opaz occurs in many localities throughout the world

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Topaz occurs in many localities throughout the wo

Topaz

Topaz takes a high polish and makes a spectacular jewelry stone. Its specific gravity is much higher than the typical quartz imitations, so unset stones are fairly easy to distinguish just on the basis of "heft."

Some topaz tends to fade in sunlight. This is especially true pale-brown material from the U.S.S.R. and Mexico, as well as from Japan and the Thomas Range, Utah. Sometimes irradiated stones v. also bleach out in sunlight, but the dark-blue material seems to be fairly stable.

rld. Brazil is ' chief supplier of colorless, pale-sherry, and blue varieties. Ouro Preto Brazil is the world's chief source of tine golden and yellow top. Mining is a hand operation, and the total output per day is quite small. contributing to the scarcity of these stones.

Topaz

Fine blue and greenish crystals come from the Ural Mountains, U.S.S.R., and these are avidly sought by collectors. Colorless, yellow and sherry-colored topaz is found in San Luis Potosi and Durango Mexico. Good crystals come from Japan, the Malagasy Republic, Ireland, Rhodesia, Nigeria, and, in the United States, Colorado, Mail], Now, Hampshire, and Utah. Topaz is abundant in the gem gravels of Burma and Sri Lanka, where it is recovered as a by-product in the mining . and sapphire.

Topaz has not been synthesized in the laboratory on a commercial basis. So-called "synthetic topaz" is actually synthetic corundum that en made in a suitable color.Consumer Tips-The most frequently misused terms in the gem trade re "smoky topaz," "citrine topaz," and related names. These are tradenames devised by jewelry sellers to sell quartz, a common, inex¬pensive gem material, as topaz, a fairly rare, costly gem with optical properties superior to those of quartz.

Loose gems of topaz and quartz can easily be distinguished on the basis of heft (the topaz has a much higher specific gravity) and brilliance (topaz has a higher refractive index. Set stones, especially when small, can be difficult or impossible to distinguish with the naked eye.

In purchasing a yellow stone labeled "topaz" the buyer should always insist on verification and guarantee of the authenticity and natural origin of the stone. Suspicion should be aroused if a "topaz" ring containing a large yellow-orange stone is priced at only $100 or $200. If the stone is precious topaz, its value might be more than $100 per carat, exclusive of the setting.

Blue topaz has appeared on the gem market in increasing quantities. This is largely due to the escalating price of aquamarine, and the need for an inexpensive, natural blue gem on the marketplace. To many jewelers, however, the material is sufficiently new that a customer bringing a blue topaz to a shop for evaluation might be met with the comment "that can't be topaz, there is no such thing as blue topaz." This problem will diminish as more blue topaz is seen in the jewelry.

Topaz, although listed as the birthstone for November, is seldom - - except in the larger jewelry shops. This is a shame, because in r and pale colors topaz may cost only a few dollars per carat. There is enough such material available to make distribution possible on a much wider scale than currently seen.


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