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| Color |
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Pastel bubblegum to hot
pink |
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| Gem Family |
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Pink tourmaline is a
member of the tourmaline family, the gem world's
most colorful gem. Tourmaline is found in every
color of the rainbow and also sometimes shows more
than one color in a single crystal. |
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| Source |
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Pink tourmaline is found
all over the globe, including Brazil, Afghanistan,
California, Madagascar, and Mozambique. |
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| Clarity |
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Pink tourmalines often
have inclusions, especially if the color is bright. |
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| Size Range |
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Sizes from 0.5 carat
to 5 carats are in regular supply. Much larger stones
are also available. |
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| Shapes Available |
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Ovals, cushions, round
brilliants, trillions, barion cuts, princess cuts,
and checkerboard cushions. |
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| Enhancement |
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The pink colors of tourmaline
can be enhanced with exposure to radiation. Because
this enhancement is undetectable, you should always
assume that pink tourmaline has been enhanced. The
color is stable and does not require any special
care. |
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| Lore & History |
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Because its colors mimic
those of other gems, tourmaline was often misidentified
in the ancient world. Some of the "rubies" in the
Russian Crown Jewels are, in fact, tourmaline. The
Empress Dowager Tz'u Hsi, the last Empress of China,
loved pink tourmaline so much that she was buried
with her carved tourmaline pillow. At the turn of
the century, she bought almost a ton of tourmaline
from the newly discovered Himalayan Mine in California. |
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| Toughness &
Hardness |
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Tourmaline has a Mohs
hardness of 7 to 7.5 and is durable and suitable
for everyday wear. |
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| Care & Cleaning |
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Clean with mild dish
soap: use a toothbrush to scrub behind the stone
where dust can collect. |
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| Price Range |
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$50 to $500 per carat,
with large sizes commanding more. |
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| Special Characteristics |
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Tourmaline has unusual
electrical properties: crystals acquire a polarized
electrical charge when heated or compressed. This
property has also made tourmaline the latest miracle
ingredient in cleansing lotions: manufacturers say
the gem can increase a product's ability to pull
pollutants from the pores. |
