None (some fracture-filling materials used to improve emerald's clarity do fluoresce, but the stone itself does not). Morganite has weak violet fluorescence.
The wordberyl –Middle English:beril – is borrowed, viaOld French:beryl andLatin:beryllus, fromAncient Greek βήρυλλοςbḗryllos, which referred to various blue-green stones,[2] fromPrakritveruḷiya,veḷuriya 'beryl'[8][a]which is ultimately ofDravidian origin, maybe from the name ofBelur orVelur, a town inKarnataka, southernIndia.[9] The term was later adopted for the mineral beryl more exclusively.
When the firsteyeglasses were constructed in 13th-century Italy, the lenses were made of beryl (or ofrock crystal) as glass could not be made clear enough. Consequently, glasses were namedBrille in German[10] (bril in Dutch andbriller in Danish).
Beryl is a common mineral, and it is widely distributed in nature. It is found most commonly ingraniticpegmatites, but also occurs inmicaschists, such as those of theUral Mountains, and inlimestone inColombia.[11] It is less common in ordinary granite and is only infrequently found innepheline syenite. Beryl is often associated withtin andtungsten ore bodies formed as high-temperature hydrothermal veins. In granitic pegmatites, beryl is found in association withquartz,potassium feldspar,albite,muscovite,biotite, andtourmaline. Beryl is sometimes found inmetasomatic contacts of igneous intrusions withgneiss, schist, orcarbonate rocks.[12] Common beryl, mined as beryllium ore, is found in small deposits in many countries, but the main producers are Russia, Brazil, and the United States.[11]
New England'spegmatites have produced some of the largest beryls found, including one massive crystal from theBumpus Quarry inAlbany, Maine with dimensions 5.5 by 1.2 m (18.0 by 3.9 ft) with a mass of around 18 tonnes (20 short tons); it is New Hampshire's state mineral. As of 1999[update], the world's largest known naturally occurring crystal of any mineral is a crystal of beryl from Malakialina, Madagascar, 18 m (59 ft) long and 3.5 m (11 ft) in diameter, and weighing 380,000 kg (840,000 lb).[13]
Beryl belongs to thehexagonal crystal system. Normally beryl forms hexagonal columns but can also occur in massivehabits. As acyclosilicate beryl incorporates rings of silicate tetrahedra ofSi6O18 that are arranged in columns along theC axis and as parallel layers perpendicular to theC axis, forming channels along theC axis.[7] These channels permit a variety of ions, neutral atoms, and molecules to be incorporated into the crystal thus disrupting the overall charge of the crystal permitting further substitutions inaluminium,silicon, andberyllium sites in the crystal structure.[7] These impurities give rise to the variety of colors of beryl that can be found. Increasing alkali content within the silicate ring channels causes increases to therefractive indices andbirefringence.[14]
Beryl is a beryllium compound that is a known carcinogen with acute toxic effects leading to pneumonitis when inhaled.[15] Care must thus be used when mining, handling, and refining these gems.[16]
Aquamarine (fromLatin:aqua marina, "sea water"[17]) is a blue orcyan variety of beryl. It occurs at most localities which yield ordinary beryl. The gem-gravelplacer deposits ofSri Lanka contain aquamarine. Green-yellow beryl, such as that occurring in Brazil, is sometimes calledchrysolite aquamarine.[18] The deep blue version of aquamarine is calledmaxixe[19] (pronounced mah-she-she).[20] Its color results from a radiation-inducedcolor center.[21]
Faceted aquamarine
The pale blue color of aquamarine is attributed to Fe2+. Fe3+ ions produce golden-yellow color, and when both Fe2+ and Fe3+ are present, the color is a darker blue as in maxixe.[22][23] Decoloration of maxixe by light or heat thus may be due to the charge transfer between Fe3+ and Fe2+.[24]
Emerald is green beryl, colored by around 2%chromium and sometimesvanadium.[32][33] Most emeralds are highlyincluded, so their brittleness (resistance to breakage) is classified as generally poor.[34]
The modern English word "emerald" comes viaMiddle Englishemeraude, imported from modern French viaOld Frenchésmeraude andMedieval Latinesmaraldus, fromLatinsmaragdus, fromGreekσμάραγδοςsmaragdos meaning 'green gem'.[b]
Emerald is a rare and valuable gemstone and, as such, it has provided theincentive for developing synthetic emeralds. Both hydrothermal[37] andflux-growth synthetics have been produced. The first commercially successful emerald synthesis process was that of Carroll Chatham.[38] The other large producer of flux emeralds was Pierre Gilson Sr., which has been on the market since 1964. Gilson's emeralds are usually grown on natural colorless beryl seeds which become coated on both sides. Growth occurs at the rate of 1 millimetre (0.039 in) per month, a typical seven-month growth run producing emerald crystals of 7 mm of thickness.[39] The green color of emeralds is widely attributed to presence of Cr3+ ions.[40][22][23] Intensely green beryls from Brazil, Zimbabwe and elsewhere in which the color is attributed tovanadium have also been sold and certified as emeralds.[41][42][43]
