What in inanimate nature delights and amazes people more than gems? Precious stones are amazingly beautiful and rare, possessing them makes a person wiser and more majestic - in any case, this is what numerous legends and beliefs associated with these most beautiful of minerals claim. But which stone is the most expensive in the world? Let's find out the opinion of experts about the cost of the most expensive stones.
10 Emerald and sapphire
On average, a good sapphire (about 6,000 per carat) turns out to be more expensive than a not very high-quality emerald. This certainly applies to regular blue or light blue sapphire. As for the rarest orange gem (it is called padparadscha), we will talk about it further. This is certainly one of the most expensive stones in the world.
As for emeralds - dark green or grass-colored stones - despite their relatively large number, there are very few pure specimens. They are the ones who are valued so highly.
There are a couple of amazing examples to note. Firstly, this is the Millennium - a 61 thousand carat sapphire, decorated with carvings - 134 portraits of the world's most prominent celebrities of the millennium, including, for example, Beethoven, Shakespeare and Einstein. Its current price is $180 million.
And the largest emerald is the Bahian nugget, which weighs 1.9 million carats and costs $400 million.
This is the rarest red beryl, which is mined exclusively in the states of Utah and New Mexico in the USA. Only a few stones are known, of which the largest weighs just over 3 carats.
One carat costs at least 10, or even 12 thousand dollars. This is explained not only by its beauty, but also by the exceptional rarity of the gem.
At the moment, about three and a half thousand cut bixbits are known, and no new ones have yet been found.
The first gem capable of changing its color was found in the first half of the 19th century near Yekaterinburg (however, as it later turned out, some garnets and sapphires also have this ability, which is explained by the presence of chromium oxide in the composition).
And since then, alexandrite has never ceased to amaze people both with its beauty and its ability to look completely different depending on the lighting. Under sunlight, the stone is greenish, and electric (or simply evening) light makes it reddish, purple or violet.
The stone was named in honor of the 16th anniversary of the future Emperor Alexander II, on whose birthday the first alexandrite was allegedly found and described.
The price of alexandrite ranges from 10 to 37 thousand dollars per carat, although it is not a very rare stone. For example, a druse of 22 stones weighing more than 5 kilograms was found in the Urals in the same 19th century.
Nowadays, alexandrites are found not only in Russia, but also in Brazil, Madagascar, etc. Faceted natural gems are not that common and are usually small in size.
7 Paraiba Tourmaline
This is a unique mineral that has long been found exclusively in Brazil. Paraiba has an incredible turquoise color and an even more unique neon glow even in the twilight - this property is not found in any other stone.
Unfortunately, it is impossible to capture this glow in a photo. Currently, Paraiba tourmalines are also found in Africa and Madagascar, but they are valued much lower than Brazilian ones.
Small tourmalines usually cost about 15 thousand dollars, while large specimens can only be cut into the hands of a true master, in which case the product will have almost museum value - and a fantastic price.
Paraiba tourmaline is a rare mineral; such stones are found 10,000 times less often than diamonds. The largest gem weighs 192 carats and is worth up to $125 million.
6 Precious Ruby
Ruby is usually placed in sixth place in the ranking of the most expensive stones in the world. This is corundum, a stone related to sapphire. In the Old Russian language, both stones were usually called yakhonts. The blood-red stone was known and appreciated in ancient times in India; it was known to both the Greeks and the Romans.
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Rubies are mined on all continents, with the exception of Antarctica, but not all of them are valued equally. The most expensive gems are Asian ones, the color of “pigeon’s blood”. They usually sell for 15 thousand dollars per carat.
The most expensive ruby, weighing 25 and a half carats, was sold at auction last year for $30 million. So far this is a record.
A diamond (a cut diamond is called a brilliant) is certainly one of the most beautiful gems loved by rich people. Its shine is mesmerizing, and its hardness is very high (due to which it is also used in technology, etc.).
For this reason, diamond is often considered a “masculine” stone, a symbol of purity and hardness. Some diamonds are believed to be up to 2 and a half million years old; Among them there are also minerals of extraterrestrial origin.
