Written by Jane Chadwick on Apr 28, 2023 | 6 Comments
It was the Irish poet, William Drennan, who is credited with first coining the term ‘Emerald Isle’ in his poem “When Erin first rose.” Ever since, Emerald has been synonymous with Ireland.
For those interested in learning more about the beautiful May birthstone or considering investing in a piece for a birthday, a 20th or 35th anniversary gift, or just because, below are a few facts that we bet you didn’t know about Emerald:
It might sound a little odd given their name, but Emeralds can vary quite a bit in color! The ‘Forty shades of green’ in the famous Johnny Cash song is actually a little closer to reality. Emeralds range in color from deep green to pale green hues. The deep green gems are the most prized and expensive emeralds. The lovely variety of color is due to the exact amount of trace elements, Chromium, Vanadium and Iron, in the stone.
The color we see in jewelry also depends on the cut. A skilled gemologist can give a paler stone a darker appearance with a deep cut and fewer facets (flat surfaces on the stone). Or a darker stone can be made to appear lighter with a shallow cut and more facets. Given all that, it is not surprising that this gem has a specific cut named after it, “the emerald cut.” Many fine emeralds are prepared in this iconic style.
When many people think of rare or expensive gemstones their first thought is of diamonds. But it is emerald that is among the rarest of all gemstones and so often has a price tag to match. They are part of a family of gems called beryl and are mined all over the world including Central and South America and Africa. But even in established emerald mines the availability of high-quality or large gems is limited.
It's in part this rarity that has lead not just the Irish to prize beautiful emerald. Cleopatra, reportedly loved this stone and to guarantee herself high quality gems, took ownership of all emerald mines in Egypt! The British Crown jewels are also adorned with spectacular emeralds. And of course Elizabeth Taylor, queen of the silver screen, famously cherished beautiful emerald jewelry. Her stunning emerald pendant sold for an eye-watering $6.1 million in 2011.
Despite their rarity, if you are looking to maximise the size of a stone for your budget then emeralds could be an option to explore. The karat of a gemstone is calculated using its weight. Karat for karat, emerald comes out on top when compared to diamond. A 1 karat emerald will be a larger stone than a 1 karat diamond as diamond is more dense than emerald. Very large emeralds like those in the British crown jewels can be hundreds of karats. More typical and affordable sizes for jewelry range from 1 mm to 5 mm for stones used in decoration (0.02 to 0.50 karat). Larger emeralds of 1 to 5 karats are typically reserved for center stones in marquee pieces of jewelry.
For diamond, clarity is a big driver in price of an individual stone. But inclusions in emerald are often viewed as desirable features. They can form lovely patterns, referred to in the trade as the emerald's jardin, or garden. They are so unique that they can actually increase value. Inclusions in emerald can also be assessed with the naked eye rather than under magnification like diamond, so no specialist equipment is required to assess a stone.
Perhaps it comes back to their stunning green color but emeralds have been mined for over 4000 years and are associated with an impressive list of mystical powers and uses! They were considered a symbol of eternal youth by the ancient Egyptians who liked to be buried with them! Romans thought gazing into them was useful to relieve stress and eye strain. And green was also the color for Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. Ancient legends also claim that placing an emerald under the tongue would reveal truth, allow a person to foresee the future and protect against evil spells! We wouldn’t recommend this particular practice!
More recently emerald has become synonymous with loyalty, new beginnings, and serenity, making it a meaningful stone for a gift as well as a beautiful gem to adorn lovely pieces of jewelry! We are proud to offer our customers a beautiful selection of emerald jewelry designed and made here in the “Emerald Isle.” If you are thinking that an emerald piece might be for you, have a look at our selection. Alternatively, get in touch and we would be delighted to answer any questions you might have about our beautiful emerald jewelry.
Have a question or something you're not entirely sure about when browsing our pieces? Please reach out. You can send us a note or give us a call—the Dublin workshop is here to make sure that you have a perfect experience from start to finish with My Irish Jeweler.
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Jane Chadwick
My Irish Jeweler
Born in Dublin but reared in Canada, as a child I had an interest in Ireland that will be familiar to many young emigrants. I was completely fascinated, wanting to know all about the land of my parents and grandparents. Rare month-long family trips back "Home" cemented my love for Ireland. And I wore my Irish heritage with pride, sporting my tiny silver Claddagh gifted to me by my Irish grandparents until my finger grew too large for it!
As a young adult I moved back to Dublin, studying Geology and Mineralogy in university at historic Trinity College Dublin. After living in Denmark and the Netherlands working as a scientist and university mineralogy lecturer, I finally settled back home in Dublin. I joined the growing family at My Irish Jeweler in 2016, bringing my useful knowledge of metals and minerals as well as my perspective as an Irish emigrant with a love for HOME.
Hi Jamie. Thank you for getting in touch. The team were touched by your story and so delighted to hear you are so happy with your beautiful ring. We hope it brings you and your charming fiancé many years of love, loyalty and friendship. And if you make it over our side of the Atlantic for that trip we would be happy to stick the kettle on if you would like to stop by! All the best from the My Irish Jeweler team.
Hello, so I believe I may have found the world's largest known red beryl it's specific gravity is 3.355 and it's solid weight is 519.4 grams and it's solid strawberry to raspberry colored and translucent. Where can I get something like this looked at? I've called all over and emailed all over and nobody takes me seriously. Also it's 100% natural no heat no treatments, zero. What could this fetch for a price?
Hi Shelby, how exciting. Red beryl is quite rare. Unfortunately we wouldn't have experience or cause to work with this stone but imagine you should be able to find a local mineral appraiser who would carry out a specimen appraisal for you. Best of luck with it!
Thank you for this article about emeralds. It is very interesting. Can you explain a little more about inclusions? How do they come about? How long before a clear emerald will gain inclusions? Any knowledge on this will be very helpful.
Hi Kellie, So glad that you found the blog helpful! That's why we do what we do. To your question on inclusions all minerals, including emerald, have small inclusions - gas, liquid, or other solid materials - that are trapped in the stone as it forms within a rock. So the inclusions are there right from the start. Which means an emerald without inclusions is certainly lab made. Hopefully that's helped! All the best, Liz
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Got engaged with the heart shaped diamond Irish Claddagh ring. It’s gorgeous! My fiancé knew I was half Irish and wanted a meaningful type of ring after 41 years of being apart- this is stunning!! Everyone is amazed how beautiful it is and they are all jealous! I am thrilled with this ring! I can’t say enough about how wonderful the customer service is and eager to go back to Ireland to show off my ancestors country to my love since he’s never been. Thanks to everyone at my Irish jeweler!