3.31 ct. Pinkish-Purple Taaffeite
3.31 ct. Pinkish-Purple Taaffeite
Color: Medium Dark Purple-Pink
Clarity: Eye Clean
Origin: Sri Lanka
Cut: Round Portuguese
Treatments: None
Measurements: 8.6 mm
A most unusual and remarkable rare stone from the classic source of Sri Lanka. Taaffeite itself is one of the most popular of the rare gem materials - it remains the most requested of the collector's gems. Now, examples with a pleasant color are all the more scarce - so nice purples and pinks are always in demand. The bodycolor on this stone is supremely attractive and does indeed have the very rare and sought after attribute of hinting at red in some lighting. A rare gem in an even rarer hue.
All of these before considering the weight and shape. A 3+ carat round Taaffeite is most decidedly not an everyday occurrence. Weight means money on these and asymmetries or blemishes that are commonly left in finished stones. Indeed this stone was a less ideal round that we had recut here in the US to shape up the outline and eliminate a window. A loss of nearly a 1/3 of a carat - but one that resulted in a magnificent gem. With a Moh's hardness of 8 to 8.5, Taaffeite is one of the few collector's stone which is durable enough for any jewelry application. Two tiny well formed crystals are visible with 10x magnification and are absolutely not distracting in the slightest. With a full GIA gem identification report. Magnificent!