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Emerald

Emerald is the bluish green to green variety of beryl, a mineral species that includes aquamarine.

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Figure 1. Eight Kazakhstani emeralds (left) and three Ukrainian beryl and emerald samples (right), with gemological tweezers shown for scale. The leftmost Ukrainian emerald has a chemistry between that of aquamarine and emerald. Photo by Emily Lane; courtesy of Gerhard Franz and Oleksii Vyshnevskyi.

Emeralds and Beryl from Kazakhstan and Ukraine

Rhiana Elizabeth Henry, August 29, 2025

A report from GIA’s Carlsbad laboratory on emerald and beryl samples studied as part of an ongoing beryl characterization research project.

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These dendritic patterns in a partially filled fissure in an emerald resemble natural foliage, also known as jardin. Photomicrograph by Sameer Din Faqir; field of view 2.50 mm.

Dendritic Patterns in Emerald

Sameer Din Faqir, June 5, 2025

A partially filled fissure in an emerald exhibits patterns resembling natural foliage.

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Figure 2. Catherine de’ Medici’s sixteenth-century pendant, measuring approximately 5.5 × 4.0 × 1.4 cm and weighing 52.35 g, in enameled gold with emeralds and four colorless gems (BnF collection no. 56.336). Photo by Serge Oboukhoff; courtesy of the Museum of the National Library of France.

Emeralds in Catherine de’ Medici’s Pendant: An Unexpected Geographic Origin

Gérard Panczer, Robin Fesquet, Lasha Moshi, Geoffray Riondet, Marie-Laure Cassius-Duranton, Lætitia Gilles-Guéry, Aurélien Delaunay, and Stefanos Karampelas, June 5, 2025

Archival research and gemological characterization reveal the geographic origin of two emeralds set in a pendant linked to Catherine de’ Medici, Queen of France from 1547 to 1559.

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Interference thin films in Russian emerald resembling a sky filled with fireworks. Photomicrograph by Ungkhana Atikarnsakul; field of view 3.60 mm.

Fireworks Display in Russian Emerald

Ungkhana Atikarnsakul, November 1, 2024

The inclusion scene in a Russian emerald resembles fireworks illuminating a night sky.

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Figure 1. A 12.62 ct trapiche emerald with areas of near-colorless goshenite. Photo by Shunsuke Nagai.

Zoned Trapiche Emerald with Goshenite Overgrowth

Taku Okada and Makoto Miura, November 1, 2024

A 12.62 ct trapiche emerald with areas of goshenite is analyzed in GIA’s Tokyo laboratory.

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Figure 2. This gold and emerald pendant contains 61 Colombian emeralds with 33 stones missing, presumably lost during its residence on the seafloor for more than 300 years. The pendant is approximately 3.5 in. (8.9 cm) wide. Photo by Emily Lane.

Splendors from the Deep: Historic Treasures from a Spanish Shipwreck

Aaron C. Palke, Sona Tajiryan, Mel King, and Emily Lane, November 1, 2024

An in-depth look at jewelry recently recovered from a 1715 Spanish shipwreck.

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Figure 1. Emeralds in matrix and various cut stones from the Curlew mine in Western Australia. All stones were mined in 2023. The cut stones are untreated and range from 0.45 to 7.92 ct (triangular shape). Photo by Lhapsin Nillapat; courtesy of Matthew Allen (The Gemstone Trading Company).

New Emerald Production from the Curlew Mine, Western Australia

Wim Vertriest, Suwasan Wongchacree, and Polthep Sakpanich, August 2, 2024

GIA’s Bangkok laboratory studies emeralds from the Curlew mine’s recently renewed production.

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Cat’s-eye emerald (11.31 ct) and star emerald (4.99 ct) from Chitral, Pakistan. Photo by Lhapsin Nillapat; courtesy of Mohammed Ayub (Pretty Little Gem Co, Ltd, Bangkok).

Phenomenal Emeralds from Chitral, Pakistan

Wim Vertriest, May 3, 2024

GIA’s Bangkok laboratory encounters two phenomenal gems while examining a parcel of emeralds from Pakistan.

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Figure 1. Emerald and beryl specimens from Newfoundland, Canada. The chip on the right has a distinct green rim in this position, on its lower right edge. Photo by Emily Lane; courtesy of Art Gardner and Terry Russell.

Beryl from Newfoundland, Canada

Rhiana Elizabeth Henry, May 3, 2024

Beryl and emerald specimens from a recent discovery in Newfoundland are examined at GIA.

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Double cabochon cat’s-eye emerald weighing 5.11 ct and measuring 10.77 × 8.95 × 7.39 mm, from Goiás State, Brazil. Photo by Robert Weldon; courtesy of Douglas M. Liebman Estate Jeweler.

An Exceptional Cat’s-Eye Emerald

Eric Fritz, May 3, 2024

A double cabochon cat’s-eye emerald conjures fond memories for an estate dealer in Tucson.

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