what is topaz ?

Topaz actually has an extremely wide color spectrum, which in addition to brown, includes different tones and saturations of blue, red, pink and purple, green, yellow, orange. Colorless topaz is the most abundant and is often treated to give it a blue color. Topaz can also show different colors in different crystalline directions, or it is so-called plurocyanic.

Topaz is an ideal gem. It is one of the most popular gemstones due to features such as good hardness and desirable colors, along with relative abundance and availability. The most valuable topaz colors are the reddish-pink-orange-red and orange-yellow-gold colors called Imperial Topaz. The amount increases as the color deepens to orange and reddish colors. Topaz blue is mostly used in jewelry. Only in this last century, blue topaz became popular in the jewelry market, because all blue topaz gems are exposed to radiation and heat treatment.

·        Chemical Formula     Al2SiO4(F,OH)2

·        Double Refraction    .014

·        Luster Vitreous

·        Mineral Class Topaz

·        Color  White, Colorless, Blue, Red, Green, Yellow, Orange, Brown, Pink, Purple, Gray, Multicolored

·        Hardness        8

·        Crystal System          Orthorhombic

·        Refractive Index        1.610 - 1.638

·        Cleavage        1,3 - basal

·        SG       3.4 - 3.6

·        Transparency Transparent

Description of Topaz

Many people know topaz as a cheap blue gem. They are surprised that its blue color is rarely natural: it is almost always the result of treatment. They may also be surprised by the many colors that Topaz has to offer gem lovers, including pink and purple, which compete with the best fancy sapphires.

Topaz is allochromatic, meaning that its color is due to its basic chemical composition and impurities or defects in its crystal structure. The element chromium causes the natural colors red, pink and violet-to-purple in topaz. Defects in the atomic surface of the topaz crystal structure can cause brown, blue, and yellow colors. Brown is a common topaz color and is sometimes mistakenly known as "smoky quartz".

Topaz actually has an extremely wide color spectrum that in addition to brown, includes different tones and saturations of blue, orange, red, pink, green, yellow and purple. Colorless topaz is the most abundant and is often treated to give it a blue color.

Types of colors are usually simply identified by the name of the color - blue topaz, pink topaz, etc. - but there are a few specific brands. Topaz Imperial is a reddish orange to orange-red and it is one of the most expensive colors of this gem. Sherry Topaz - Named Sherry wine and is yellowish brown or brownish yellow to orange. The stones in this color spectrum are often called precious topaz to distinguish them from smoky citrine and quartz of the same color but expensive.

Is Topaz valuable ?

Although brown topaz is less valuable, it is notable in jewelry and ornamental arts. In nature, topaz is usually colorless and naturally blue gemstones are very rare. Topaz When first introduced, blue topaz sold for $ 20 to $ 40 per carat.

Topaz History

The name Topaz comes from Topazios, the ancient Greek name for a small island in the Red Sea, now called Zabargad. (Before the development of modern mineralogy, peridot was once confused with topaz, and the island was once the source of peridot, but never produced topaz.) Some people trace it to Sanskrit (an ancient Indian language) and the word topaz or topaz. They know it means "fire".

The ancient Greeks believed that topaz empowered them. In Renaissance Europe (1300-1600), people thought that topaz could break magical spells and quell anger. Many Indians believed that topaz beyond the heart guarantees a long life, beauty and intelligence.

The name of imperial topaz, which is a type of topaz, dates back to the 19th century in Russia. At that time, the Ural Mountains were the main source of topaz, and the pink gemstone mined there was named in honor of the Russian Tsar. Ownership of this gem was limited to the royal family.

The name topaz has been used for at least two thousand years for any yellowish gemstone. Until two hundred years ago, gem merchants did not know that these yellowish stones were in fact different minerals. Gohar merchants realized that quartz, braille, corundum and olivine all have yellow varieties and are not real topaz, and topaz can be other colors, not just yellow.

