Today I was wandering thru a jewelry store (retired people clearly
don’t have enough to do), and saw a lovely necklace of green amythyst
briolettes.
First, can I assume that this is some sort of new treatment? I can’t
remember seeing this before. Is the color stable?
Second, I loved the color and need to make myself something with
this particular color green. Does anyone know of a source? Have time,
will travel.
Thanks,
Betty Belmonte
You are correct in that is is a new treatment. The only source I’ve
found so far requires I import 5 kilos of rough. After that of course
you need to sort and have facetted. If you come across a source for
smaller quantities of rough or finished stones I will be watching for
a post.
Jack
What is the difference between green amethyst and green quartz? One
dealer told me that they were the same thing.
Although this has been covered before here, recently, let’s give it
another go.
First, amethyst is the purplish variety of quartz. If the quartz is
green it is not amethyst. Ever, period.
Some amethyst, when irradiated and subsequently heat treated, turns
a greenish-yellow, with slight brown or gray overtones. But it’s not
amethyst anymore. It is referred to by wholesalers and cutters as
"greened quartz". The material is inexpensive and readily available.
Some naturally occurring green quartz is occasionally found, but it
is quite rare and what little is found is snapped up by collectors
or museums.
The Crystallographic Research Institute of the Russian Academy of
Natural Sciences grows hydrothermal quartz in a number of colors.
They produce amethyst and citrine in a few different shades,
ametrine, three shades of blue quartz and two shades of green
quartz. The green often has a slight bluish-grayish component, but
it is attractive. It is inexpensive in the rough and is cut in
quantity in China and elsewhere as faceted stones, cabochons and
briolettes. Once sold, the Chinese do not care what you call it.
I occasionally facet all these materials when my jewelry store owner
customers request it. I enjoy creating unusual shapes and cuts with
it and it sells very well for my clients and with a significant
markup. No, it is not cheap after I have applied my labor to it, but
it still earns 3-4 x markup at retail when the cut is unusual and
well-executed. Again, there is no such thing as green amethyst.
Amethyst is purple, reddish-purple, bluish-purple, purplish-pink.
But not green. Ever. Please.
And if someone calls it green amethyst, please correct (educate)
them. There is already enough confusion in the jewelry world, we
should be carrying a light to bring clasrity and understanding, not
bringing darkness to obfuscate and confuse. Thanks.
Wayne Emery
The Gemcutter
Bettendorf IA
Hi Jack:
By new treatment, I am thinking you mean heat? I also have just
bought some green amethyst, but in beads. I got them from Oriental
Gemco in New York City (in case you are interested, but I think you
may be only looking for stones). You might try Dikra in New York City
as they carry a lot of unusual finished stones and cabs. They are
dikragem.net Good luck, this stuff is so pretty.
I also bought beads that were represented as “pink topaz”. They may
not be new, but I have never seen them before. So pretty.
Good luck
Kim Starbard
Just a thought,
I work at the Rock Shop, which is a section of the Mineral
World/Topstones Company in S.A. One of the stones that we sell is
called ‘Prasiolite’, we have been informed that this is infact an
amathyst that has been heat treated past a citrine, thus it’s green
colour. Could this possibly be the same green amathyst that you speak
of? The colour is almost an olive green.
Just curious.
Thanks Claire
What is the difference between green amethyst and green quartz? One dealer told me that they were the same thing.
The difference, as Wayne Emery has pointed out so well, is that
there is such a thing as green quartz. As to green amethyst, there
jest ain’t no such animal. Amethyst is by definition a purple quartz,
so what we are doing by calling a stone “green amethyst” is
obfuscating meaning, diluting the language, and sowing confusion and
misunderstanding amongst our customers.
Once amethyst is treated to become green rather than purple, it is
no longer amethyst. Calling it such is the same as claiming you are
selling yellow rubies or blue emeralds. It is abuse of the language,
and no good can come of it.
Lee
I think it’s irradiation.
Your pink topaz beads, how deep is the treatment? Can you scratch
one with some sandpaper and look at it under a scope to see if it
retains it’s color? Most surface treatments on topaz are very thin.
Craig
www.creativecutgems.com
Please can we first spell the word correctly, and then get the
gemstone name correct.
There is no such thing as Green Amethyst. It is Green Quartz.
Amethyst is purple quartz, Citrine is yellow quartz. Smokey topaz is
not topaz at all it is brown quartz!
Some marketer is propagating a sham on the uneducated public and it
should not be passed along on this forum without notice.
Nanz Aalund
Associate Editor / Art Jewelry magazine
21027 Crossroads Circle / Waukesha WI 53187-1612
262.796.8776 ext.228
Rio Grande has faceted stones in the green amethyst.
