Gem: Tourmaline
Weight: 0.78 ct.
Dimensions: 6.3 x 4.2 mm
Clarity: VVS+ / Loupe Clean
Origin: Rubaya Mine DRC
Treatments: None
Comments:
One of the best colors for tourmaline, bright grassy green, is often accompanied by a C axis color of olive green. The dichroism is always fun, but olive really puts a bit of a damper on otherwise gorgeous green gems.
Well, HERE is a green gem with NO olive tones at all. The green is bright, vivid, grassy green, and the blue is an extremely light-toned cerulean / sky blue. The C axis is a third color, very close to the main green color.
This gem shows in-hand, as a gloriously gradual taper from dark green to light green. This is a bit of an optical illusion, since the second color is only about 1/3 of the length, and there is an abrupt color change. It's a great optical illusion though, for effect. The green color is so dominant that it tricks your eye into seeing a gradual taper as opposed to a distinct point of color change.
It's large enough to be in a pendant or ring on its own, but in a perfect world, this great gem would be set with some friends.