Tanzanite, discovered in 1967, was named after Tanzania, the
country in
which it was discovered.
It is noted for its alternating colours of sapphire-blue to
violet, even burgundy depending on lighting conditions and
the
angle at
which it is viewed.
With exception of the first stones found close to the earth’s surface,
these colours are not natural. Tanzanite stone.
By Catherinette Rings
Steampunk via Flickr.com
Natural Tanzanite is more usually
reddish-brown, so it is universally
heat treated in a gemmological oven or furnace with temperatures
between 500 and 700 degrees Celsius to produce its range of stunning
colours.
Tanzanite yields mostly in the foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro.
Tanzanite belongs to the Zoisite
family of minerals and is derived from
500 million-year-old metamorphic rocks.
Green Zoisite exists, but is never called Tanzanite.
Natural crystals
occur in
different habits including columnar, striated
and prismatic.
It is a stone which should sensibly be only worn as a pendant or as
earrings because it is softer
than
other gemstones and has a habit of
breaking in its natural cleavage line if knocked or treated roughly.
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