Peridot Beads Peridot beads have also been called gems of the sun. Peridot is the birthstone for August. Peridot is pronounced: pair-uh-dough. The ancient Egyptians believed that peridot became invisible in sunlight. Peridot has been mined on earth for centuries, is sometimes found in volcanic nodules, and has even been found in meteorites. Some of the peridot found in meteorites, called pallasites, have been faceted and used in jewelry making. Peridot was mined in the Red Sea as early as 1300 B.C. It was found on the island of Topazios and was consequently called "topaz." A new discovery of peridot was made in the Kashmir region of Pakistan in 1994 that has yielded very high quality and large peridot crystals. It is also found in volcanic deposits in the Southwestern U.S. as well as Brazil and Myanmar (Burma.) Peridot is the gem variety of the mineral olivine, a magnesium/iron silicate. The quality of peridot is based on the lack of visible flaws and the bright pure green color, with any brown tinge making the value lower. It can be found in pale yellow-green to yellow/pale yellow-green to yellow/yellow to yellow orange. Peridot is often used as a faceted and calibrated gem, but is also often made into gemstone beads. When a beam of light enters a peridot crystal, it is refracted in a way that creates a split image of anything viewed through the peridot. To a jeweler, this splitting of light from adjacent facets being strongly doubled is very valuable, as a faceted peridot will have much more sparkle than glass or other imitation. Inclusions in peridot are also strongly doubled. Peridot may have small inclusions of brown biotite, black chromite, red pyrope garnet, spinel or liquid and/or gas-filled inclusions that resemble fried eggs. In jewelry making, peridot pairs equally well with gold or silver metal. Peridot beads mate well with red tiger eye, serpentin (new jade,) yellow turquoise, unakite, tourmaline, silver leaf jasper, amethyst, and dark green aventurine. common treatments: none special care: avoid impact and abrasion hardness: 6.5 - 7 |
