Emeralds, aquamarine and morganite are all from the Beryl family of gemstones. Beryl is found in Europe in Norway, Austria, Germany, and Ireland, as well as Brazil, Colombia, Madagascar, Sweden (especially morganite), Russia, South Africa, the United States, and Zambia. U.S. beryl locations are in California, Colorado, Idaho, Maine, Connecticut, New Hampshire, North Carolina, South Dakota, and Utah.

Pink Beryl
Morganite, also known as "rose beryl," "pink emerald," and "cesian beryl," is a rare light pink to rose-colored gem-quality variety of beryl. Orange/yellow varieties of morganite can also be found, and color banding is common. It can be routinely heat treated to remove patches of yellow and is occasionally treated by irradiation to improve its color.

Red Beryl
Bixbite, also known as "red emerald", or "scarlet emerald" is a red variety of beryl. It was first described in 1904 for an occurrence, its type locality, at Maynard's Claim (Pismire Knolls), Thomas Range, Juab County, Utah, USA. Red Beryl is very rare and found in the Wah Wah Mountains, Beaver County, Utah; Paramount Canyon, Sierra County, New Mexico; Round Mountain, Sierra County, New Mexico; and Juab County, Utah. The greatest concentration of gem-grade red beryl comes from the Violet Claim in the Wah Wah Mountains of mid-western Utah, discovered in 1958 by Lamar Hodges, of Fillmore, Utah, while he was prospecting for uranium.

Blue Beryl
Aquamarine (from Lat. aqua marina, "water of the sea") is a blue or turquoise variety of beryl. It occurs at most localities which yield ordinary beryl, some of the finest coming from Russia. The gem-gravel placer deposits of Sri Lanka contain aquamarine. The biggest aquamarine ever mined was found at the city of Marambaia, Minas Gerais, Brazil, in 1910. It weighed over 110 kg, and its dimensions were 48.5 cm long and 42 cm in diameter. Aquamarine is the birthstone associated with March.

Green Beryl
Emerald refers to green beryl, colored by trace amounts of chromium and sometimes vanadium. The word "emerald" comes from Latin smaragdus, its original source being a Semitic word izmargad or the Sanskrit word, marakata, meaning "green". Most emeralds are highly included, so their brittleness (resistance to breakage) is classified as generally poor. Some of the most rare emeralds come from three main emerald mining areas in Colombia: Muzo, Coscuez, and Chivor. Fine emeralds are also found in other countries, such as Zambia, Brazil, Zimbabwe, Madagascar, Pakistan, India, Afghanistan and Russia. In the US, emeralds can be found in Hiddenite, North Carolina. In 1998, emeralds were discovered in the Yukon.

Colorless Beryl
Colorless beryl is called goshenite. The name originates from Goshen, Massachusetts where it was originally described. Since all these color varieties are caused by impurities and pure beryl is colorless, it might be tempting to assume that goshenite is the purest variety of beryl. However, there are several elements that can act as inhibitors to color in beryl and so this assumption may not always be true. The name goshenite has been said to be on its way to extinction and yet it is still commonly used in the gemstone markets. Goshenite is found to some extent in almost all beryl localities. In the past, goshenite was used for manufacturing eyeglasses and lenses owing to its transparency. Nowadays, it is most commonly used for gemstone purposes and also considered as a source of beryllium.

Heliodor
Golden beryl can range in colors from pale yellow to a brilliant gold. Unlike emerald, golden beryl has very few flaws. The term "golden beryl" is sometimes synonymous with heliodor (from Greek helios "sun"), but golden beryl refers to pure yellow or golden yellow shades, while heliodor refers to the greenish-yellow shades.

Beryl has a wonderful assortment of colors and a price tag that will fit all wallets; from very inexpensive goshinite to very expensive emeralds! Enjoy

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