Few gems are as enchanting as emeralds. These sparkling green gems have been dazzling us for thousands of years. Ancient Egyptians considered the emerald a symbol of eternal life and made it into jewelry to bury with their pharaohs. The ancient Greeks and Romans also valued the stone, as did the ancient Hindus. Today, emerald remains a popular stone for jewelry; natural emerald earrings, pendants, and rings are highly valued accessories.
Emeralds come from a few places around the world, but it is said that the best emeralds come from Brazil. The mines in this South American nation are known for their emerald quality. Today, we will talk about why Brazilian emeralds are so special.
What Makes Brazilian Emeralds Special?
Brazil is one of the world’s top producers of emeralds, along with Colombia, Zambia, and Madagascar. Brazilian emeralds are known for their high quality and deep green color, which is often considered the classic “emerald green.” These emeralds are mined in several regions of Brazil, including Minas Gerais, Bahia, and Goiás. Brazilian emeralds are highly prized by collectors and are used in various jewelry, including rings, pendants, and earrings.
The Brazilian emerald industry is a significant contributor to the country’s economy and employs thousands of people. Brazil is one of the world’s leading producers of emeralds by measures of both quantity and quality, and these aspects of its emeralds are highly regarded by the international gemstone market.
In addition to their beauty, Brazilian emeralds have another major advantage over emeralds from other places. There is a huge movement in Brazil for ethical mining, a practice that Belmont Emeralds has been proud to support since the company first opened.
The Belmont Emeralds Difference: Ethical Mining
A major issue with worldwide gemstone mining is whether or not it is done ethically. However, when you buy Brazilian emeralds from Belmont Emeralds, you can rest assured that the emerald gems you buy were taken ethically. Belmont Emeralds and the Belmont Mine have been at the forefront of ethical emerald mining for forty years. But what does this mean, and why is it important?
Ethical emerald mining refers to the practice of mining emeralds in a way that is environmentally responsible, socially fair, and economically viable. This involves using sustainable mining practices that minimize the impact on the environment, such as reducing waste, protecting water resources, and reclaiming land after mining. It also involves ensuring that workers are treated fairly, paid a fair wage, and provided with safe working conditions. Additionally, ethical emerald mining involves supporting local communities and providing them with economic benefits, such as employment opportunities and support for education and healthcare.
Unethical emerald mining, on the other hand, is environmentally destructive, socially unfair, and economically unsustainable. This can involve using unsustainable mining practices that cause pollution, damage to water and soil resources, and loss of biodiversity. It can also involve the exploitation of workers, who may be paid low wages, forced to work in dangerous conditions, and denied their basic rights. These practices can have serious consequences for the environment, local communities, and workers and should be avoided. That’s why Belmont Emeralds is committed to the most ethical mining practices possible.
Ethical emerald mining isn’t just a moral necessity on the part of the company; it’s good for consumers, too. When you buy an emerald from a mine that follows ethical practices, like the Belmont Mine in Brazil, you are able to trace that stone all the way back to its source. This means that you can feel confident that your natural emerald stone is a real emerald and that you can be satisfied knowing that it is of the highest quality. There are ethical emerald mines in Brazil, and the Belmont Mine is proud to be one of them.
Assessing Emerald Quality
Many emerald buyers want to know how to tell if an emerald is real. Whether you are looking at loose emeralds or emerald jewelry, emerald value is determined by the quality of the stone– and whether or not that stone is real.
There are several ways to determine if an emerald is real or fake. One way is to look for inclusions, which are small, natural variations that are found in real emeralds. Inclusions are often visible to the naked eye and can help to identify a real emerald.
Another way to check if your emerald is real is to move it around under a beam of light and see if there’s a lot of flash or fire. Real emeralds produce little to no “fire” – the colorful flashes that appear under light, like those you would see produced by a diamond. If your stone produces a sparkling rainbow, it is not an emerald.
It’s important to note that these methods are not foolproof and should be used only as a general guide. To be sure of an emerald’s authenticity, it is best to have it evaluated by a professional gemologist or jeweler.
The Beauty of Brazilian Emeralds
Natural Brazilian emeralds are known for their deep green color, exceptional clarity, and depth of color and texture that creates an internal “glow.” These emeralds draw the eye even as raw stones; when cut and set in jewelry, they are impossible to resist. Brazilian emeralds are cut and polished to enhance their natural beauty and then set into a piece of jewelry, such as a ring, pendant, or earring, to create something uniquely beautiful.
Emeralds are a form of the mineral beryl, and while all emeralds are beryl, not all green beryl is of high enough quality to be considered an emerald. Due to its geology, Brazil is able to produce beryl of incredible quality, clarity, and color– good enough to be considered emeralds.
If you want to invest in emerald jewelry or are looking for a unique stone for your personal jewelry, Brazilian emeralds will always be an amazing choice. Belmont Emeralds’ high-quality Brazilian emeralds are some of the finest stones in the world, and our state-of-the-art mining technology and commitment to sustainability mean that the stones we find, process, and cut are always going to have top quality with minimal environmental impact. To find out more about Belmont Emeralds, check out our blog, where we share information about the emerald mining industry, how to select and care for emerald jewelry, and more.