This is a beautiful gemstone (GEM). It shifts to blue green in my yellowish light, but the well saturated blue in nature light is about as good as it gets for Indicolite. It weighs 2.30 carats and has a standard round brilliant cut.
My principle supplier from Africa has pretty much given up on supplying a provenance for his tourmaline rough. He generally deals indirectly with the mines threw a “miner” who really is a whole sale intermediary. The natural inclination of these miners is to tell you a location that may get themselves more money for the rough and that possible lying is compound by many mine owners not wanting people to know where their mine is. They might not own the land (most probable) and/or don’t want more buyers competing with him for material from his own mine. It seems that stealing from the owner is endemic in Africa and if a lot of buyers appear at the mine, then there is even a greater inducement for the actual miners to steal from the owner. In fact I was told a truism, “The owner of the mine never get the best material.”
Why I digressed into provenance is that this beautiful medium dark blue to blue green round probably came from Namibia, but I am not sure. I also think that many other blues, particularly the rich highly saturated blues and those that shift to green in my yellowish light also came from Namibia, but unless I am sure, I don’t mention provenance.
When you have a gemstone with the complete attributes to be a GEM (superior gemstone) it is hard to say much more about it. In the posted gemstone’s medium dark tone range this saturated blue couldn’t get better unless shifting to a blue green in yellowish light holds it back from being a GEM. Your call, but either way this is a beautiful gemstone. It weighs 2.30 carats and has a standard round brilliant cut.
Bruce
Bruce