The ancient Egyptians believed that the yellow topaz received its golden color from the sun god. The ancient Greeks believed that topaz empowered them and is referred to in modern translations of the Bible as topaz, although the word probably referred to a yellow stone, not necessarily a real topaz.

During the Middle Ages, the main source of topaz came from an ore deposit in the Erzgebirge Mountains in Germany. Thousands of kilograms of yellow to brown topaz crystals were extracted from this sediment. In the 1730s, a large stock of topaz was discovered in the Minas Gerais region of Brazil, when Brazil was a Portuguese colony, so in 1768, the Portugese government officially recognized the deposit as an important commercial mine and shipped most of the gems to Europe. Transferred. Brazil is still the largest producer of topaz in the world.

Gem quality topaz was first found in Australia as a by-product of metal mining operations. When miners concentrated alluvial material, they sometimes found topaz pebbles. Topaz is associated with gold, tin and tungsten deposits throughout eastern Australia.

Topaz colors include colorless, light blue, yellow, pink, purple, brown, orange, and rarely red. The majority of blue topaz seen today is the permanent result of colorless topaz treatment by radiation and heating. The rainbow effect seen in "Mystic Topaz" is created by covering the colorless topaz with a thin synthetic film.

Topaz Imperial has a completely pinkish-orange color. It is commonly believed that the name was used only by the Russian royal family to preserve the best colors of the gem extracted in the Ural Mountains of Russia. In Brazil, it is believed that the naming occurred during Brazilian Emperor Pedro II's visit to Ouro Preto, the nearest town to Brazil's topaz mines - and the donation of red topaz to him.

Where is Topaz Found ?

It is the largest producer of topaz in Brazil. Other sources include Pakistan, Afghanistan, India, Australia, Madagascar, Namibia, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Mexico and the United States (California, Utah and New Hampshire), China, Burma (Myanmar), Sri Lanka, Japan, Russia, and Ukraine.

One of the most important sources of quality topaz is Minas Grace, a state in Brazil that has been mined for more than two centuries. Red, pink, purple, yellow to orange, and red with orange or purple are some of the colors discovered here. Northwest Pakistan is also famous for its pink topaz production. Since 1972, pink topaz has been mined from Ghundao Hill, near the small town of Katlang. The most popular shade of pink topaz from Katlang is purple, which some gem traders call "cyclamen" pink. But even on Ghundao Hill, this pinkish-yellow stone is rarely found in November.

Most Australian gem-quality topaz is found in the gem farms of the Thuringon, Oban and Mitchell rivers in the New England area of New South Wales, as well as Lightning Ridge. In Queensland, the largest reserves occur near Mount Surprise and Mount Garnet, and near Victoria, Beechworth, Coolgardie and Menzies in Western Australia and Flinders Island in Tasmania. Topaz from Flinders Island is known as Killiecrankie Diamond.Mining

Physical Properties Topaz :

Topaz with different colors is used in jewelry, earrings, necklaces, rings, pendants and bracelets. Colorless topaz is becoming more popular as an inexpensive diamond simulator, and blue, orange, and pink are often cut as gemstones. Huge gems and spheres are cut from massive crystals, creating unique and exquisite collecting goods. Topaz is usually very rarely cut into cabochons.

Topaz is a hard shiny stone with a delicate color spectrum. It is interesting to know that the color of topaz is more important in determining its value than its size. Topaz appears naturally in a wide range of colors and undergoes heat treatment to produce more popular colors. True topaz is found in colorless shades of orange, yellow, red, or brown, and is sometimes treated with radiation to produce blue colors. The term "imperial topaz" refers to stones with a reddish orange color. Pink, blue and honey stones are the most in demand today, while golden yellow and deep pink are the most valuable (natural pink stones are rare - most of them are heated yellow stones).

