Rich Beauty and Royal History in Natural Alexandrite Jewelry

Natural Alexandrite jewelry has many alluring qualities. The stone has a color-changing aspect that mystifies, while its rich hues hint at the history of natural Alexandrite jewelry among Russian royalty. Natural Alexandrite is a relatively young stone, only having been identified around 200 years ago, but its newness does not take away from its worth; in fact, it is believed that most of the natural alexandrite in existence has already been harvested and set into Alexandrite rings, pendants, and earrings.

Eye Catching Color ChangeThe color-change aspect of natural, mined Alexandrite is one of its most identifying features. When the stone was first discovered by miners in Russia in the early 1830s, the miners viewed the rough stones by daylight and thought they were emeralds. In daylight, your natural Alexandrite jewelry should have a green, blue-green, or teal hue, similar to that of an emerald or a periodot. When brought into incandescent light, like that of a candle, high quality Alexandrite changes to a deep red/purple. When looking to purchase a natural Alexandrite pendant, ring, or earrings, expect to see some color changes -- the more noticeable the change, the better the quality of the stone.Clarifying ValueNatural Alexandrite jewelry shopping comes with many decisions. Buyers should shop for stones based primarily on stone quality as opposed to origin, as very high quality stones are found from many origins. Russian origin stones are desirable for their rarity and history, but most of them will be heavily included. This is because the Russian mines ceased commercial production in the early 1900's, and “New” Russian Alexandrite are cut from the discarded tailings of the original mines. The highest quality Alexandrite stones exhibit a deep forest green to ruby red color change -- which is part of why the stone became the imperial stone of Russia (their imperial colors were green and red.) The stone itself was named for Tsar Alexander II, who was the leader of Russia at the time of the stone’s discovery.

When pricing natural Alexandrite jewelry, color and color change come first, followed by clarity and cut. Russia is the only origin that will demand a premium, so expect to pay more for a Russian Alexandrite than you would for a stone of similar quality from Brazil or India. Natural, mined Alexandrite is one of the world's most sought-after colored gemstones, and in terms of rarity, is far rarer than white diamonds. The stone’s value holds, and it will only increase over time as current mines become depleted of their treasure and demand increases. Don’t be fooled by the alexandrite’s close cousin: color change crysoberyl, which is similar to Alexandrite in structure and is found in the same mining areas, but is worth far less than its highly coveted cousin. Color change crysoberyl transitions from a yellow green to an orange or brown color. Purchasing natural Alexandrite jewelry is an investment, so choose your Alexandrite earrings, ring, or pendant carefully.

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