tons of rock.

Outstanding Emeralds Stand Out Because of Their ‘Color’

purchasing emerald

Because the most important factor in making an emerald outstanding is in its unique green which is like no other gems, making everything about the gem mostly about its color, from the purchase to the tone of the outfits that will fit the gem. Even though emeralds are not diamonds, its alluring green is deserving of your purchase and wear to bring up your elegance to another level.

If you are interested in custom ordering emerald jewelry at Above Diamond, we have experts that will give you valuable consultation on the process of purchasing high quality gems. Please contact us.

Credit Pictures: Pinterest

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