Citrine
The gemstone Citrine is the birthstone for the month of November. It is also the Planetary stone for the Sun Sign of Virgo.
Citrine is a variety of quartz ranging in colors of yellow, yellow-brown, orange, dark orange-brown, reddish-brown. Citrine crystals can form together with amethyst or smoky quartz to form a bi-colored quartz called ametrine.
Almost all Citrine that is available on the market today is heat-treated amethyst. Natural citrine is pale yellow to pale orange, much lighter than the heat-treated material which is dark orange-brown to reddish-brown. All of the heat-treated material has a red tint, while natural citrine does not.
Most citrine comes from Brazil, but almost all of the Brazilian material is heat-treated amethyst. Natural citrine can also be found in the Ural Mountains of Russia, in France, and in Madagascar. Darker colors are considered more valuable, including the medium golden orange and dark sherry-colors.
Citrine is a 7.0 on the Mohs scale of hardness.
Email: Bruce@TapleyCollection.com
Copyright: 1979, The Tapley Collection
Copyright: 2005, www.TapleyCollection.com