Parisite in Colombian Quartz
The brownish rare earth carbonate parisite is known as an unusual Colombian mineral specimen, and as a diagnostic inclusion indicative of Colombian origin when observed in emeralds (E.J. Gübelin and J.I. Koivula, Photoatlas of Inclusions in Gems, Vol. 1, ABC Edition, Zurich, 1986, p. 252). This rare mineral has also been reported to occur in quartz from Muzo, Colombia (E.J. Gübelin and J.I. Koivula, Photoatlas of Inclusions in Gemstones, Vol. 2, Opinio Verlag, Basel, Switzerland, 2005, p. 621).
A particularly striking example of rock crystal quartz with numerous brown crystals of parisite was recently examined at GIA’s Carlsbad laboratory, where the inclusions’ identity was confirmed by Raman analysis. Interestingly, three of the most prominent parisite inclusions in this rock crystal quartz displayed multiple crystal habits: a well-formed bipyramid, a tabular hexagonal prism, and a pyramidal form. Due to their euhedral nature, these inclusions are presumed have formed simultaneously with their host quartz and are therefore termed syngenetic. Also present in the stone were numerous fluid inclusions and an iridescent interface on the bipyramidal crystal.
This is the finest example of parisite as an inclusion in quartz that has been documented by GIA.