The price of a diamond depends on its purity and color (besides colorless, yellow, brown, blue, even black diamonds are known) and can range from 15 thousand. per carat
The largest diamond is the Cullinan, weighing more than 3,100 carats; The largest Yakut diamond is called “XXVI Congress”; it weighs 332 carats.
4 Transparent gem Jadeite
Transparent jadeite is called imperial, and it is one of the most expensive gemstones in the world. This is a green gem, quite rare and therefore very expensive.
An imperial carat is valued at $20,000. Among the Aztecs, jadeite was considered a sacred stone, and the famous “Emerald Buddha” - the talisman of Thailand - was also carved from jadeite and decorated with gold.
This is a rare mineral that is currently mined in only two deposits. The name means "Sunrise". The color of the stone in the classic version should consist of three colors: red, orange and pink.
Since there are almost no such stones, they are highly valued, starting from 30 thousand dollars per carat. It is acceptable to call two-color minerals padparadschas, although this is not entirely true. But an attempt to pass off an orange or pink single-color sapphire as a padparadscha is an obvious deception!
There are many unique fakes: the so-called “heated padparadscha” are corundums that have been heated in special ovens and have changed color because of this. They are also very expensive, but still they are not real padparadscha!
This rare gemstone is amazingly beautiful. Pale blue, it shimmers with three colors at once: white, blue and green. It is named after the scientist who first described it, Alfred Grandidier.
The beauty and rarity of the stone make it almost priceless. It's worth what they pay for it. Only 8 stones in the world have been proven to meet grandidierite standards, so they pay 100 thousand per carat for each of them!
1 The most expensive stone is Red Diamond
And finally, the most expensive gem in the world is the red diamond. Its fantastic value (up to a million per carat) is explained by the amazing beauty and extreme rarity of the stone.
Red diamonds are found exclusively in Australia, and in minute quantities, literally a few stones a year. Moreover, gems weighing as much as 0.1 carats are highly valued!
The world's largest red diamond was presented at the Smithsonian exhibition. Its weight is just over 5 carats, and the cost is hard to even imagine. To give you an idea of prices: a few years ago, a red diamond weighing just under a carat was sold for a trillion dollars.
| Place in the ranking | Gem name | Approximate price per 1 carat |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | astronomical | |
| 2 | from 100 thousand | |
| 3 | from 30 thousand | |
| 4 | from 20 thousand | |
| 5 | from 15-17 thousand | |
| 6 | from 15 thousand | |
| 7 | Paraiba | from 13-14 thousand |
| 8 | from 12 thousand | |
| 9 | 10-12 thousand | |
| 10 | Emerald, sapphire | 8 thousand |
The depths of our planet conceal countless treasures - minerals. Their indescribable diversity and beauty have always conquered human hearts. We invite you to admire a selection of these beautiful examples of frozen natural harmony.
1. Petrified wood with opal veins
Under certain conditions, fragments of a fallen tree do not decay, but mineralize, turning into real stones of bizarre shape. This requires hundreds of years and no access of air to the material, resulting in a unique mineral that resembles fragments of icy wood, speckled with sparkling inclusions of opal or chalcedony.
etsy.com
2. Uvarovite
A stone related to garnets, discovered in the 19th century in Siberia, was popularly nicknamed the “Ural emerald.” Chromium gives the mineral its mesmerizing green color. In nature, it is extremely rare, and the few finds are of very modest size. By the way, it was this mineral that Alexander Kuprin meant in his work Garnet Bracelet.
flickr.com
3. Fluorite
This mineral, which has long been used for decorative purposes and delighted the eyes of high society with graceful translucent vases and figurines that glow in the dark, has now found more practical applications in optics, becoming an excellent material for creating lenses.
roywmacdonald.com
4. Kemmererite
A very fragile fuchsia-colored stone - kemmererite - is considered a collector's item. To make a piece of jewelry out of it, the craftsman needs to apply all his scrupulousness and precision. For this reason, the cost of the processed mineral is extremely high.
