TOPAZ
Topaz is a gemstone available in a rich rainbow of colors. Prized for several thousand years in antiquity, all yellow gems in antiquity were called topaz. Often confused with citrine quartz (yellow) and smoky quartz (brown), quartz and topaz are separate and unrelated mineral species. The most prized color of topaz is called Imperial topaz after the Russian Czars of the 1800s and features a magnificent orange body color with pinkish undertones. Topaz also comes in yellow, pink, purple, orange, and the many popular blue tones.
Color and varieties
Pure topaz is colorless and transparent but is usually tinted by impurities; typical topaz is wine, yellow, pale gray, reddish-orange, or blue brown. It can also be made white, pale green, blue, gold, pink (rare), reddish-yellow or opaque to transparent/translucent.
Orange topaz, also known as precious topaz, is the traditional November birthstone, the symbol of friendship, and the state gemstone of the US state of Utah.
Imperial topaz is yellow, pink (rare, if natural) or pink-orange. Brazilian Imperial Topaz can often have a bright yellow to deep golden brown hue, sometimes even violet. Many brown or pale topazes are treated to make them bright yellow, gold, pink or violet colored. Some imperial topaz stones can fade on exposure to sunlight for an extended period of time.
Yellow topaz in stepped kite-shaped cut
Blue topaz is the state gemstone of the US state of Texas. Naturally occurring blue topaz is quite rare. Typically, colorless, gray or pale yellow and blue material is heat treated and irradiated to produce a more desired darker blue.
Mystic topaz is colorless topaz which has been artificially coated giving it the desired rainbow effect.
Etymology
The name "topaz" is derived (via Old French: Topace and Latin: Topazus) from the Greek Τοπάζιος (Τοpáziοs) or Τοπάζιον (Τοpáziοn), the ancient name of St. John's Island in the Red Sea which was difficult to find and from which a yellow stone (now believed to be chrysolite: yellowish olivine) was mined in ancient times; topaz itself (rather than topazios) was not really known about before the classical era. Pliny said that Topazos is a legendary island in the Red Sea and the mineral "topaz" was first mined there.
The word topaz is related to the Sanskrit word "tapas" meaning "heat" or "fire", and also to the Hebrew word for "orange" (the fruit): tapooz (תפוז), both of which predate the Greek word.
History
Nicols, the author of one of the first systematic treatises on minerals and gemstones, dedicated two chapters to the topic in 1652. In the Middle Ages, the name topaz was used to refer to any yellow gemstone, but in modern times it denotes only the silicate described above.
CITRINE
Citrine, the other birthstone for November is known as the "healing quartz". This golden gemstone is said to support vitality and health while encouraging and guiding hope, energy and warmth within the wearer. Citrine can be found in a variety of shades ranging from pastel yellow to dark brownish orange. It is one of the most affordable of gemstones and plentiful in nature. Citrine is found most frequently in Brazil, Bolivia, and Spain.
Citrine is a yellow-to-golden member of the quartz mineral group. A deep golden variety from Madiera Spain can resemble the costly imperial topaz gem stone, which is one reason that citrine is a popular birthstone alternative to those born in November.
Citrine has been called the "stone of the mind". Ancient cultures believed that placing a citrine on the forehead of an elder would increase his psychic power.
Money energies of citrine
Citrine is known as the lucky "Merchants Stone". If you are in any type of sales, just put a citrine in the cash drawer and watch what happens. Also used by healers to:
- Increase self esteem
- Protect from the negative energy from someone else's abuse
- Open the mind to new thoughts
- Promote clarity of thought
Healing properties of citrine
Citrine is sometimes used by healers to help with digestion as it is considered beneficial to the endocrine and digestive system - cleansing, purifying and eliminating poisons that have built up. Citrine is an excellent stone to calm and soothe distressed conditions. Some use it to help relieve depression, digestive problems (including constipation and diabetes). It will give joy and love to the owner.
Sources of citrine
Sources of citrine include Brazil, Bolivia, several African countries and parts of the Soviet Union.
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