The Yellow Color Gemstone

Citrine, also called the citrine fortz is a mineral variety of quartz. Citrine is found in a range of colors ranging from yellow to orange to brown to gold shades of transparent quartz. The name citrine is derived from the French name for lemon, citron, citrines have juicy lemon color .Citrine have ferric impurities and are rarely found in nature.

Most commercial citrine is in fact artificially heated amethyst. The artificially generated color of citrine tends to have much more orange or reddish caste than those found in nature, which are usually pale yellow. Citrine made by heating amethyst may be returned to purple color by bombarding it with beta radiation. The leading producer of naturally mined citrine is Brazil, with much of its production coming from the state of Rio Grande do Sul. In ancient times citrine was carried as a protection against snake venom and evil thoughts.

Citrine is often mistaken for more expensive orange yellow topaz and is often sold as topaz by unscrupulous dealers. However citrine is considered as an alternative to topaz as the birthstone for November.

Citrine is one of the several quartz varieties available. Other varieties of quartz are as follows:

Amethyst- is the purple gemstone variety. Milky Quartz- is the cloudy white variety. Prasiolite- is a leek green variety. Rock Crystal- is a clear variety that is also used as a gemstone. Rose Quartz- is a pink to reddish pink variety. Smoky Quartz- is a brown to grey variety.

Characteristics of Citrine- Classification- Mineral Hardness (Mohs Scale) - 7 Molecular formula- SiO2 Composition- Silicon Dioxide. Crystal Shape- Octagon. Color/ Spectrum- Amber Yellow. Atomic (Crystal) Structure- 8 Sided Crystals. Index of Refraction- 1.54-1.55 Density (Relative)- 2.67 Light interaction- Clean Uses - Jewelry.

This gemstone can be scratched rather easily and its color will darken when exposed to a lot of sunlight. This darkening effect is permanent, so care is needed to keep the gemstone out of excessive amounts of sunlight.

Citrine Jewelry- Novembers birthstone citrine sparkles like honey and looks perfect when set in glistening yellow gold. They make elegant center stones for rings and pendants. The brilliance of the stone is at its best when set in yellow gold

About The Author Citrine, also called the citrine fortz is a mineral variety of quartz. Citrine is found in a range of colors ranging from yellow to orange to brown to gold shades of transparent quartz. The name citrine is derived from the French name for lemon, citron, citrines have juicy lemon color .Citrine have ferric impurities and are rarely found in nature.