Rhodium is a member of the platinum metals group. The other members include platinum, palladium, ruthenium, iridium, and osmium.It was first isolated in 1803 by English chemist William Wollaston. Due to the distinctive red color of the dissolved rhodium compounds, Wollaston named the new metal Rhodium based on the Greek word rhodon meaning "rose".Primary sources for rhodium are in Russia, South Africa, and Canada. The industrial extraction of rhodium is complicated by the fact that it occurs nat...
The green chromium-rich variety of muscovite is known as fuchsite. It can have an attractive blue-green to emerald green color that can display a sparkly shine if the crystals are small. Due to its attractive color fuchsite is often used as an ornamental stone. Fuchsite is sometimes confused with Zoisite, since both green minerals can sometimes be found interspersed with ruby. But zoisite is a distinct mineral with a different chemical composition (calcium aluminum silicate). Zoisite is also a m...
Muscovite is a mica found in many types of igneous and metamorphic rocks. It is easily recognized because of its perfect cleavage that allows it to separate into thin, transparent, flexible sheets.Muscovite has a high resistance to heat and, split into thin transparent sheets, it has been used as windows on high-temperature furnaces and ovens. It is an insulator and was used in the past to make circuit boards and as an early window glass. In fact the name muscovite comes from Muscovy-glass, a na...
It was in 1949 when Tom Belvis discovered first the ruby field at Longido in northeast Tanzania.Though the ruby at Longido was found in remarkable quantity much of it was coarse and opaque and encased in a green matrix that turned out to be the mineral zoisite.It took some years before the market could find the best use of this mineral.The combination of the green zoisite with its black streaks of hornblende, and the rich red and pink ruby is unique and attractive. It is one of the most colorful...
All Bi-Disks are in principle flat disks with a central opening in the middle.Narrowly associated with the use of the Bi-Disk, is the cultural signification of the JADE itself.In all Chinese cultures the Jade was valued highly because of his physical features, like his hardness and thus obliged durability, his colour variety, his transparency and his beauty after polishing.The shape, size, use and meaning, including the symbolism, changed in the course of the millenniums and was respectively acc...
Actinolite is a relatively common mineral in some metamorphic rocks. It is an intermediate member to a series with the minerals tremolite and ferro-actinolite.A variety of actinolite, nephrite, is one of the two minerals called jade. The other jade mineral is jadeite. Notable Occurrences include the Lake Baikal Region, Russia; China; New Zealand; British Columbia, Canada and Taiwan.
Lovely light pink to dark magenta Cobalto Calcite (AKA Cobalticalcite, Sphaerocobaltite, and Cobaltian Calcite).This is a variety of Calcite containing Cobalt. The result of the cobalt is that the calcite is colored a pale pink. In pure sphaerocobaltite, the coloring effect is magnified.Originally described from Vallone stope, Cape Calamita Mine (Calamita Mine), Capoliveri, Elba Island, Livorno Province, Tuscany, Italy.
Most gem scholars agree that the tradition of birthstones arose from the Breastplate of Aaron: a ceremonial religious garment set with twelve gemstones representing the twelve tribes of Israel and also corresponded with the twelve signs of the zodiac and the twelve months of the year. Read the full story on www.gemsones.org and try Gem-o-Matic, the nice tool allowing you to select your birthdate or other significant dates or anniversaries obtaining the list of all the birthstones that...
