Green Tanzanite: Properties, Benefits & Meanings
Green Tanzanite Overview
The green Tanzanite gemstone is a beautiful variety of the famous Tanzanite. Its rare color, striking appearance, and incredible properties make it the go-to gemstone for many collectors.
Green Tanzanite stones are rare and only found in one location worldwide. Because of its rarity, it is considered very precious. This article will dive into the properties, meanings, and uses of the green Tanzanite gemstone.
What Is Green Tanzanite?
It is a green-colored variety of the famous Tanzanite gemstone. Green Tanzanite stone has an eye-catching dark green color.
It is the unofficial birthstone for the month of December, representing festivities, the holiday spirit, and celebrations. This gemstone is related to the heart chakra but also has some connection to the third eye chakra. It is also sometimes called Green Zoisite.
History
Tanzanite is a variety of Zoisite and is typically blue/violet. It was discovered in 1967 and sold by the Tiffany company on a commercial scale.
Nearly a million carats of this mineral were sold before the Tanzanian government nationalized the mine in 1971.
Green Zoisite Appearance
Green Tanzanite is a visually appealing stone with a deep green coloration. It shows strong trichroism, meaning it changes color depending on where you look at it from. It shifts between lime-green, dark green, and dark blue, creating a beautiful trichroic effect.
Most Tanzanite stones are heat treated to enhance their beauty. A chemical stimulant called Tanzanion is used to enhance its color.
Untreated Tanzanite stones have a brown color prevalent in their appearance. It is removed by heat treatment to bring out the natural blue and violet color and make the stone more visually appealing.
These stones will rarely develop a green color, which is always accompanied by a blue hue. Because of the rarity of this occurrence, green Tanzanite stones are a staple of a good gem collection.
Green Zoisite Location
Tanzanite is a rare stone that’s only found in the Simanjiro District in Tanzania. It is not found in any other location in the world. Its rarity has led to many people creating fakes and selling them under its name.
Physical Appearance
| Mineral Group | Zoisite |
| Formula | Ca2Al3[Si2O7][SiO4]O(OH) |
| Color | Green, Blue |
| Hardness (Mohs scale) | 6.5 |
| Refractive Index | 1.69 – 1.70 |
| Fracture | Uneven, Conchoidal |
| Luster | Vitreous, pearly |
| Specific Gravity | 3.10 – 3.38 |
| Transparency | Transparent, Translucent |
Cost And Value
The cost of a green tanzanite stone can vary, but it is generally sold between $100 and $1,000. The steep price is attributed to its extreme rarity. The price of each specimen varies depending on the following factors:
- Color: The color of the stone is a major factor in determining its value. The most valuable green Tanzanite has a deep, rich hue with slight blue undertones. All tanzanites are heat-treated to bring out their color. So it doesn’t affect their final price.
- Clarity: A stone’s clarity is also important when determining its value. A flawless tanzanite will cost you more than one with inclusions.
- Carat: The size of the stone is also a major factor in its value. Larger stones are generally more expensive than smaller ones. As the carat weight of a stone increases, the price per carat increases as well.
- Cut: The cut of the stone can affect its value, with round and oval cuts being more desirable than other shapes like pear or marquise. The price of harder cuts will be reflected in the final product.
How To Tell If It’s A Real Green Zoisite?
Tanzanite is an extremely rare mineral, only found in one mine in Tanzania. Because of this, there have been many attempts to create replicas. The most common materials marketed as Tanzanite are as follows:
- Cubic Zirconia
- Synthetic Spinel
- Yttrium Aluminum Garnet
- Colored Glass
- Synthetic Forsterite
Lower-grade tanzanite stones are also enhanced via cobalt coating to give them a better look. You can differentiate between these fakes and the real green Tanzanite using a few methods.
