Characteristics of Taaffeite:

Chemical Name: Beryllium, magnesium, and aluminum oxide

Formula: BeMg3Al8O16

Colors: Pale mauve, green, sapphire blue

Structure: Hexagonal

Hardness: 8-8.5

Specific Gravity: 3.6-3.62

Refractive Index: 1.71-1.73

Lustre: Vitreous

Streak: White

Locations: Sri Lanka, Tanzania, China

What is Taaffeite?

When a mineralogist or gemologist hears of the discovery of a new and previously unknown gemstone, his or her thoughts go to a seam of or rock in a distant mountain range, or the gravels of a stream or fiver flowing through some exotic jungle. Rarely to their thoughts go to a jeweler’s shop in Dublin, Ireland. Yet this is precisely where taaffeite was discovered by Richard Taaffe in 1945 among a number of faceted gems recovered from old jewelry. It is one of the rarest gemstones, and is cut exclusively for collectors. Taaffeite is the only gemstone in history to have been identified from a stone that had already been faceted.