exceptionalminerals.com
5. Hematite, rutile and feldspar
The ability of the black mineral hematite, when processed, to color water in a blood-red color has become the reason for many ineradicable superstitions regarding this stone. But this is not the only reason why it is popular - hematite is very common in nature and is used in addition to decorative materials in many applied areas.
mindat.org
6. Torburnite
As bewitchingly beautiful as this mineral is, it is just as deadly. Prisms of torbernite crystals contain uranium and can cause cancer in humans. In addition, when heated, these stones begin to slowly emit radon gas, which is extremely dangerous to health.
imgur.com
7. Clinoclase
The rare clinoclase crystal has one little secret - when heated, this exquisitely beautiful mineral emits a garlicky smell.
mindat.org
8. White barite studded with vanadinite crystals
Vanadinite received its name in honor of the Scandinavian goddess of beauty Vanadis. This mineral is one of the heaviest on the planet because it has a high lead content. Vanadinite crystals should be stored away from sunlight, as they tend to darken under their influence.
flickr.com
9. Fossil egg? No – geode with opal core
In places rich in minerals, you can find geodes - geological formations, which are cavities containing various minerals inside. When cut or chipped, geodes can look extremely outlandish and attractive.
reddit.com
10. Silver stibnite with barite
Stibnite is a sulfide of antimony, but it appears to be composed of high-grade silver. Thanks to this similarity, one day someone decided to make luxury cutlery from this material. And this was a very bad idea... Antimony crystals cause severe poisoning, even after contact with skin it is necessary to wash it thoroughly with soap.
wikimedia.org
11. Chalcanthite
The enchanting beauty of these crystals hides a mortal danger: once in a liquid environment, the copper contained in this mineral begins to rapidly dissolve, threatening all living things that stand in its way. Just one small blue pebble can destroy an entire pond with all its flora and fauna, so you should treat it with extreme caution.
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12. Cacoxenite
Acting as an inclusion, this rare mineral is capable of giving quartz and amethyst a unique color and higher value. As a representative of needle-shaped crystals, cacoxenite is incredibly fragile.
scientificcomputing.com
13. Labradorite
Mined in the northern regions, the mineral’s appearance seems to reflect the sky under which it was found: the color tints against the background of the darkness of the stone speckled with sparkling stars are reminiscent of the northern lights blazing on a long polar night.
carionmineraux.com
14. Black opal
The most valuable type of opal. Despite the word “black” in the name, this mineral gets the highest value if it has multi-colored sparkle against a dark background. The more diverse the shades of its radiance, the higher the price.
reddit.com
15. Kuprosklodovskite
Needle-shaped crystals of kuprosklodovskite attract admiring attention with the depth and variety of their green colors, as well as their interesting shape. However, this mineral is mined in uranium deposits and is highly radioactive and should be kept away not only from living beings, but even from other minerals.
flickr.com
16. Blue halite and sylvite
Milky white or whitish sylvite is often found in volcanoes, and blue halite (sodium chloride) is often found in sedimentary rocks.
mindat.org
17. Bismuth
Artificially grown bismuth crystals have a recognizable iridescent sheen on their dark surface. This effect occurs due to the oxide film covering it. By the way, bismuth oxide chloride is used in the creation of nail polishes as a means to give them shine.
periodictable.com
18. Opal
The noble opal gemstone is picky about the humidity around it: if it stays in excessively dry conditions for a long time, it can fade and even crack. For this reason, opals should be occasionally “bathed” in clean water, and also worn more often if they are presented in the form of jewelry, so that the stones are saturated with moisture coming from the human body.
reddit.com
19. Tourmaline
Rich red and pink colors, smooth transitions of shades with the most unexpected ranges make tourmaline one of the most popular collectible minerals. According to historians, it was these stones that crowned many of the jewelry and accessories of members of royal families and eminent persons: from Catherine the Second to Tamerlane.