- Dichroscope Test: A dichroscope is a device used to observe the property of Dichroism in gemstones. If you place a genuine green Tanzanite inside it, you will observe two different colors, blue and green, in the two observing windows. Meanwhile, the other materials used to imitate it will only show one color.
- Hanneman Filter: Natural Tanzanite will appear pinkish-orange under the Hanneman filter. However, Forsterite will appear green. Other minerals will also show different colors.
- Transparency: If your Tanzanite is artificially colored or is made of colored glass, you can check its transparency. Real Tanzanite should be see-through, while fakes are often opaque.
Green Zoisite Chakra Connection
This gemstone is connected to the Heart chakra. The heart chakra is located in the center of your chest, between the base of the throat and sternum. It’s associated with feelings of love, compassion, and joy.
Also called the Anahata, the heart chakra governs your emotions, so it helps you understand yourself better and be in tune with others.
Meanings And Uses
- Green Tanzanite is a stone of the heart and promotes love and compassion for yourself, others, and all beings. People use this gemstone to find their destined partner, increase love for their spouses, and keep the love alive in their relationships.
- It is said to bring harmony to your life by helping you understand yourself better, be in tune with others, and find inner peace. People often use it to bring their family a sense of belonging and calmness. They believe it can help them appreciate their housemates more.
- People also use it for emotional healing and dealing with heartbreak or trauma. It can help you feel loved, valued, and appreciated by others and yourself. Therefore, people going through tough times can find this stone useful in overcoming their emotional troubles.
- Green Tanzanite is said to help those who feel out of touch with their emotions or suffer from depression or low self-esteem. This crystal has been used to bring joy into people’s lives by showing them how to feel happy again.
- Alternative medicine practitioners believe it is a powerful stone that helps you connect with your spiritual guides, so it’s often used to heal mental and emotional issues. They claim it heals mental problems like depression and anxiety and balances emotional imbalances.
- Leaders worldwide use it because they believe it can help them orate better. According to them, it increases their people skills and confidence and makes them more persuasive and powerful. So, people with confidence issues, social anxiety, and speech disorders might find wearing a Tanzanite pendant useful.
How To Clean Green Tanzanite Jewelry
It’s important to clean your jewelry regularly, especially if you wear it daily. Here are some tips on how to clean green Tanzanite:
- You can use a damp cloth and mild soap to wipe down the surface of your jewelry. Make sure to avoid getting any cleaning solution into the stone itself.
- If the piece needs a deeper cleaning, soak your piece in warm water with dish soap for five minutes. Then, rinse it with cold water and dry it with a soft cloth.
- You can also use a toothbrush to scrub your jewelry gently. You may want to do this with warm water, as well.
- You can cleanse your stone by burning a sage or smudge stick. This will help release the negative energy that accumulates in gemstones over time.
- After a thorough cleansing, it is important to recharge your stone. You can do so by leaving it outside under the full moon.
FAQ
What Gemstones Go Best With Green Tanzanite?
Green Tanzanite is a beautiful gemstone that can be paired with almost any type of jewelry. It has an incredible green/blue color, which makes it ideal for pairing with other blue and green stones. It also goes well with stones like Jade, Amethyst, Verdelite, Nephrite, and Prehnite. It also goes well with Blue Tanzanite.
Green Tanzanite has a beautiful color that harmonizes well with most gemstones. So, if you have a green Tanzanite ring or necklace in your collection of jewelry pieces, you can easily add other colored stones to it without worrying about clashing tones.
What Color is Tanzanite Naturally?
Unheated Tanzanite stones are naturally brown. When they are heat-treated, they show their blue/violet color. They can show a beautiful green color as well. However, getting a green Tanzanite is quite rare. Some people have mined Pink Tanzanite, but these are even rarer than green ones.
How Much Is Tanzanite Worth Today?
Green Tanzanite stones are worth $100 – $1,000. However, the price of a specimen varies depending on a few things, such as the quality of its color, the difficulty of its cut, clarity, and weight in carats.
