Emerald

Green beryl colored by chromium or vanadium — one of the four classic precious gems.

Emerald specimen — Photo: Géry PARENT, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

How to identify emerald

Deep green six-sided prisms with flat ends.
Almost always has internal fractures and inclusions.
Hardness 7.5–8.

Often confused with

Tourmaline
Green tourmaline has a triangular cross-section and striations.
Compare side by side
Olivine
Peridot is yellowish green and grainy, not prismatic.
Compare side by side
Dioptase
Dioptase is softer and forms short rhombic crystals.
Compare side by side

Where it's found

Muzo and Chivor, Colombia
Kafubu, Zambia
Minas Gerais, Brazil

Uses

Gemstones.

Rock tumbling

Can be tumbled with care.

Did you know?

Most emeralds are treated with oil or resin to hide their natural cracks.

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