Tourmaline floating in aquamarineMost inclusions are microscopic, but occasionally a stunning exampl

Tourmaline floating in aquamarineMost inclusions are microscopic, but occasionally a stunning example emerges out of nature’s treasure chest to fill us with wonder and desire. The gem has been polished into a free form in order to display the result of a geological process: the sequential cooling of the last stages of a granite as the chemistry of the ever dwindling magma evolved and concentrated all those rare elements distilled out of the Earth.First to crystallise was the bicoloured tourmaline, rich in boron and iron. The combination of pink and green is known as watermelon in the trade, and makes attractive bi or tricoloured gems. The crystal was fully formed before the next generation of mineralisation appeared, forming the typical triangular cross section and lines called striae down the long axis of the crystal. Sometime later, in the same pocket where the fluids were stewing, an influx of beryllium enrichment appeared, and the aquamarine (also coloured by iron) started to grow, entombing the tourmaline as it crystallised around it. The piece measures 4.4x2.8x2cm.LozImage credit: Jewel Expert -- source link

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