This 3.28-carat Paraíba tourmaline's vivid violetish blue hue rivals the finest sapphires. Because of this tourmaline's rarity, its per-carat price is also likely to rival the price of fine sapphire.
One of tourmaline’s most sought-after and generally available colors is the pink/red variety known in the trade as rubellite.
Tourmaline's hue and depth of color can approach the range of ruby and pink sapphire. This 8.16-carat cushion-shaped rubellite and 10.78-carat emerald cut pink tourmaline are superb examples.
Green tourmaline’s pastel hues provide the market with pleasing alternatives to the deep, rich hue of emerald and the softer green of peridot. At their best, green tourmalines are transparent, brilliant, and clean, with attractive bluish green hues.
Most green tourmalines are strongly pleochroic. Stones that show attractive colors in both directions—such as bright green in one and blue in another—are the most valuable.
Chrome tourmaline gems offer hues that are more saturated than most green tourmalines. Chrome tourmaline can be a lower-priced alternative to tsavorite or emerald. Both these gems are rare in sizes above two carats, but it’s not hard to find chrome tourmaline in sizes up to five carats. And, while tourmaline can’t match tsavorite’s luster or brilliance, it’s far less expensive than a tsavorite of equivalent size and quality.
Dark-toned stones—which are more common in the marketplace—aren’t very attractive. Some absorb light so intensely that they appear almost black from certain directions. Cutters typically fashion these stones with the table parallel to the length of the crystal. Gems cut this way might show a less attractive brownish or yellowish color through the crown. Dealers frequently describe these gems as “oily” or “olive” green. Their prices are much lower than the prices for fine green tourmaline or brighter bluish green tourmaline.
This 11.47-carat cushion-shape from Landanai, Tanzania, is a classic example of chrome tourmaline. Its high clarity, medium-dark tone, and strong green hue make it highly desirable.
This 8.76-carat emerald cut tourmaline’s medium tone and strongly saturated, slightly yellowish green hue make it very marketable.
High clarity, medium-light tone, and strongly saturated bluish green hue are the hallmarks of this 5.43-carat emerald cut tourmaline from Tanzania.
This 1.80-carat rectangular step cut tourmaline from Russia is medium light in tone and has a slightly greenish blue hue with moderately strong saturation. This is a noteworthy combination for a blue tourmaline.
This 9.91-carat Afghan tourmaline hovers on the boundary between green and blue hues. Its high clarity and medium tone give it a pleasing appearance.
This 5.19-carat medium-dark, very strongly greenish blue emerald-cut tourmaline is from Namibia.
Prices for this exotic newcomer—especially top quality in sizes between 3.00 and 5.00 carats—climbed rapidly to over $10,000 per carat. No tourmaline—even prized rubellite reds and chrome greens—had ever achieved such heights in value. Paraíba tourmaline’s rarity undoubtedly contributes to its high prices.
Fashioned Tourmaline can be found in large sizes. This magnificent stone weighs 45.31 carats and boasts natural, untreated color. Photo: Katharina Mint Ring © 2011 Fabergé Ltd
In some specimens, there’s so much copper that inclusions of native copper—almost pure metal—highlight the gem’s interior. Scientists speculate that the native copper inclusions took shape in the early stages of cooling, after the gems started to crystallize
Paraíba tourmalines appear in a range of greenish blue, bluish green, green, blue, and violet hues. Although buyers covet all these colors, blue and violet have the most appeal. Dealers use a number of names to try to capture the extraordinary quality of Paraíba tourmaline’s colors. Besides neon, they use terms like “electric,” “turquoise,” “sapphire,” or “tanzanite” blue, and “mint” green.
The Paraíba deposit revealed a range of new tourmaline colors unrivaled for their strongly saturated hues and light to medium tones. Representing the color range are a 2.59-carat turquoise-blue triangle cut, a 3.28-carat electric-blue pear shape, and a 3.68-carat green pear shape.
Overall, prices for the best Paraíba tourmalines easily surpass other tourmalines due to their more attractive hues, higher color saturation, and greater rarity. A direct comparison with other tourmalines makes the difference obvious. Compared to any other green tourmaline, for example, a green Paraíba tourmaline will have a more saturated hue and lighter tone.