Faceted golden beryl, 48.75 carats (9.750 g), Brazil
Golden beryl can range in colors from pale yellow to a brilliant gold. Unlikeemerald, golden beryl generally has very few flaws. The term "golden beryl" is sometimes synonymous withheliodor (from Greekhēlios – ἥλιος "sun" +dōron – δῶρον "gift") but golden beryl refers to pure yellow or golden yellow shades, while heliodor refers to the greenish-yellow shades.[citation needed] The golden yellow color is attributed to Fe3+ ions.[32][40] Both golden beryl and heliodor are used as gems. Probably the largest cut golden beryl is the flawless 2,054-carat (410.8 g) stone on display in theHall of Gems,Washington, D.C., United States.[44]
GosheniteFaceted goshenite, 1.88 carats (0.376 g), Brazil
Colorless beryl is calledgoshenite. The name originates fromGoshen, Massachusetts, where it was originally discovered. In the past, goshenite was used for manufacturing eyeglasses and lenses owing to its transparency. Nowadays, it is most commonly used for gemstone purposes.[45][46]
The gem value of goshenite is relatively low. However, goshenite can be colored yellow, green, pink, blue and in intermediate colors by irradiating it with high-energy particles. The resulting color depends on the content of Ca, Sc, Ti, V, Fe, and Co impurities.[40]
MorganiteFaceted morganite, 2.01 carats (0.402 g), Brazil
Morganite, also known as "pink beryl", "rose beryl", "pink emerald" (which is not a legal term according to the new Federal Trade Commission Guidelines and Regulations), and "cesian (orcaesian) beryl", is a rare light pink to rose-coloredgem-quality variety of beryl. Orange/yellow varieties of morganite can also be found, and color banding is common. It can be routinely heat treated to remove patches of yellow and is occasionally treated by irradiation to improve its color. The pink color of morganite is attributed to Mn2+ ions.[32]
Red variety of beryl (the "bixbite") was first described in 1904 for an occurrence, itstype locality, at Maynard's Claim (Pismire Knolls), Thomas Range,Juab County,Utah.[47][48] The dark red color is attributed to Mn3+ ions.[32] Old synonym "bixbite" is deprecated from theCIBJO because of the possibility of confusion with the mineralbixbyite (both named after mineralogistMaynard Bixby).[49] Red "bixbite" beryl formerly was marketed as "red" or "scarlet emerald", but these terms involving "Emerald" terminology are now prohibited in the US.[50]
Faceted red beryl, 0.56 carats (0.112 g), Utah, US
Red beryl is very rare and has only been reported from a handful of North American locations:Wah Wah Mountains,Beaver County, Utah;Paramount Canyon,Round Mountain, Juab County, Utah; andSierra County, New Mexico, although this locality does not often produce gem-grade stones.[47] The bulk of gem-grade red beryl comes from the Ruby-Violet Claim in the Wah Wah Mts. of midwestern Utah, discovered in 1958 by Lamar Hodges, ofFillmore, Utah, while he was prospecting foruranium.[51] Red beryl has been known to be confused withpezzottaite, acaesium analog of beryl, found in Madagascar and, more recently, Afghanistan; cut gems of the two varieties can be distinguished by their difference inrefractive index, and the rough crystals easily by their differing crystal systems (pezzottaite trigonal, red beryl hexagonal). Synthetic red beryl is also produced.[52] Like emerald and unlike most other varieties of beryl, the red ones are usually highly included.
While gem beryls are ordinarily found in pegmatites and certain metamorphic stones, red beryl occurs in topaz-bearingrhyolites.[53] It is formed by crystallizing under low pressure and high temperature from a pneumatolytic phase along fractures or within near-surfacemiarolitic cavities of the rhyolite. Associated minerals include bixbyite,quartz,orthoclase,topaz,spessartine,pseudobrookite andhematite.[48]
^TheGreekσμάραγδος (smaragdos) is used in theSemitic languages as אזמרגד,izmargad, as a loan-word meaning a precious emerald-colored stone. Greeksmaragdos was used to translate the native Hebrew wordברקת,bareket, for one of the twelve listed stones in theHoshen pectoral pendant of the Kohen HaGadol. The wordbareket is also used to mean "lightning flash". It may be related to Akkadianbaraqtu, which means "emerald". In turn the semetic language words are possibly related to theSanskrit wordमरकतmarakata, meaning "green".[35][unreliable source?]
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