Zircon gemstones can come is a wide variety of colors and sizes, but is most commonly seen in light shades of blue, which is why it is the birthstone for the month of December. Other colors include green, dark red, orange, purple, yellow, and especially brown. There are three different types of zircons based on their color. The popular blue and green gemstones are called Starlight zircons. The light yellow to clear zircons are referred to as Jargon, and the remaining colors are Hyacinth zircon gemstones.

The majority of zircons are found in Southeast Asia, but you will also find them in countries such as Brazil, Tanzania, and Nigeria. The majority of the popular blue zircon gemstones are mined in Cambodia and Burma.

History of Zircon

Zircon is thought to be the oldest mineral on earth. In Western Australia, zircon samples were found that dated back 4.4 billion years ago, making it older than the moon. It is believed that the Earth was formed about 4.5 billion years ago and the moon only 4 billion years ago. This discovering sparked so much interest that the field of Zirconology was born.

Much question has been raised upon the discovery because evidence of water was also dated back to the formation of the mineral. Zircons are alluvial deposits meaning that they were placed in the deep layers of the earth by water. Water was not believed to have been on the Earth when the zircon gemstones were formed, which raises the question about how they were put where they were by water.

More than just the formation of this gemstone amazes scientists, but also the unique properties of zircons. The unique features of the gemstone make it extremely brilliant, and very comparable to diamonds. Before synthetic diamonds were created, pure rough zircons were used as “fake” diamonds.

Properties of Zircon

These gemstones are treasured because of their two unique features, one being how extremely dense they are and the other being that they have a high birefringence. Zircons are some of the densest gemstones. This greatly influences the way you would compare them to other gemstones. If you were to place a one carat diamond next to a one carat zircon, the zircon would look about half the size of the diamond, but would still weigh the same. When buying zircon gemstones, keep that in mind so that you are not surprised when your, slightly smaller than imagined, gemstone arrives.

All gemstones are measured using the refractive index, this measure how well light bends and reflects through the stone. When a gemstone is considered birefringence, they have two different measurements of the refractive index. When light hits a zircon, it splits into two paths. This will cause rough zircons to appear fuzzy when you look through them. Special treatment is used to make the rough zircons more clear. The refractive index itself is extremely high and almost as high as diamonds. This index paired with its birefringence feature, makes this stone one of the most brilliant gemstones.

Although zircon only has a hardness of around 7 on the Mohs Hardness Scale, it is capable of handling very extreme high temperatures. Generally speaking, the harder a stone, the higher temperature it can withstand, but once again zircon’s features are unique. Not only are some zircon gemstones used for jewelry, but it is also mined for other applications. The gemstones tend to be mined for its contents of zirconium (an ingredient in most abrasives that strongly resembles titanium), and also used to create zirconium oxide (used in extreme temperatures and even for nuclear projects).

No individual rough zircon gemstone is famous as other gemstones, but the entire family of zircons is famous for the way it is created, making it sought after by most gemstone collectors.

Treatment of Zircon

For most rough gemstones, treatment usually means just polishing and cutting the stone, but when it comes to zircons, the treatment process is not that simple. Zircon gemstones are heat treated to not only enhance the color, but also to create certain colors altogether. Although the most popular color for zircons is the light blue, those gemstones start out as green or brown rough zircon gemstones. The heat alters the color, but green zircons that are changed to blue can still appear green on one side when looked at under a bright light. Most of the other groups of zircons are just treated for enhancement, where some are not heat treated at all. The scarily rare rose colored stones that come from Tanzania and the Cambodian orange colored stones are left in their natural state. This is because the colors are formed by radioactive elements that consist of the gemstones’ makeup. But no matter what color the zircon gemstone is, it must be cut perfectly when used for jewelry

When other gemstones are needed to be cut, it is just to clean up the shape and to create a carat size. For rough zircon gemstones, the cutting process is crucial to eliminate the effects caused by the double light dispersion feature. If not cut correctly, it will appear as a blurry gemstone and possibly hurt the value of it..

Both untouched rough zircon and polished zircon gemstones are valuable and unique. They are not only valued in the world of gemstones for their amazing features, but also by scientist and engineers. Zircon is a gemstone that has been around since almost the beginning of the world, and is one that every gem collector needs. For more information Glitters Gemstones

Author: GinetteBoazman

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