Because of the rough’s high value, Paraíba tourmalines are almost always custom cut. They’re usually faceted into brilliant cuts, commonly pear and oval shapes. You’ll rarely see Paraíba tourmaline in sizes bigger than one carat. With Paraíba, however, color is the key factor, not size. So if a dealer has to choose between a larger stone and a more vividly colored one—all other factors being equal—the gem with the better color is a better choice.
Copper-bearing tourmalines that resemble the vibrant, intense colors of the gems found in Brazil’s Paraíba region have also been found in other parts of the world. An article in the Spring 2008 issue of GIA’s Gems & Gemology scientific journal describes the copper-bearing gems of Mozambique. Nigeria has been a source of these striking gems as well.
During Paraíba tourmaline’s brief history, dealers have often resigned themselves to the gem’s extreme scarcity. However, new discoveries elsewhere in Brazil and eastern Africa present the possibility that viable, commercial sources of this rare copper-bearing tourmaline might one day supply the trade with more material. Unfortunately, the new sources also raise questions about the use of the term Paraíba to name these treasured gems.
The discovery of significant copper-bearing tourmaline deposits in Mozambique
increased availability and broadened the appeal for this gem. This 14.53-carat heated
gem is mounted in a striking pendant with black and red spinel, yellow sapphire, tsavorite, and diamond accents. - Courtesy Carley McGee-Boehm, Carley Jewels
Sources in Nigeria produce a vivid array of copper-bearing tourmalines. These stones range in size from 0.31 carat to 1.04 carats. - Courtesy Barker & Co.
This Brazilian crystal is a typical watermelon tourmaline, with a pink core surrounded
by a thin green skin. The colors are best shown in thin slices, which are well suited to
one-of-a-kind jewelry pieces. - Courtesy Brasgemas
Clarity
Colored tourmalines grow in an environment rich in liquids, and some of those liquids are often captured as inclusions during crystal growth. The most typical inclusions resemble thread-like cavities that run parallel to the length of the crystal. Under magnification, you can see that they’re filled with liquid or gas bubbles. Growth tubes—long hollow tubes often capped with minute mineral crystals—are also common tourmaline inclusions. If they’re numerous enough, and the rough is correctly cut, they can cause a cat’s-eye.
The gems in this remarkable suite of cat’s-eye tourmaline are all from Brazil. Inclusions
cause the cat’s eye effect and add value. - © GIA and Harold & Erica Van Pelt
Inclusions are much more visible in gems with light tone and low saturation. Since these stones don’t have strong and attractive color to compensate for the inclusions, most buyers reject the ones with eye-visible inclusions. Many included tourmalines with good color are cut as cabochons to emphasize the color and minimize the appearance of the inclusions
Cut
The elongated shape of many tourmaline crystals has a direct impact on the finished gem’s shape and proportions. As a result, there are many narrow, non-standard sizes available. Although some are very attractive, many gem buyers prefer stones with standard dimensions because they’re easier to set in standard mountings.
Jewelry designers create custom mountings to accommodate the shape of fashioned tourmalines. - © GIA & Tino Hammid, courtesy Chris Almquist
Rather than cutting every tourmaline lengthwise, many cutters orient a fashioned gem based on its depth of color. To darken pale rough, they might orient a gem’s table so it’s perpendicular to the crystal’s length. To lighten dark rough, they orient a finished gem’s table so it’s parallel to the crystal’s length.
Fashioned tourmalines in larger sizes rise considerably in per-carat price. Even though specimens can reach spectacular sizes, these are rare. Availability drops and prices rise sharply for facet-quality rough material. For fashioned gems of similar color and clarity, the price per carat generally increases as the gems pass the five-carat milestone.
Large tourmaline crystals are often fashioned by gem sculptors into special pieces for clients looking for the unusual. Renowned Idar-Oberstein gem cutter Bernd Munsteiner fashioned this 11.18-carat blue-green gem in his unique style.