Many colorless topazes are irradiated and heat-treated with a wide range of crystals, some of which are indistinguishable from aquamarine to the naked eye. Lack of pleurisy distinguishes topaz from aquamarine. Aquamarine always shows a very attractive pleura with blue to greenish-blue or bluish-green. Topaz is usually blue, perhaps with a grayish tone, which definitely distinguishes it from aquamarine.

Like all light colored gemstones, the value of topaz increases with the intensity of its color. Topaz has a distinctive sky blue color and its color is uniform and often without overtones. Although often pale, it can be light or sometimes even intense blue. It may also sometimes have a slight gray or even greenish tinge.

Topaz is one of the hardest minerals in silicate, an aluminum silicate that has up to 20% fluoride or water. Its physical and optical properties vary according to the fluorine ratio of available water. Pink and golden brown topazes contain more water and tend to form longer crystals. Topaz is an excellent mineral sample that is notable for its high luster, attractive colors and well-formed crystals.

One of the salient features of topaz is its easy complete decomposition. For complete decomposition of topaz, careful handling is required when cutting and polishing rocks, as specimens may break or create internal cracks.

Topaz sometimes produces the largest crystals. They weigh up to several hundred pounds and can be up to 3 feet long. The largest rocks were about 20,000 carats. One of the largest topaz stones is in the Museum of Natural History in New York City. This product comes from Brazil and weighs 600 pounds! The largest cut topaz is the pale blue "Brazilian Princess" discovered at Teofilo Otoni in northern Rio de Janeiro, weighing 21,327 carats and shaped into a square cut.

VARIETIES

With the exception of Imperial Topaz, all the different names under the brand are made by sellers in the jewelry trade. These names have been used extensively, despite the fact that the names were made by jewelers in modern times. There are also several other built-in names that are sometimes given topaz in different shapes and colors. The list below describes only those names that have become widely used in the jewelry market.

·        Azotic Topaz - Pink-orange topaz with a rainbow color effect. Its color is artificially painted by depositing a film of a very thin metal layer on top of the gemstone. Azotic Topaz is introduced by a company, Azotic Az.

·        Imperial Topaz - A variety of shiny orange-yellow, orange-brown, or pink-orange gold from Topaz and its most valuable jewel shape.

·        Topaz Blue London - Topaz with deep sky blue. Its tone is darker than Blue Topaz Blue.

·        Mystic Topaz - Multicolored topaz with a rainbow-like color effect. Its color is artificially painted by depositing a film of a very thin metal layer on top of the gemstone.

·        Topaz Rutilated - Topaz with a yellow needle-like substance such as the mineral limonite. Rutile topaz is very similar in appearance to Rutilated quartz, hence it is called Rutile Topaz. However, this name is wrong, because unlike rutile quartz, which contains rutile minerals, the compounds of rutile topaz are not rutile but more limonite.

·        Ry Sherry Topaz - Topaz with orange-brown to brownish pink color.

·         Silver Topaz - Colorless Topaz Form. Synonymous with white topaz.

·        Swiss Blue Topaz - Topaz with sky blue color. Its tone is lighter than London blue Topaz.

·        white topaz - colorless form of topaz.

TOPAZ TREATMENTS :

Blue is the most common color of topaz and is made from colorless or pale topaz that is irradiated and turned blue, and subjected to heat treatment to stabilize the new color. Radiation therapy can create different shades of blue. Most pink topaz is generated by heat from yellow or brown topaz.

Colorful Mystic Topaz and Azotic Topaz are treated with film deposition to produce their multicolored rainbow. This process is done by attaching a layer of very thin metal film on top of the gemstone, and at the end, interesting color effects are reflected from the crown.

How is topaz cut ?

While many people think about the shape of the topaz they want to buy, few people think about how the gem is cut. Topaz is not crushed in its raw form, crystal or any other form. After mining and treatment, a cutter selects gemstones that are cut into gemstones.

TOPAZ CUTTING :

First, the cutter breaks the raw materials into smaller pieces. These pieces will be larger or smaller and will vary in shape depending on the size of the final stone.

