Topaz

A gemstone of considerable hardness, rated usually around 8 out of 10 on the Mohs hardness scale, and with a variety of colours for it to exhibit. It is also rather abundant – much more so than precious gemstones and even some inexpensive gems. This variety of colour and usually affordable prices make Topaz a very popular and accessible choice for fine jewellery.

Characteristics

It is one of the harder stones, and can be quite resistant to chemical solutions. However, it should be noted that it is still vulnerable to impacts – it can crack and chip easily. Viewing the stone at different angles can give it the appearance of having a varying colour, an effect that is called pleochroism.

It is a rather common stone – there are abundant sources of extremely large crystals, and quite a few of those crystals can be flawless too. Of course, because of its common nature, the stone is unlikely to have a particularly high value.

A blue variety of Topaz is known to occur naturally, but it is considerably less common than normal Topaz gemstones. Natural Blue Stones tend towards lighter tones of blue. Most Blue Topaz stones on the amrket have been subjected to various treatments such as heat treatment to attain the blue tone – usually these stones are created by subjecting extremely lightly coloured, or even colourless stones, to heat treatment. Rarely, they may lose some of their intensity if left exposed to sunlight for longer periods.

Colour

It can appear in a variety of colours, some of the most commonly encountered stones are orange-yellowish but pink, blue, and colourless varieties do exist.

The most valuable variety is the Imperial Topaz. These tend to be of a golden orange-yellow tone, with some orange-brown or pink tones existing.

Use

Topaz can have a variety of uses in jewellery, and can be found in any type of jewellery. Colourless stones in particular, can be used to simulate Diamonds for an affordable yet visually appealing alternative to a real Diamond stones.

Of interest to collectors may be the availability of extremely large Topaz gemstones – these gems, cut into extremely large and flawless crystals, can be highly valuable and desirable items.

Sources

Topaz gemstones can be sourced from all over the world. While the most significant source is Brazil, significant production can be found in many other countries: Japan, the United States, Nigeria, Madagascar, Australia, China, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Russia, Zimbabwe, Ukraine, Mexico are all countries which produce these gemstones.