Gemstone Names with Pictures - Click on any gem to get detailed information, prices, photos and videos. Please wait Gemstone Names Most of the gem names have an interesting story behind. Apatite Cats eye. Types of Gemstones Lists Different stones are categorised into different species, varieties and groups based on their composition, market value, purpose and cutting style.
List of Gemstones by Species This list of gemstones is organised on the basis of their composition. Minerals — These are the beautiful inorganic crystals which are cut and polished to form different kinds of gems. They are identified by their chemical compositions, unique colour, luster, hardness and the distinct marks and streaks inclusions present inside them.
Organic Gemstones — These gems are composed of the fossilized living organism or organic substance produced by a living body. Rocks — Certain rare and beautiful rocks are also considered gemstones though they are not minerals.
These rocks are carefully cut and polished to form faceted gems and cabochons for healing, for making jewelry or for collection purposes. List of Gemstones by Value Precious — Gemstones which highly valued for their immense rarity and high-end beauty are known as Precious stones.
Learn more about these precious gemstones, their quality, meanings and price here. Semi-precious — All other types of gemstones are considered semi-precious.
It is because these gemstones are relatively more abundant in nature. Read our notes on Semi-precious stones to learn more about them. List on Gemstones by Purpose Since antiquity, gemstones have served mankind in different ways. Astrological gemstones — Gemstones hold a great significance in the Indian astrology and are regagemstone which can be worn to harness the energies of the particular celestial body like Ruby represents planet Sun, read more.
It is believed that these stones and crystals offer powerful healing benefits when placed on the right chakra. Jewellery gemstones — These are the fancy coloured gems which are primarily used for the beautification of ornaments.
Though all types of gems can be used for ornamentation purpose, jewellery gemstones are those common gems which are exclusively used for jewellery making.
Collection gemstone — Many times, consumers gem enthusiasts or collectors raise their request for rare and unusual gems. List of Gemstone based on Cut Faceted gemstones — It refers to all types of gems which have facets or cuts on their surface in order to enhance their overall brilliance and luster.
The gemstones with good transparent and superior clarity are often cut to form faceted gems. Opaque or semi-translucent gemstones are often shaped as cabochons. Chrysoprase is a gemstone variety of chalcedony or cryptocrystalline quartz, colored by trace amounts of nickel.
Its color varies from apple-green to deep green. Citrine Gemstones. Named after the French word for lemon, citrine is yellow, gold or orange-brown transparent quartz. Clinohumite Gemstones. Clinohumite is a rare mineral and an especially rare gemstone. Only three sources of gem-quality clinohumite material are known; in Tajikistan, Siberia and Tanzania. Color-Change Diaspore Gemstones. Diaspore , sometimes marketed under the name zultanite or csarite, is a natural color change gemstone mined from Turkey, which was recently introduced to the international market.
Color-Change Garnet Gemstones. Color-change garnet is a mix of spessartite and pyrope garnet. This garnet presents a color change from brownish in daylight to rose pink in incandescent light. Color-Change Sapphire Gemstones. Some rare sapphires exhibit a color change under varying lighting conditions.
Color change sapphires are typically blue in natural light and purple under incandescent light. Coral Gemstones. Precious coral is a species of coral that grows in rocky seabottoms. Coral exhibits a range of warm reddish-pink colors ranging from salmon pink to deep-red. Danburite Gemstones. Danburite gets its name from Danbury, Connecticut, where it was first discovered in It is quite hard, with a rating of 7 to 7.
Demantoid Garnet Gemstones. Demantoid garnet is the rarest and most valuable of the garnets. Found in green to emerald green, demantoid garnet is scarce and is typically only seen in small sizes. Dendritic Agate Gemstones. Dendritic agate is a whitish-gray or colorless chalcedony with fern-like inclusions known as dendrites.
