The most expensive, rare and large gems

The harder it is to get a nugget, the less of its locations on the planet, the more expensive it will cost. Limited inventory makes the price of a gem inconceivably expensive. But demand is high, and as long as it grows, the cost of the rarest gems on the planet will grow with it.

They can be precious and semi-precious. In the first list are stones, which are very rare in nature, and they acquire their best decorative qualities after jewelry processing. And the greater the weight and decorativeness of the stone, the more valuable it is. Consider the most expensive (in value) gems of the planet.

• Red diamond. It is distinguished by a rich purple color. Nowhere in the world can it be mined except in Australia (we are talking about large localities). In a small amount of gem found in Brazil. The cost of a red diamond is about $ 1 million.

• Grandidierite. It is a transparent nugget with a large amount of iron, which is able to shine in three shades at once - white, pale blue and greenish. In the world of such stones there are only 8 copies, equivalent in value to the characteristics presented to the nugget. The cost of the stone reaches at least 100 thousand dollars.

• Padparaja Romantic name translates as "sunrise". If the gem is cut, it will sparkle with a red, pinkish color, as well as a salmon shade. The location of the stone is only 2. It costs about 30 thousand dollars.

• Jade. Green sacred stone, honored by the ancient Aztec. The figure of Buddha, the symbol of Thailand, is made of this stone. And he is known as the talisman of Jade (whence the name originated), the main character of the internationally popular telenovela “Clone”. The cost of the stone is about 20 thousand dollars.

• Diamond. He is known as the hardest stone of the planet. The price is influenced by the properties of a particular instance. The highest quality will cost about 15 thousand dollars.

The list can be continued and there will definitely be sapphire and emerald. Sapphire has a bright blue color, emerald green. Their price fluctuates in the limit of 6-8 thousand dollars. In the same list will be alexandrite, tourmaline paraiba, ruby.

Semi-precious stones are less elite than their fellows. Therefore, they are more affordable. An example of such a stone is aquamarineFor one carat the cost will be 30-60 dollars. Amethyst is considered the most expensive among the quartz.

They become “superstars” - they are sold at the largest auctions, media and jewelry experts, art dealers, etc., track their fate. We will tell about the famous large minerals.

• Mogul. This is one of the largest emeralds on Earth, it was sold at the beginning of the millennium for $ 2.2 million at the Christie's auction. The weight of the stone is -217.8 carats, height - 10 cm. The lines of the Muslim prayer are engraved on it, as well as the oriental pattern in a floral form. The name of the owner of the stone was not disclosed.

• Yellow Tiffany Diamond. This is a very large stone, its weight before cutting was 287.42 carats. Stone was mined in South Africa, bought in 1878 by the American jeweler Charles Tiffany. A gold bird inlaid with diamonds and rubies was placed on an already faceted stone. The decoration was worn only 2 times, one of them was the scenes of the world movie hit “Breakfast at Tiffany” with Audrey Hepburn.

• White Diamond Cullinan (or "Star of Africa"). Initially, he weighed 3026 carats. Found it at the beginning of the century in South Africa, it was assumed that the stone is a fragment of an even larger crystal. In 1908, it was split, a few diamonds were made of stone, and only one piece of 69.5 carats was left uncut. One of the "fragments" of the stone is inserted into the crown of the British Empire.

• The largest ruby, not yet named, found in Greenland. Its weight is 440 carats, the structure is complete. The ruby ​​is second in hardness after diamond, although it is 140 times softer than the “stone of stones”.

• Diamond Regent. In 1701, a stone of 410 carats in weight was found in the mines of Golconda. Many misadventures and human deaths are associated with it. Today, the "damned" diamond is stored in the Louvre.

• Sapphire "Lone Star". His weight - 9179 carats, had a different name - Harol Roper. Among sapphires, in principle, many well-known large stones. For example, the famous "Eye of Allah" adorned the throne of Shah Nadir, and the sapphire of "Logan" in 62 carats was adorned in John Rockefeller's ring.

It is worth mentioning here a stone that is known even to those who have little interest in jewels. Remember that huge, sea-colored pendant, which was worn by Oscar-winning “Titanic” Rose’s heroine? By the way, the jewelery had a prototype, the fatal diamond Hope.

