Peridot- Has an olive green or bottle green color. Peridot can be found in Egypt, China,
Myanmar, Brazil, Norway, the USA (Arizona & Hawaii), Australia, and South Africa. It has the
hardness of 6.5.
Rubellite (Tourmaline)- Members of the tourmaline family, rubellites are pink or red in color;
ruby red stones are most prized. These stones occur in Madagascar, the USA, Brazil,
Myanmar, and East Africa. Rubellites have a hardness of 7.5.
Ruby- Can be any shade of red from pinkish to purplish, to brownish. Rubies are a tough
stone, having a hardness of 9 (Diamonds have a hardness of 10.) The finest stones come from
Myanmar; other locations include Thailand, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Vietnam, India, the USA
(North Carolina), Russia, Australia, and Norway.
Sapphire- Can vary in colors but is commonly associated with blue; the most valuable of
sapphires is a clear, deep blue. Myanmar, Sri Lanka, and India have good quality sapphire.
Sapphire that is dark blue is from Thailand, Australia, and Nigeria. A metallic blue sapphire is
produced in Montana. Other places that produce sapphires are Cambodia, Brazil, Kenya,
Malawi, and Columbia. Sapphires are a tough stone having a hardness of 9.
Smoky Quartz- A light or dark brown, grayish brown, and black are the colors that
characterize smoky quartz. It is found in Brazil, Madagascar, the Swiss Alps, the
USA (Colorado), Australia and Spain. It has a hardness of 7.
Tanzanite- A gem that can show blue, purple, or slate gray depending on the angle from
which they are viewed; tanzanite sometimes is mistaken for sapphire. It was originally found in
Tanzania in 1967. It has a hardness of 6.5.
Topaz- Occurs in a range of different colors, however the most common is the colorless.
Much of the colorless topaz is irradiated and heated to a range of blue colors. The deep
golden topaz (sometimes called sherry topaz) and the pink colors are the most valuable
Natural pink stones are very rare. The golden yellow topaz is the birthstone for November and
has a hardness of 8.
Watermelon Tourmaline- A tourmaline that is half pink and half green; there may be
more pink than green or more green than pink. It is found in South Africa, Brazil, East Africa
and other locations. Watermelon tourmalines have a hardness of 7.5.
Zircon- Is the birthstones for December. Zircon is a natural stone, and its terminology is
sometime confused with the man-made stone called zirconium. Zircons can be distinguished
from diamonds by experienced jewelers by its double refraction. Zircons can be yellow,
orange, blue, red, brown, and green.
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