Interesting facts about Aquamarine

 Aquamarine ranges in color from light to deep greenish-Blue through blue-Green. The richer the color, the more costly the gem is per carat.  Aquamarine achieves its Blue to greenish Blue color from Iron in the ferrous state.  Its name is from two Latin words meaning "water" and "sea".  Aquamarine amulets were thought to render sailors fearless and protect them from adversities at sea, especially if the stone was engraved with a Poseidon on a chariot. The stone was symbol of happiness and eternal youth, and according to Christian symbolism, it signified moderation and control of the passions to it's owners.

Aquamarine is a member of the Beryl (BARE-ul) mineral family, along with Emerald, Golden Beryl, Goshenite, Bixbite and Morganite.  Brazil is the principal source for Aquamarine. More than 80% of the the Brazilian Aquamarine comes from an area around Teofilo Otoni in the western part of Minas Gerais.  Aquamarine is also found in China, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Madagascar, Malagasy Republic, Nigeria, Zambia, U.S. in Maine as well as Idaho and California, and the former Soviet Union in the Ural Mountains, as well as Transbaikalia and Siberia.  Aquamarine is generally not heat sensitive, but chemicals that could attack this gem are hydrofluoric acids.


Aquamarine gemstones with intense colors are becoming very scarce, and their price has increased substantially.


Top colors according to the GIA color grading system have 2-4 tones, with 1-4 saturation.

Typically Aquamarines are greenish when mined and cut, the sky blue shades are produced by heat treating the greenish-yellow, greenish, and even brownish beryl gems, so you should assume that all of the intense colors of Aquamarine may have been heat treated.  The heat treatment process is a permanent process that does not adversely affect the performance and durability of the gemstone, so there's no need to worry when you see this enhancement disclosed. Aquamarine should not be cleaned in an ultrasonic or steam cleaner.

Definition: Aquamarine (beryllium aluminum silicate) is a blue semi-precious stone in the beryl family and is closely related to the emerald. It is a transparent, pale green variety of beryl and is often used as a gemstone or birthstone. The color of the aquamarine is due to trace amounts of iron impurities in the beryl structure

•  The origin of the name Aquamarine is derived from the Latin words "aqua marina" which means "sea water" reflecting the color of the crystals.

• The most common color of Aquamarine is natural blue. The Aquamarine is the birthstone of the month of March. 

• Aquamarine are also the Wedding anniversary gemstone and are given as gifts for the 19th year of marriage

• Aquamarine come in a vast range of natural colors and shades from blue to blue-green to sea-green

• The color is mainly determined and caused by the gem's selective absorption of certain wavelengths of light called the body color.

•  The colors of the Aquamarine gem consist of three components, the hue, tone and saturation:

1. The Hue which gives the first impression of the color
2. The Tone which relates to the the lightness or darkness of the color of the Aquamarine ranging from light to medium to dark.
3. The saturation which relates to the intensity of the Aquamarine's color, which is measured from dull to strong to vivid

• The biggest Aquamarine stone was found in Brazil in 1910 and weighed 243 pounds. It was cut into smaller stones which yielded over 200,000 carats

• All gemstones, including Aquamarine, are graded by color, cut, clarity and carat weight

• The tradition of giving gifts of birthstone jewelry containing Aquamarine dates back many hundreds of years
• There are specific birthstones and gemstones, such as Aquamarine, which are traditionally given according to the month that a person is born

• Pure crystals of Aquamarine are used as gemstones. The crystal structure of Aquamarine is Hexagonal