The inclusions look like plant material, but they are actually iron or manganese. Diamond Gemstones. Diamond , the hardest known natural material, is a transparent carbon crystal. Diamond is famed not only for its superb hardness, but also for its high refractive index and dispersion. Dumortierite Quartz Gemstones. Dumortierite quartz is an unusual quartz that is intergrown with the mineral dumortierite.
The inclusions of dumortierite give it a deep blue color that is unique in the world of quartz. Emerald Gemstones. Emerald is the most precious stone in the beryl group.
The wonderful green color of emerald is unparalleled in the gem world. Enstatite Gemstones. Enstatite is a rare gemstone that belongs to the pyroxene group of minerals. It is typically brown-green with a vitreous luster and is a collector's gem. Fire Agate Gemstones. Fire agate is a type of opaque, limonite-bearing chalcedony with an iridescence caused by the diffraction of light in its layered structure.
Fire Opal Gemstones. Fire opal is an unusual variety of opal from Mexico, which can be yellow, orange or orange-red. Some fire opal gemstones are clear enough for facets.
Fluorite Gemstones. Fluorite is a mineral with a veritable plethora of brilliant colors that include purple, blue, green, yellow, colorless, brown, pink and orange. Fossil Coral Gemstones. Fossil coral is a decorative material that is formed when ancient coral is gradually replaced with agate. The proper name for this material is agatized coral.
Gaspeite Gemstones. A recent discovery , gaspeite is a very rare nickel carbonate mineral named after the place in Eastern Canada where it was first described.
Goshenite Gemstones. The colorless precious beryl is known as goshenite. It is named after the small town of Goshen in Western Massachusetts where it was first described. Grandidierite Gemstones. Grandidierite is a rare greenish-blue gemstone named after Alfred Grandidier. It is often listed as one of the top 10 rarest gems in the world.
Grossularite Garnet Gemstones. Grossularite or grossular garnet is a calcium-aluminium garnet. The name grossular is derived from the botanical name for the gooseberry, grossularia. Hackmanite Gemstones. Hackmanite exhibits an unusual phenomenon known as reversible photochromism, where a mineral changes color when exposed to sunlight. Hambergite Gemstones. Hambergite is one of the lesser-known gemstones. It is usually nearly colorless, with the vitreous luster of glass when cut.
It is quite a hard material, with a hardness of 7. Hematite Gemstones. Hematite is iron oxide that is typically blackish-gray. When highly polished it can sometimes look like silver. Hematite is a remarkably dense material. Hemimorphite Gemstones. Hemimorphite is usually found in aggregate form with blue and white bands, or mixed with a dark matrix.
Hessonite Garnet Gemstones. Hessonite is an orange-brown variety of garnet colored by traces of manganese and iron. It is sometimes known as cinammon stone. Hiddenite Gemstones. Hiddenite is a form of spodumene containing chromium.
The green color varies from a yellowish to a bluish-green. Howlite Gemstones. Howlite is an interesting grayish-white mineral that is sometimes referred to as white turquoise because of its distinctive veining.
Idocrase Gemstones. Idocrase is also known as vesuvianite, since it was originally found on Mt. The color is normally green, but it can also be brown, yellow, blue or purple.
Imperial Topaz Gemstones. The most sought after of all natural topaz is called imperial topaz. Its rich golden color with reddish and orange overtones is generally not enhanced by any kind of treatment. Iolite Gemstones. Pleochroism is very pronounced in iolite and is seen as three different color shades in the same stone; violet, yellow-gray and blue. Jadeite Gemstones.
Jadeite is found in most colors, including pure white, pink, brown, red, orange, violet, blue, black and a range of greens. Jasper Gemstones. Jasper is usually considered a type of chalcedony, however, scientists put it in a group by itself because of its grainy structure. Kornerupine Gemstones. Kornerupine is a rare transparent to translucent, typically brownish-green collector's gem.