J. S. (Sue) Ellington
http://www.jsellington.com
By new treatment, I am thinking you mean heat?
I am always worried about heat treated items fading or turning
different colors later on. I’ve heard horror stories, any truth?
Also, does that mean that these should be inexpensive? I’ve seen the
Prasolite (sp?) going for lots of $$$ recently. it’s very pretty,
but it seems a little expensive for quartz…
Not to beat a dead horse, but could someone from Rio Grande chime in
here? I bought stones from the Rio catalog that are said to be green
amethyst. I have customers asking for it. So, what is the tratment,
is it permanent, what actions could remove it, and if it is not
amethyst then what is it really?
Thanks, to all for the continuing inspired and informative
discussions.
Peggy Wilson
Salt Marsh Designs
Outer Banks, NC
The particular necklace that I saw was simply a string of green
quartz that the jewelry store identified as “green amythyst”, with a
small commercial clasp which I am assuming is 14 K and the price was
an astounding $900. Yikes, now that I know the story, the mark-up is
mind boggling. Any comments?
Betty Belmonte
I work at the Rock Shop, which is a section of the Mineral World/Topstones Company in S.A. One of the stones that we sell is called 'Prasiolite',
Your mention of Topstones in Simons Town SA sure brought back happy
memories, years ago I was lucky enough to get a tour of the factory
and follow the stones from the rough tumblers right through to the
finished cabochons.
As a commercial buyer I was allowed into the shipping department and
let loose to collect stones from the dozens of storage bins
containing thousands of the most beautiful cabs that I had ever seen.
I still have boxes of all sizes that I will never get around to
setting in my lifetime.
Sam.
Thanks for the explanation. But now someone who works at a rock shop
has posted that prasiolite is green amethyst. Are there legal
regulations on the naming of gems? It is not only the customers who
are confused. I mean, I have met a number of wholesalers who are
calling this stuff green amethyst and charging an arm and a leg for
it! I know a number of jewelry designers are probably calling it
green amethyst because the wholesalers told them that is what it was.
Thanks Lee for pointing out the fact that there is no such animal as
green Amethyst. Due to the process of treating certain amethyst, it
is proper to call this stone GREENED AMETHYST which is what is was
called many years ago. This is not a new stone, just one that a few
Gem Dealers have managed to develop using a little old fashioned PR.
I wonder just how many of the dealers selling these stones are holier
than thou AGTA members who proclaim virtuous standards.
Sorry if I sound a little upset. But this is as bad as promoting the
Black Diamond a few years back. They asked and got big dollars for a
worthless industrial grade stone. Is this how we protect the consumer
and our customers? A pretty stone is one thing…but over valuing
low grade, common material is quite another and frankly I am happy to
be in my retirement years.
Sali
Casmira Gems, Inc.
Chicago, Il
Claire:
Does your rock shop have a web site? How can I contact you directly?
I would like to find out prices and shipping info.
I can be reached at: @John_Sexton
John (Jack) Sexton
Thanks Nanz, I am guilty of the initial misspelling. I went to a
local gem and mineral show today. The Gem Miners Jubilee in Lebanon,
Pennsylvania and several dealers did have it available and all had it
labeled “green amethyst” with the exception of one who had it labeled
prasiolite.
Betty Belmonte
Rio Grande has faceted stones in the green amethyst.
HUH…!
Have a 2004-2005 Gems and Findings catalog…
Didn’t see it in there…I admit I didn’t dig in page by page, but
used the index… Maybe in one of the newer books…?
If they do…and without qualifiers…i.e. Brazilian amy heated to
green, or the Russian syn green quartz…
Shame on you, Rio…!
Fell prey to marketing oxymoron for promotion…?
I will say…I am a Rio customer upon occasion, and have always
found them to be the among the best in terms of selection and
service…
And they are among the foremost amongst the outfits that puts back
into the jewelry industry…
Regards…
Gary W. Bourbonais
A.J.P. (GIA)
So called “green Amethyst” can be one of several types of quartz.
One is synthetic. These days, whatever the natural color range,
there’s methods of getting any color out of it. The next, and
probably most common, is heat treated amethyst. I don’t know the
deposits, but certain mines can be successfully treated for a green
color. The rarest is actual praseolite, a green(ish) crystalline
quartz. Most of the green quartz is heat treated which is very
stable. Almost every gemstone out there responds to heat treatment,
and it’s been done for centuries. Personally, I’ve cut some and find
that it’s not my favorite green. There’s too much grey and or brown
for me to bother with it. If you do use it, call it green quartz. The
term amythest is used for quartz of a purple or blueish purple stone
only. Adding a color modifier to it only confuses the customer,
jeweler, and dealer.
Richard