Aquamarine
COLOR RANGE
Sea-blue colors which can range from pale light greenish blue to medium-dark blue.
HARDNESS & TOUGHNESS
Hardness: 7.5 – 8 Toughness: Good
MAJOR SOURCES
Australia, Brazil, China, Kenya, Madagascar Mozambique, Nigeria Pakistan, United States, Zambia, Afghanistan
The name “aquamarine” is derived from two Latin words: aqua, meaning “water,” and marina, meaning “of the sea.” Aquamarine’s blue color is reflected in its name. Aquamarine is the green-blue to blue variety of the mineral beryl. The best gems combine high clarity with limpid transparency and blue to slightly greenish blue hues.
Aquamarine stones have excellent clarity and transparency compared to many other similar gems. The color is more intense in larger crystals. Aquamarine is exceptionally hard and has an outstanding vitreous glasslike luster. Although some prefer the more greenish natural color, most of the aquamarine in the market is heat-treated to give it more of a pure blue.