It was named after Danish naturalist, artist and explorer, Andreas Nikolaus Kornerup. Kunzite Gemstones. Kunzite is the pale pink-violet to light-violet species of the mineral spodumene. Kunzite is named in honor of the mineralogist George F. Kyanite Gemstones. Kyanite is a layered crystal with a vitreous to almost pearly luster that is usually found in a sapphire-like blue color. Labradorite Gemstones. Labradorite is a member of the plagioclase feldspar group and displays a distinctive schiller in lustrous metallic tints.
Lapis Lazuli Gemstones. Lapis lazuli has been used for thousands of years in jewelry and ornamental objects. The unique deep blue color has never lost its attraction.
Larimar Gemstones. The blue variety of pectolite has become known as Larimar. A very rare mineral, it has only been found in the Dominican Republic, where it was first discovered in Lepidolite Gemstones.
Lepidolite is a lilac-gray or rose-colored lithium-bearing mineral of the mica group. It is one of the major sources of the rare alkali metals rubidium and caesium. Malachite Gemstones. Malachite is copper carbonate with distinctive green veining. Though not a particularly hard stone, it takes an excellent polish.
Mali Garnet Gemstones. Mali Garnet is one of the hybrid garnets, a mixture of grossular and andradite garnets. It gets its name from the African country where it was first discovered. Maw-Sit-Sit Gemstones. Maw-sit-sit is an unusual gemstone often classified as a member of the jade family. It was first discovered in and was named after a village in Northwestern Burma. Melanite Gemstones. Melanite is the black variety of the rare andradite garnet.
It is sometimes known as titanian andradite. Moldavite Gemstones. Moldavite is a bottle-green to brown-green gemstone belonging to the tektite group. It is formed from condensed rock vapors after a meteorite impact. Moonstone Gemstones. Moonstone is a unique stone that reflects light in a distinctive shimmering phenomenon known as adularescence. Morganite Gemstones. The pink form of beryl was named morganite , after the American banker and collector J.
A soft pink to violet, morganite belongs to the same family as emerald. Moss Opal Gemstones. Moss opal is a milky white opal with unique inclusions of green hornblende in moss-like patterns.
Mystic Quartz Gemstones. Mystic quartz is the product of a new high tech enhancement process, whereby a coating is applied to colorless quartz. Mother of Pearl Gemstones. Mother of Pearl is an organic gemstone that comes from the inside of some mollusk shells. Mother-of-pearl is made from nacre, which is mainly calcium carbonate.
Mystic Topaz Gemstones. Colorful mystic topaz is the product of a high tech enhancement process that is stable and permanent. Nuummite Gemstones. Nuummite is an opaque metamorphic rock with an iridescent play of color. Its chief constituent minerals are gedrite and anthophyllite. Obsidian Gemstones. Obsidian is naturally occurring volcanic glass. It is formed when felsic lava extruded from a volcano cools without crystal growth. Onyx Gemstones. Onyx is the black form of chalcedony, a cryptocrystalline form of quartz.
Opal Gemstones. More than any other gem, each opal is unique. No other stone has such rich and varied folklore. Opals are also the most delicate gems commonly worn. Opal Doublet Gemstones. An opal doublet consists of a slice of natural opal glued to a black backing, which causes the color to become more vibrant.
Orthoclase Gemstones. Orthoclase is a transparent yellow feldspar resembling citrine quartz or yellow beryl, found primarily in Madagascar. Paraiba Tourmaline Gemstones.
Paraiba tourmaline is a rare copper-bearing gem with a vivid neon blue color. First found in Brazil in , similar material has since been found in Africa. Peanut Wood Gemstones. Peanut wood is a variety of petrified wood, where the shape and structure of the wood is pre- served when the original organic material is replaced by quartz.
Pearl Gemstones. Pearls are products of bivalve mollusks mainly oysters and mussels. They are built up of nacre, which is mainly calcium carbonate in the form of aragonite crystals. Peridot Gemstones. Peridot belongs to the forsterite-fayalite mineral series. It is an idiochromatic gem, meaning its color comes from the basic chemical composition of the mineral itself, rather than impurities. Pietersite Gemstones. Pietersite is a breccia aggregate of hawk's eye and tiger's eye, with swirling colors of blue, rusty red, gold and brown.
