Obscure Gemstones II Trivia Quiz

Answer: Iran

Onyx comes in a variety of colors, including white, which is largely produced in Iran. Turkey produces beautiful honey onyx. Black onyx has been mined in India for centuries. White onyx has been used throughout history to make bowls, cups, and vases as well as jewelry. Onyx has a hardness of 6.5-7.0 meaning care should be taken with it as it is susceptible to chipping and cracking.

Answer: Tourmaline

These are all types of tourmaline. Rubellite is a lovely shade of pinkish-red. Indicolite tourmaline is deep blue in color. Watermelon tourmaline is a bi-color stone of red and green (just like a watermelon). Most tourmaline is mined in Brazil or East Africa but can be found all over the world. Tourmaline comes in almost every color of the rainbow and rates a 7-7.5 on the Mohs scale of hardness.

Answer: Carnelian

Carnelian has been used in jewelry making for centuries. Often found in tombs, it was believed to provide the carrier with an easier passage to the next life. It has often been associated with fertility and menstruation. It is usually a lovely shade of brownish red. It rates a 7.0 on the Mohs scale and is mined in Asia, Africa, Australia, and both North and South America.

Answer: It is radioactive

The usually green gemstone ekanite is very unusual in that it is naturally radioactive. Most ekanite is mined in Sri Lanka. It is occasionally found to be chatoyant like a cats eye stone and has been found with asterisms, like a star ruby and star sapphire.

This stone is usually not completely translucent, but heating will help it clear. While it usually comes in shades of green it has been found in dark red. It has a hardness of 6 on the Mohs scale.

Answer: Green

Malachite is an opaque green gemstone that has bands of lighter and darker greens. Mines in Zaire produce some of the most highly prized stones. This is an old stone that is mined in Europe, Africa and more recently North America. It has a rich folklore and is believed to help the owner to make money and gain power.

It was thought that the stone would shatter whenever danger was near as a warning to the person wearing it. A soft stone, it only rates a 3.5-4 on the Mohs scale and great care must be taken when setting this stone in jewelry.

Answer: Garnet

Garnet is a wonderful gemstone that most people think is red. Mandarin garnet is orange, demantoid is a green variety and rhodalite is a pinkish-red shade. There are many more varieties. Garnets were believed to help depression and strengthen the blood and the heart.

Some garnets change color depending on which angle they are viewed at. Garnets rate about 7 on the Mohs scale and are mined on every continent except Antarctica.

Answer: Iolite

Iolite is often called water sapphire because it was found in creek beds and has a beautiful blue color similar to blue sapphires. It is often used as a substitute for sapphire even though it is a softer stone(7.0-7.5). Norse legends include tales of Viking using the stone for navigation because of its ability to be used as a polarising filter. Most iolite is mined in southeast Asia and in parts of Africa. Cutting and faceting iolite takes great skill. If a mistake is made, the stone will not be a beautiful blue but rather a yellowish-gray color.

It has a hardness of 7.0-7.5 and has been used in jewelry for centuries.

Answer: Tanzanite

Tanzanite was first discovered in 1967 in the Merelani Hills of Tanzania. It is a beautiful blue color with hints of violet. This gemstone rates 6.5-7 on the Mohs scale and must be worn with care. As a general rule the larger the stone the more vibrant the color and greater the fire. Because of its beautiful color, its clarity and its rareness, it is one of the most expensive of gemstones.

Answer: Alexandrite

Alexandrite was discovered in Russia on the day the Tsar Alexander II came of age in 1834. It is very highly valued because of its ability to change color and its rarity. It changes from a shade of greenish-blue to a shade of reddish-pink when the light changes.

It is rarely found in sizes over 2 carats. It is a great stone for jewelry as it has a hardness of 8.5 and does not require special care. It is believed to tap into the wearer's imagination and protect the wearer from madness.

Answer: Ruby

Red corundum is called ruby. All other colors are called sapphires. Ruby is one of the most valuable of gemstones. Burma has been home to some of the world's greatest rubies for centuries. While rubies are translucent, they are very rarely flawless. The chrome in the corundum causes the stone to be red and also provides what is called silk, which causes most rubies to have small flaws. Rubies are one of the hardest of gemstones rating a 9 on the hardness scale.