Emerald is undoubtedly a precious stone of great value, presenting its rare beauty due to its exceptional green color. What gives the specific gemstone this remarkable and vivid color is the combination of chromium and vanadium. Emerald gemstone is a variety of the mineral beryl and it scores 7.5-8 hardness on the Mohs scale (qualitative ordinal scale characterizing scratch resistance of various minerals). Its name derives from the ancient Greek word “smaragdos” which means green gem, while in English its name comes from a variation of Middle English “emeraude”, which means green.

σμαραγδι-ορυκτο emerald-stone-smaragdi

The first emeralds have taken their form 2.97 billion years ago, while the first emeralds mines have been traced around 1700 in Egypt. Emeralds, in Ancient Greece and Rome, were widely known. It should be noted at this point that Cleopatra’s great love for the emerald stone was also widely known and this is proved by the fact that her jewels were embellished with emeralds, according to historical references. It was within 16th century when the Spanish landed in South America and discovered the well-hidden Incas mines and that is when emeralds became known in Europe. The European people were enchanted by this impressive precious stone, which became immediately highly sought-after. Even though there have been 500 years since emerald was discovered, people still continue to stare at emeralds’ jewels with awe. Its color symbolizes hope and the blooming of flowers in the spring and it is considered to be the birthstone of May. In America, for a couple, emeralds are the appropriate gift for their 20th, the 35th and the 55th wedding anniversary.

JR27099_stavros-gunaikeios-diamanti-smaragdi-xrusos-18k DK23945 JR1001

Most of the emeralds present various externals and internals characteristics that are visible with the naked eye. Today the biggest world’s mines are located in Columbia, Zambia, Brazil and in Zimbabwe. Emeralds’ value is determined, mainly, by factors such as the color, clarity, the type of cut and the carats. However, the most important factor that determines their value is their color. Emeralds with intense color are considered to be more precious. Their cut is greatly specific, the so-called “emerald cut”, which brings out in a unique way their impressive color and shine. Emeralds’ clarity are defined by the inclusions exist inside the precious stone. It is highly unlikely to find an emerald without imperfections.Top world’s gemologists tend to be referring to these inclusions as an internal “jardin” (which means garden in French) within the extraordinary colored stone.

rs01e8-RS01E1.3')

KR14655Δείτε κοσμήματα με σμαράγδι

Throughout the years, many celebrities’ weddings became the focus of public attention due to the eye-catching rings that the brides had chosen. In 1953, John Kennedy proposed to Jacqueline Bouvier with a ring that was crafted in gold featuring a 2 carats Diamond and a 2 Carat emerald surrounded by smaller baguette cut diamonds. This specific ring’s cost is estimated to be over 1 million dollars. The unique and peculiar design of the ring makes it to be one of the most memorable wedding rings ever. Another celebrities’ wedding that was signified by an exceptional 29.4 carats emerald ring was the one of Elizabeth Taylor and Michael Todd in 1957. This ring was one of Elizabeth’s Taylor most favorite jewels and was sold 3.7 million euros at an auction that took place in 2011. To cut a long story short, in March 2012, Oliver Martinez proposed to Halle Berry with a unique ring that showcased a 4 carats emerald, the inclusions of which symbolized the couple’s love story.

Elizabeth Taylor emerald engagement ringKennedy emerald engagement ring

Discover a wide collection of emeralds that embellish not only rings but also various types of jewels available in Haritidis Jewelry shop.