December's True Blues: Blue Topaz, Blue Zircon, Tanzanite, and Turquoise

Welcome back to Rock Talk with Angel!

The final month of the year has an amazing array of 4 birthstones to choose from--December babies, you may just be the luckiest of any month! December has 4 distinct birthstone options to choose from, all in the blue to violet color family, so you'll be sure to find a gem that truly speaks to you! Read on for this special edition birthstone column: 3 facts each about the 4 famous birthstones of December!

3 Facts about Blue Topaz

1. Blue topaz is just one member of the Topaz group, which forms in many colors. Topaz is an 8 on moh's hardness scale, which makes it an ideal gem family for jewelry projects. Blue topaz is neither the most rare (black topaz) or most common (golden topaz) shade, but it is probably the most widely used in jewelry.

2. Blue topaz is believed to allow the wearer to connect to self-expression, creativity, and intuition; the healing community ascribes healing properties such as balancing the mind and improving communication.

3. One reason that blue topaz is widely used in jewelry is that its icy blue shade can be created by irradiating colorless topaz; not all blue topaz is irradiated, but it is so widespread that the treatment is assumed unless the buyer knows for sure it is natural. This being said, blue topaz does occur in nature in such diverse localities as Zimbabwe, Brazil, and our very own Colorado!

3 Facts about Blue Zircon

1. Blue zircon is the blue variety of zircon, a group of nesosilicate minerals and a primary source of the metal zirconium. Zircon is an abundant mineral in the earth's crust, and is highly resistant to weathering. Because of its unique uranium and thorium content, zircon grains play an important role in radiometric dating. Zircons from Jack Hills in Australia have been dated to over 4 billion years, making them some of the oldest minerals ever dated on Earth.

2. Blue zircon does form in nature, but is much less common than Blue Topaz--even so, blue zircon gemstones are still often a product of irradiation of brown zircon. Zircon is a 7.5 on moh's hardness scale, adding to its durable nature for jewelry wear. 

3. In the healing community, blue zircon is associated with relaxation, increasing mental clarity, and bringing harmony and tranquility to the wearer. It is believed to enhance and align all chakras, but especially focusing on the throat chakra.

3 Facts about Tanzanite

1. Tanzanite is the purple variety of Zoisite, a dimorph of Clinozoisite (and once part of the Epidote group.) A calcium-aluminum-silicate mineral, Zoisite is the orthorhombic polymorph of Clinozoisite. The purple shade may be produced by heat treatment, and as such, treatment should be assumed within the market unless the buyer is sure that it has not been heated. (Brown shades of tanzanite always disappear after heating, so a brown zone is one sure sign that the tanzanite is natural.)

2. Tanzanite is found only in Tanzania, in an area known as Merelani Hills. Though the source of tanzanite is extremely limited, the high productivity of the Merelani Hills area means that tanzanite has been continuously produced there and commercially distributed since the 1960s. It is commonly found in association with tsavorite garnets, diopside, and other unique minerals in Tanzania.

3. Tanzanite is one of the most highly sought after minerals for the healing community--it is associated with spiritual elevation and growth, spiritual guidance, and enhancement of the crown chakra. 

3 Facts about Turquoise

1. Turquoise is a phosphate mineral which often contains copper, iron, or nickel. It forms in the potassic alteration zone of hydrothermal porphyry copper deposits. It is a complex mineral that forms most commonly in nodules and veins, but can also form botryoidal habits and crusts on matrix, and even more rarely may form transparent crystals. 

2. Turquoise is WIDELY used in jewelry, and has been valued highly in many ancient cultures worldwide. Notable cultures include the idigenous native americans of North America and the ancient cultures in modern-day Tibet, which valued turquoise as a gift within families. Native tribes such as the Zuni people associated turquoise with the West, and connection to the sky and the water; it was thought to protect the wearer from harm and negative energy. Turquoise. in modern crystal healing, is associated with spiritual growth and wholeness.

3. Treatment of turquoise is ubiquitous, and can vary as widely as dying, compression of smaller fragments, stabilization with resin, and reconstitution from powder. Except for the highest grades, turquoise tends to be brittle and chalky, so it is widely treated to improve its use in jewelry in particular. Another thing to be aware of is the use of white howlite or white magnesite with a blue dye to resemble natural turquoise. It's so important to buy turquoise from a reputable dealer you trust, who can provide provenance on the turquoise and the jewelry it has been made into. It is one of the most widely treated materials in the mineral market, so education and care is key.

Which of the four December gems speaks to you? Do you think one month should have so many gems, or would it be better if all months had one primary and one secondary birthstones? Drop a comment below!

Thanks to all who have stopped by and read the blog throughout 2024! I'll be mostly more regularly in 2025, and I have some exceptionally fun reports to post, including our fall rockhounding adventures in Europe. We hope you have a wonderful holiday season and very happy New Year....and as always, rock on, my friends! 

See more blog posts on Rock Talk, part of the PG Online page and shop on PhenomenalGems.com.