 Do
you love both the purple of amethyst and the sunny gold of citrine?
Sometimes amethyst and citrine colors are found in the same
crystal of quartz. These bicolor yellow and purple quartz gemstones
are called ametrine.
With ametrine,
you can have both gem colors for the price of one! Ametrine
is especially inexpensive when you consider that it comes
from only one mine in the world.
The Anahi
Mine in Bolivia is the major world producer of ametrine. The
mine first became famous in the seventeenth century when a
Spanish conquistador received it as a dowry when he married
a princess from the Ayoreos tribe named Anahi. Ametrine was
introduced to Europe through the conquistador's gifts to the
Spanish queen.
Ametrine
is most typically faceted in a rectangular shape with a 50/50
pairing of amethyst and citrine. Sometimes a checkerboard
pattern of facets is added to the top to increase light reflection.
Ametrine can also be cut to blend the two colors so that the
resulting stone is a mix of yellow, purple, and peach tones
throughout the stone. Ametrine is also popular among artistic
cutters and carvers who play with the colors, creating landscapes
in the stone.
Ametrine
is a very durable gemstone suited for a variety of jewelry
uses. Most sizes and shapes are available but the color contrast
is most pronounced in sizes over seven carats.
So why
compromise when you can have two varieties of quartz for the
price of one!
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