saphiraminerals.com
20. Baildonite
The rare baildonite crystal owes its color to the copper it contains, and its brilliance to a high percentage of lead.
mindat.org
21. Osmium
Having the status of the densest natural substance, osmium is extremely difficult to process in any way. The widespread use of this metal in medicine, manufacturing and defense makes its demand incredibly high. And given the rarity of osmium in nature, the cost of one gram of its isotope is currently equal to twenty thousand dollars.
wikimedia.org
22. Malachite
The bizarre arrangement of copper layers in the voids of karst caves, where malachite originates, determines the future structure of its patterns. They can be represented by concentric circles, star-shaped scatterings or chaotic ribbon patterns. Archaeologists estimate the age of malachite beads found in the ancient city of Jericho to be 9 thousand years.
mindat.org
23. Emmonsite
A rather rare mineral emmonsite, presented in the form of small needle-shaped crystals with a glassy luster, is found in the mines of North and South America.
mindat.org
24. Aquamarine on potassium mica
For the similarity of its edges to the purest waves of the sea, the Roman thinker Pliny the Elder gave this noble stone the name “aquamarine”. Bluer aquamarines are more valuable than greenish ones. This mineral is very popular among designers and jewelry lovers, and its highest strength helps to create jewelry of any configuration.
mindat.org
25. Pallasite meteorite
In 1777, the German scientist Pallas delivered to the Kunstkamera museum samples of a rare metal discovered in Krasnoyarsk at the site of a meteorite fall. Soon the entire block of extraterrestrial origin weighing 687 kg was transported to St. Petersburg. This material was called “pallas iron” or pallasite. No substance similar to it has been found from those mined on our planet. According to experts, this meteorite is an iron-nickel base with numerous inclusions of olivine crystals.
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26. Sick
Small cubic crystals of blue color - boleites - are especially valued in the countries of South and North America. This rare mineral has not yet been seen in use in Russia.
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27. Crocoite
The name “crocoite” comes from the ancient Greek word meaning “saffron”, since the similarity of the crystal surface with this spice is noticeable to the naked eye. The red lead ore that this mineral is is of particular value to collectors and connoisseurs.
awminerals.com
There is no clear answer to the question of what is the most beautiful gemstone. There are a huge number of natural and extraterrestrial mineral formations in the world, which, due to their rarity and beauty, are worthy of being considered the most beautiful and expensive.
How is the cost determined?
Since ancient times, precious stones have been a symbol of wealth, luxury and power. Their high cost is formed due to the rare combination of mineral components, lack of abundance and special sizes. The less this stone can be found in the world, the higher its price will be. If a rare mineral was found of a particularly large size, then its cost will be sky-high.
Large and rare minerals are being hunted all over the world. Most collectors are willing to pay a fortune to own one of these stones. Owners of rare minerals who want to sell them make their sales in a narrow circle at special auctions where collectors gather incognito. Therefore, even large semi-precious stones fetch significant sums at such auctions.
The weight of stones is usually measured in carats. This is a generally accepted unit of measurement for all existing minerals on the planet. The more carats a stone has, the higher its value. It's the same with precious metals. The cost of a stone includes its purity and transparency. That is, the fewer inclusions of other rocks and various impurities, the more valuable such a stone becomes.
There are many different gemstones that have their own special history. Most often, the larger and more expensive the stone, the more bloody the trail behind it.
Even in ancient times, kings and rulers fought for the right to own great precious stones. Every country where kings and monarchs once ruled has its own relics in the form of crowns and other attributes of power, inlaid with famous stones. Each particularly large stone found becomes famous and acquires its own unique history.
Typically, precious stones are valued for their size, so they are rarely crushed or even cut. They try to preserve large minerals in their natural form. But some can be processed to give them a more noble appearance so that they can be inserted into one of the owner’s precious things.
Types of minerals
In addition to the well-known and generally accepted diamonds and diamonds, there are many more unique and interesting gemstones. These include:
- Rubies.
- Sapphires.