For example, the jeweler, who originally sold the stone to Louis XIV, tore a pack of dogs. The king himself subsequently got hurt by a rusty nail and died from blood poisoning. The next owner of the stone was Marie Antoinette, who, as you know, was awaiting the guillotine. The new owner of the stone, Henry Hope, died of a very strange disease, his son was poisoned, his grandson lost his fortune. And in this list are some more terrible tragedies.

When James Cameron was looking for an "actor" for the role of a blue diamond, he went through a lot of expensive, unique, beautiful options. But he rejected everything. He found the real blue diamond to be very dark, sapphires seemed to him too dull. But tanzanite conquered Cameron immediately. And this is also a very expensive stone, because it is mined only in African Tanzania. For the best romantic scenes Tanzanite itself was worthy of an Oscar, after all, after the success of the film, thousands of fans were waiting for a copy of Rose's necklace on sale.

To measure the hardness of the mineral, the Mohs scale is used. Friedrich Moos - German geologist, crystallographer, has developed a scale for comparing metals by hardness using the scratching method. This means that scratches and grooves were created on the surface of the mineral with another mineral (or other material). What is included in the list of the most durable and strong stones?

1. Diamond. Formally, he deservedly leads on the Mohs scale (10). The hardness of the stone depends on its purity. And even the purest and hardest diamond can be scratched, but only with other diamonds. And although the primacy in the scale of hardness keeps the diamond, it is a bit outdated data. Imagine how many minerals a person could not yet explore. And relatively recently, researchers said - there are 2 more stones that have managed to surpass the diamond in hardness. This is wurtzite boron nitride, which in natural conditions is formed as a result of a volcanic eruption. It is 18% stronger than diamond. Lonsdaleite is a hexagonal diamond, in its grid of 6, and not 8 (as in diamond) atoms. He is harder than a diamond by 58%.
2. Corundum. It is a crystalline form of alumina with traces of various inclusions. Blue corundum is known to us as sapphire, red as ruby, orange-yellow - padparadja. Mohs hardness 9.
3. Topaz. Hardness 8 on the Mohs scale. It is a silicate mineral of aluminum and fluorine, actively used in jewelry, popular with the buyer.It is considered semi-precious.
4. Quartz. Gets 7 on the Mohs scale. After orthoclase, it is the second most common mineral. Widely used in industry.
5. Orthoclase. An important mineral that is involved in glass production, ceramic, porcelain, may be part of the cleaning powders. Gets 6 on the Mohs scale.

Following these stones go apatite, fluorite, calcite, gypsum and talc.

And now about the stones, the names of which you could never hear before.

• Musgravit. In Australia, in the area of ​​the Musgrave mountain range, the mineral was first discovered. Then he was found in Madagascar, in Greenland, Tanzania, even in Antarctica. Of particular value are green and purple musgravites.
• Payne. He was discovered in Burma in 1956. The mineralogist Arthur Payne saw a strange mineral, and the find was named after him. Today, bright red gems have a special value, while brown ones are cheaper. In recent years, gem has greatly increased in price.
• Yeremeevit. A stone was found, found in Siberia, in honor of the Russian academician Yeremeyev. It can be transparent, and maybe sky blue and pale green. Hard stone (fragile it just can not be called) with a bright shine, worth $ 10,000 per carat.
• Taaffeit. The peculiarity of the stone is that it was discovered after processing. The gem is very rare, the color can be from pale pink to lavender.

As for the most "star" stones in the world ranking, it is difficult to choose a clear leader. But unusual, for example, can be called Graff Pink, it is the most expensive pink diamond on the planet. Lawrence Graff is the world's largest gem dealer, in 2010 he bought a 24.78 carat pink diamond.

The world of stones and rare minerals is like a child's game of Treasure Island, it is difficult to get enough of it and lose interest if you already delved into the history of mineralogy, if you have tracked the fate of not one great stone and not one human history associated with it. Many questions appear: why do people give crazy money for some jewelry, why do they need such gems, what is their real value?

For the most expensive gems, see below.