Loose Tourmaline Gems - Paraiba Tourmaline
Paraiba tourmaline gems, from the mines of Paraiba, Brazil, are truly real treasures. When cut, these rare peerless gemstones have a blue to green glowing aura is not found in any other stones in the world, thus Paraiba tourmaline’s intense glow is often referred as neon tourmaline or electric tourmaline.
Discovered recently in 1989, Paraiba tourmaline gems are highly sought after and very expensive. Good quality Paraiba tourmaline stone can command over $1,000 per carat in the market, a prize for anyone luckily enough to obtain a Paraiba tourmaline gem. However, due to the rarity of Paraiba tourmaline gems in the world market, Paraiba tourmalines are often quite small with only a few weighting over 20 grams.
The radiant glow of Paraiba tourmaline comes from the copper, element not normally observed in tourmalines before, within stone with some manganese. These two elements in Paraiba tourmaline create splendid beautiful colors that range from emerald green, sapphire blue, to dazzling purple. Copper in the gem is mainly responsible for blue to green hues, while manganese plays a bigger role in giving the gem hues of violet and red.
