Aquamarine

by ASHA S.C.

Aquamarine is the birthstone for March. The name aquamarine originates from Latin's aqua marinus which translates to water of the sea. This attractive gemstone is traditionally used to celebrate the 19th wedding anniversary and is a semi-precious member of the beryl gem group. Beryl is a mineral made up of beryllium aluminium cyclosilicate. Another well known variety of beryl is the emerald. 

Just like the calming pastel colored waters of the ocean, aquamarine is associated with tranquility, serenity, clarity and harmony. This semi-precious beauty is also linked to happiness, good fortune in marriage, courage, release of stress and protection against enemies. Back in the day, Roman physicians used aquamarine in their treatments for overeating and aiding digestion. Aquamarine is linked to the throat chakra and can boost and improve communication. It is also a wonderful stone for meditation as it is said to connect us to our higher levels of consciousness and higher self.

Aqua Marinus (Water of the sea)
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Similar to the diamond, the 4 C's - color, clarity, carat, cut - affect the value and price of the aquamarine. However, in the case of the aquamarine, color is very important. Aquamarine usually comes in pastel blue-green colors. The colors can range from blue, slightly greenish blue, greenish blue, very strongly greenish blue and green-blue. Lower-priced gems are usually quite pale. In general, the more intense and darker the color, the more valuable the stone.

The most valuable color for an aquamarine is one that is dark blue to slightly greenish blue with moderately strong intensity. In general, the purer and more intense the blue color, the more valuable the stone. Blue unheated aquamarine gems are rare and valuable because green aquamarines are often heated to reduce the yellow so that the aquamarine will appear more blue.
Most high quality aquamarine offered in the market have excellent clarity grades. Aquamarine tends to be transparent and have a light color, which makes inclusions highly visible and this can diminish the beauty of the stone. So high quality aquamarines are the ones graded as "eye clean" or "almost loupe clean". This means that the inclusions are not visible to the naked eye.
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In terms of pricing, good quality aquamarine gems that are under 5 carats can cost around $100 to $250 per carat. Larger sized aquamarines can cost up to $300 to $600 per carat. The rare Santa Maria aquamarines that are superb and of fine quality command prices of over $1,000 per carat. Despite the high price, aquamarines are renowned and loved by most people from all social classes. Famous aquamarines include Queen Elizabeth's Aquamarine Tiara, The Roosevelt Aquamarine and the The Dom Pedro Aquamarine.
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Where it comes from: Brazil, Columbia, Nigeria, Madagascar, Zambia, Pakistan, Mozambique, Kenya, Sri Lanka, Russia, Afghanistan

Hardness: 7.5 - 8 

NOTE: 

Care: Wash in warm soapy water. Avoid cleaning products that contain ammonia or alcohol. Do not use abrasive cleaning materials such as brushes or scrubbing clothes.

All prices quoted are in USD.

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