STONE
Emerald
The green to bluish-green gem variety of beryl, coloured mainly by chromium, vanadium, or both.
- Typical colour
- Green to bluish green
- Also known as
- Изумруд · Зумуррад
- Birthstone
- May A modern tradition, not a property of the stone. GIA
WHAT IT IS MADE OF
Mineral science
Physical and optical properties belong to the mineral species; see the mineral page for the full sourced profile.
Treatments
Emeralds typically contain inclusions visible to the unaided eye, often called jardin ("garden"). GIA's laboratory classifies emerald clarity treatments as minor, moderate or significant.
Look-alikes and how to tell them apart
Green beryl whose colour is too light is not called emerald, although it is the same mineral.
Compare with its look-alikesHistory and names
The name comes from the ancient Greek smaragdus, "green". The first known emerald mines were in Egypt, worked from at least 330 BC into the 1700s; Cleopatra was known for her passion for emerald. Emeralds from present-day Colombia were part of the plunder taken by sixteenth-century Spanish explorers; the Incas had already used them for some 500 years.
COLLECTION
Study views
SOURCE
GIA Gem Encyclopedia — Emerald