25 Facts About Gemstones

When it comes to gemstones there is a lot of history and interesting facts behind each of these beautiful stones. If you are a gemstone enthusiast or want to learn more about gems checkout these 25 intriguing facts below. 

25 Facts about Gemstones

1. The most popular and expensive gemstone cut style is a round cut.
2. Cutting stones takes time. For small gemstones it takes 4-5 hours to cut a stone, medium size gem cutting is 5-8 hours and other stone shapes can take 2 or more days. 
3. The first gemstone mined in the US was tourmaline.
4. A round cut gem delivers the most sparkle.
5. The most expensive and rare opal is a black opal. 
6. The highest diamond grade is colorless.
7. The most popular faceted style cuts include round, emerald, princess, baguette, opal, pear, heart marquise, trilliant, cushion and radiant.  
8. The softest gemstone is amber.  
9. Eye-clean for grading colored stones means with inclusions to the naked eye. 
10. The rarest color of a quartz comes in the color blue. 
11. The most expensive gemstone in the world is a blue diamond.
12. A diamond is the hardest gemstone in the world. 
13. Over the centuries ruby has been associated with wealth and power. 
14. Pearls are gems, not stones. 
15. There are about 200 natural gemstones. 
16. Tourmalines and opals are the most colorful gemstones.
17. The rarest birthstone is a red diamond. 
18. The average cost of a diamond is between $1,800.00-$12,000.00
19. Sapphires come in eight colors: colorless, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet, and purple.
20. Australia produces 95% of the worlds most precious opals. 
21. The rarest gemstone is the musgravite. 
22. An amethyst is named for the Greek word for “sober,” and believed to remedy drunkenness. This crystal is credited with relieving stress and promoting peace of mind.
23. Birthstones started back in the deuterocanonical period, but the modern birthstone list was developed in 1912 by the Jewelers of America.
24. An alexandrite appears greenish-blue to dark yellow-green during the day, but in incandescent light it looks pink to red. 
25. Gem are measured by a scale called the Mohs Hardness Scale