The category of semi-precious stones should also be highlighted. In terms of their significance and value, they are inferior to those listed above, since they are found a little more often in nature. But if one of the crystals representing this group was discovered especially large and in pure form, its value is very high. Many of these semi-precious minerals compete in beauty and price with more well-known minerals.
The group of semi-precious stones, which have representatives with a well-known and quite famous history, includes:
- Opals.
- Grenades.
- Jades.
- Topazes.
- Tourmalines.
- Aquamarines.
The category of semi-precious minerals includes many representatives. Throughout the history of mankind, the stones highlighted in the list have had very bright and extraordinary representatives who were awarded the honor of decorating royal relics and standing next to more expensive stones.
Unique representatives of minerals
The list of famous and famous stones is quite long. They periodically appear and disappear. When another deposit of precious and semi-precious minerals is discovered, a new star will certainly break out.
One of the representatives of diamonds was considered very famous at one time. Its name is known all over the world - it is Cullinan. It reached large sizes, and its weight was more than 3000 carats. The stone was distinguished by its unique purity and transparency. It was subsequently divided into two parts and the famous diamonds were created.
The largest diamond from these resulting pieces was inserted into the scepter of the Queen of England - the “Great Star of Africa”, and the other, slightly smaller one, earned an honorable place in the crown of the British Kingdom.
Another beautiful and quite rare diamond is the “Diamond Red Shield”. This is a unique red diamond, which is small in size and weight, but costs almost 10 million dollars. The most expensive and largest among the diamonds is “Century”. It costs about 100 million.
Among the sapphires, Kashmiri ones can be distinguished. The heaviest of them weighed about 42 kg. But the main parameter of price and beauty is its deep blue color without inclusions or impurities. The star-shaped coloring of sapphires is also valuable. They are very rare. The most famous is “Lone Star”.
The largest sapphire weighed 61 thousand carats before cutting. After processing it was given the name “Millennium”. The main value and beauty of the mineral is not in color and purity, but in processing, since images of many outstanding personalities were engraved on its surface.
Representatives of precious minerals, emeralds are quite rare in nature, so they are valued on a par with diamonds. Transparent green minerals are rare. The most valuable emeralds have a rich green color. The largest mineral weighed 11.5 kg. It was called “God’s gift.”
Another precious mineral is ruby. Its significance depends not so much on the size, but on the presence of flaws, purity and color saturation. The name of the largest ruby is “Raja Ratna”, or “King of Gems”. The ideal ruby is bright scarlet or purple-red in color.
The crown of King Wenceslas of Prague is decorated with the famous rubies. Moreover, due to their quality and color, they cost much more than diamonds of the same weight.
The famous aquamarine of Brazilian origin – “Don Pedro” – weighs up to 2 kg. It is stored in Washington. The famous tourmaline, pure and unique in its beauty, competes in price with diamonds. It has the longest name - “Divine Ethereal Carolina”.
Among the rare garnets, blue garnets can be distinguished. It was discovered only a few decades ago, but one carat is offered for almost $2,000. This type of garnet is valued for its unusual blue-green shades and the purity of the crystal itself.
A representative of rare opals is the black type of crystal. It is found in Australia and Brazil. But there is very little of it in the world. The range of colors of this opal can range from soft gray to rich black.
The beautiful stone alexandrite attracts with its name. Its uniqueness lies in the fact that it easily changes its color scheme. In daylight, it can have green-bluish tones, becoming darker with rich green shades. In artificial light, it can be a delicate raspberry-pink hue, bright purple or violet. For the first time this kind of crystal was found in Russia 2 centuries ago.
A rather interesting semi-precious crystal is jadeite. It is considered the most mysterious mineral on the planet. Its main color has green tones. A mineral is valuable if it is free of inclusions and has a uniform structure. Good quality jadeite on the market of precious metals and stones can cost from 20 thousand dollars per carat. Which gemstone is the most beautiful is up to everyone to choose for themselves.
There are a lot of interesting and unusually attractive crystals in the world, therefore, taking into account the tastes and values of each person, we can say that all minerals are beautiful and unusual.
