Pink Emeralds have a rather interesting past that includes some mystery, intrigue and at times, nomenclature and historical controversies. Depending on with whom you speak, you will probably get a slightly different version of exactly where these precious gemstones were first discovered and how they were first named. Regardless of the story version, what is clear is it seems that the gemstone was first discovered on the planet in the late 1800’s. Probably the first found crystals being called Vorobievite, Worobieffite and Rosterite, though the majority of references began to use the modern mineral term, Morganite around the early 1900’s when it was first discovered in the United States, in California, in the Pala pegmatites and was thrust into greater public awareness. At this point in time, the mineral find was attributed to geologist George Kunz who re-named it Morganite at around the turn of the century. It was also rediscovered for what may be “the fifth” of the so claimed “first time” discoveries, and this time in Madagascar around 1908.

Regardless of the name and its actual time of discovery, the exact chemical composition of the mineral is clearly known to be Be₃Al₂Si₆O₁₈. Beryllium-Aluminum Silicate or Beryl as it is sometimes called, like almost all gem and mineral varieties, can be found in almost every color of the rainbow. The Chemical composition of beryl is beryllium (14%) aluminum (19%) silicate (67%), usually containing alkali ions, other minerals, water, and gases. The green colored beryl is usually known as Green Emerald yet the very lighter green stones continued to be called Green Beryl. Some of the older mineral dealers to this day refer to the pink variety of beryllium-aluminum silicate as, Pink Beryl. The pink colored beryl is derived from a natural coloring agent within the stone which is due to the trace element Manganese +3.

Of all the beryl crystals, the Pink Emerald’s history is the most obscure yet remains manageable with a small amount of effort and research. Before geology was an exact science, the stone was mistaken for what was later called Kunzite, Pink Sapphire, Pink Tourmaline, Alexandrite, Rose Quartz and other rosé colored crystals. It is also interesting to note, the word brilliance is probably derived from the ancient Greek word for beryl, berullos, which actually means a crystal, which may further back date the pink beauty and other varieties of colored emeralds but no concrete evidence to this effect seem to be currently available yet one can justifiably intuit and suspect such was the case.

Pink Emeralds, as they are now known today in the jewelry and gemstone worlds, come in colors ranging from very light soft pink, to strong pink, to violet, to an actual salmon- orange- pink color. Despite their colorful past, everyone agrees, Pink Emeralds undoubtedly hold one of the very top, undisputed positions in the gem world today and are one of the most beautiful rare gemstones to have ever been discovered anywhere on the planet. They are truly rare, precious jewels, fit for the kings and queens of the modern world, and at a reasonable, affordable price.