The birthstone for August is the beautiful, unique apple-green gemstone Peridot. (It's pronounced "pair-i-doe"---the "t" is silent.) The plural of Peridot is Peridots. It's such a gorgeous, bright green color that is unlike anything else. Here are some interesting facts about this beautiful gemstone:
- Legend has it that Peridot was Cleopatra's favorite gem!
- There are two gemstones that are found deep in the earth, and not found in the earth's crust: diamond and peridot!
- Peridot is formed in the earth's mantle, in the upper levels of magma, about 20-50 miles deep.
- Volcanic activity, and tectonic activity, bring Peridot to the surface.
- Peridot is the rare gem variety of Olivine.
- Peridot is one of the only gemstones that comes in just one color.
- It can vary in color from yellow-green to olive to brownish green.
- Peridot looks best in sunlight (sparkling green) and does not change color in different lighting.
- It is commonly a transparent stone, but larger carat weight stones can have inclusions/cloudiness.
- It has a Mohs hardness of 6.5-7.
- It is sometimes called "the poor man's emerald".
- It has been mistaken as emerald in royalty's crown jewels.
- Peridot comes from Burma, Vietnam, the United States, Brazil, China, and Pakistan. The finest quality comes from Burma and Pakistan.
- 80-95% of the world's Peridot comes from Peridot Mesa, located on the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation in Arizona---the most productive locality for peridot in
the world.
- The largest cut Peridot weighs 310 carats and is in the Smithsonian
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| 46.16-Ct. Peridot, Largest from Pakistan, Perfect Color |
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- Peridot is a relatively inexpensive gemstone in small sizes, but the
value goes up with stones over 5 carats, with 10-15 carat stones very
rare and expensive.
- There is no known treatment to improve the color or clarity of peridot, so peridot is always an untreated gem!
- In Russia there are some cut peridots that came out of a meteorite, which came down in eastern Siberia in 1749.
- In ancient times, Peridot was considered a gift from Mother Earth and signified springtime, or the annual creation of a new earth.
- In antiquity and the Middle Ages, people believed the cosmos were reflected in gemstones. Peridot was assigned to the planet Saturn.
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| Diamond and Peridot Parure belonging to Archduchess Isabelle of Austria Circa 1825 |
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