Then, the stone is roughly ground. an emerald cut Blue Topaz will be rectangular in the first cut. Brilliant in the future will become a circular rock. Next, the funds are cut to form the final shape of the final product.

Finally, smoothing and polishing is done. lapidary starts with rough grinding wheels like sandpaper and then goes to much smaller wheels. When this process continues, the topaz pieces are removed. At the end of this process, Blue Topaz should be a mirror. After cutting, Blue Topaz can be placed on a variety of jewelry, including necklaces or pendants, earrings and rings.

Types of Cuts :

A rough piece of Blue Topaz can be cut into different shapes using different cutting styles. Upon completion, this stone will be available to turn into a ring with a Blue Topaz gem.

·        CABOCHONS : This type of cut is not very popular for Blue Topaz jewelry, but cabochons are the oldest form for cutting topaz jewels. Cabochons can be round, square, rectangular, oval or smaller in shape and have a smooth, polished top of the dome. Although cabochons are cut from eye clean gemstones, today we are likely to see this method done for rough topaz with more inclusions.

·        STEP CUT :Step cuts, which are very popular today, are cases where the faces move parallel to each other, like a mirror hall. The faces are rectangular or square, which is why step cuts often have a right angle. In the most rudimentary, step cuts are very suitable for showing the clarity of a gemstone and it is very difficult to hide inclusions in the facets.

·        Emerald Cut : This is the most popular form of cutting. Emerald cuts are rectangular, although technically they have octagons. It consists of two long sides, two short sides and four ultra-short corners. In other words, sharp corners are cut to make it easier to place the stone. Due to the beautiful appearance, most couples choose the Blue Topaz engagement ring with emerald cut.

·        Emerald shape of Blue topaz : While emerald cutting is the most popular cutting style, there are other options. The Asscher cut is essentially a square emerald cut, while the baguettes are longer and thinner than the emerald cut.

·        BRILLIANT CUTS : Unlike other cuts, the shines are for the most shine from a polygonal stone. Instead of looking like a hall of mirrors, glowing cut stones allow light to be reflected from below and bring light back from the top of the stone. These faces are often at an angle to help reflect.

·        Round Cut : Round gemstone cuts are the most popular gemstone cutter. Because they are perfectly rounded, they throw a lot of beautiful sparkle. Although this is more evident in diamonds, round cuts are still stunning options for the Blue Topaz ring.

Topaz in another language

·        Traditional Chinese:黃玉

·        托帕石

·        Turkish:Topaz

·        Bosnian:Topaz

·        Bulgarian:Топаз

·        Ukrainian:Топаз

·        Croatian:Topaz

·        Czech:Topaz

·        Danish:Topas

·        Dutch:Topaas

·        Estonian:Topaas

·        Arabic:زبرجد

·        Basque:Topazio

·        Russian:Топаз

·        Simplified Chinese:黄玉

·        托帕石

·        Slovak:Topás

·        Slovenian:Topaz

·        Spanish:Topacio

·        Swedish:Topas

·        Pyrofysalit

·        Farsi/Persian:زبرجد هندی

·        Finnish:Topaasi

·        French:Topaze

·        German:Topas

·        Hebrew:טופז

·        Hungarian:Topáz

·        Italian:Topazio

·        Japanese:トパーズ

·        Korean:황옥

·        Lithuanian:Topazas

·        Norwegian:Topas

·        Polish:Topaz

·        Portuguese:Topázio

·        Romanian:Topaz

BIRTHSTONES & ANNIVERSARIES

blue topaz is a birthstone for December and Precious topaz is a birthstone for November . Imperial topaz is the gem of the 23rd anniversary and Blue topaz is the gem of the 4th anniversary .

How can we recognize the reality of Topaz ?

There are several easy ways to identify a real topaz apart from quartz. The first characteristic you need to remember is the difficulty factor. A real topaz is also cool to the touch and easily electrified. In addition, an original topaz scratches the glass while quartz leaves no trace.