Prehnite Gemstones. Prehnite , a form of calcium aluminum silicate, has a vitreous to pearly luster. Affordably priced for its size, prehnite makes distinctive and interesting jewelry. Yes No. Log in Social login does not work in incognito and private browsers.
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Invest in a gemstone identification chart. If you think you'll be identifying gemstones often, it would be in your best interest to invest in a printed chart or reference manual. Look online for basic charts. If you only need to identify a gemstone on rare occasions, you might be able to manage the task by looking at individual gemstone identification charts online. These charts are much less detailed and less extensive, but they might work in a pinch. The Hiddenite Gems' gemstone identification chart can be used when you know color and hardness.
Part 2. Feel the stone's surface. A stone with a rough or sandy texture should not be identified as a gemstone. Check its malleability. A stone that is readily malleable—i. True gemstones have a crystalline structure. This structure can be shaped through cutting, fracturing, and abrasion, but it has fixed planes that cannot be altered by pressure alone.
Real gemstones don't get bend or reshaped, but they do break. Know which materials are not classified as gemstones. In particular, pearls and fossilized wood can be mistakenly classified as gemstones but do not fit the qualifications in the strictest sense of the term. Watch out for synthetics. Synthetic stones share the same structure, chemical composition, and physical properties of their natural counterparts, but they are created in a lab rather than made naturally.
Synthetic stones often have curved growth patterns inside the stone rather than angular growth patterns. Platinum or gold platelets can stick to synthetic stones. Fingerprint-patterned inclusions are common in synthetics, as are nail-shaped inclusions, chevron v-shaped growth patterns, wispy veil-like inclusions, and interior columnar structures.
Watch out for imitations. An imitation stone is a material that looks like a real gemstone upon first glance in spite of the fact that it is made of a completely different material. Pay a special attention while checking Turquoise, Lapis, Sapphire, Ruby and Emerald because there are many treatments available in market which make the stones same like natural The surface of an imitation may look pitted and uneven, like an orange peel.
Some imitations have swirl marks known as "flow lines. Determine whether or not the gemstone is an assembled stone. Assembled stones are made of two or more materials. These stones may consist entirely of natural gems, but oftentimes, synthetic materials are mixed in. Look for differences in luster or for colored and colorless cement. Also look for the "red ring effect. If you spot the red ring, you probably have an assembled stone. Part 3. Look at the color. The color of the gemstone is often your first clue.
This component can be further divided into three parts: hue, tone, and saturation. Be as specific as possible. For instance, if a stone is a yellowish green, identify it as such instead of merely saying "red.
Determine whether the hue is warm yellow, orange, red or cool purple, blue, green. With warm colors, check the stone for brown tints.
For cool colors, check the stone for gray tints. The more brown or gray you see, the less saturated the stone color is.
Observe the transparency. Transparency describes how light filters through the gemstone. A stone can be transparent, translucent, or opaque. Transparent stones are completely see-through example: diamonds.
Translucent stones can be seen through, but some color or haze alters the image example: amethyst or aquamarine. Opaque stones cannot be seen through example: opal. Check its heft or estimated specific gravity. You can determine heft—how heavy the gemstone is [8] X Research source —by simply bouncing it in your hand. This is a quick and easy way to estimate a stone's weight without performing complex specific gravity tests and equations.
To judge heft, bounce the stone in the palm of your hand and ask yourself if it feels as heavy as you would expect for its size or if it feels heavier or unusually light. Specific gravity readings are fairly outdated as a practice among gemologists, and heft measurements are used as a relatively accurate estimation.
For example, aquamarine has low heft while blue topaz, which is similar in appearance, has a high or heavy heft. Similarly, diamond has a lower heft than synthetic cubic zirconia.
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