A Guide to Buying Tanzanite

Tanzanite is a very unique variety of the mineral species zoisite, discovered at the Merelani mine in Tanzania. Its deep blue violet color resembled that of sapphire, and experts were surprised to discover that it was in fact zoisite. It was given the name tanzanite after its country of origin by Tiffany and Co. of New York, and has yet to be found in any other location.

Tanzanite is known for its intense blue color often rivaling that of many sapphires, but it is strongly trichroic and will tend to shift towards the violet side in incandescent light. Practically all tanzanite is heat treated to enhance the blue color; the best stones will remain blue in any light. As a general rule tanzanite has very good clarity so being clean to the unaided eye is the standard.

You will rarely find tanzanite cut as a cabochon, and in faceted stones the oval and cushion cuts are most common although you will also see emeralds, rounds, and trillions. They occasionally occur in very large specimens, with faceted stones hundreds of carats known to exist such as the 122.7 carat specimen in the Smithsonian Institution’s collection.

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