The Tremolite mineral was named after the place it was first discovered in - the Tremola Valley. A group of minerals that occur in white, light gray to dark gray, light yellow, light green to dark green, light pink and purple colors, Tremolite is also used to refer to the colorless to white and sometimes even the gray variety of the group.

Composed of calcium magnesium iron silicate hydroxide [Ca2 (Mg, Fe) 5Si8O22(OH) 2], a pure form of Tremolite without any iron impurity has a creamy white color. The iron content in the stone will increase the specific gravity and the index of refraction and will also darken the color of the stone. Tremolites are also known to exist in different forms such as: a chromium containing deep green colored variety known as Chrome-Tremolite, a pink to lilac colored variety – Hexagonite and a fibrous Mountain Leather or Mountain Cork Tremolite which has an appearance of a cloth.

The mineral has also been found in other locations such as the area around Wilberforce, Ontario - Canada; De Kalb, St Lawrence Co., New York; California; Arizona and Canaan, Connecticut - USA; Tyrol and Piemonte - Italy; Tremola Valley - Switzerland; Tanzania and Finland.

With a hardness of 5 - 6 on the Moh’s Scale and a Specific Gravity of 2.9 - 3.1, Tremolite specimens are translucent to transparent and can be perfectly clear. Thus due to its property of hardness and luster it is used as a stone in making jewellery.

Turquoise is one of the most popular stones used by jewellery designers today. Popular for over 6000 years, Turquoise has always inspired people of different cultures and nations. Turquoise was mined by the Egyptians in the Sinai Peninsula in 5500 BC. And one of oldest pieces of jewellery found is a Turquoise and Gold bracelet, unearthed from the tomb of Queen Zer in 1900.

Turquoise has always been highly valued right from the ancient times by the Egyptians, Persians, Mongols and Tibetans. As Persians had a preference for sky blue colored Turquoise the term “Persian Turquoise” was coined; however this term is now used as a color grade indicator and not as a geographical indicator. The interest of the Europeans in Turquoise can be dated back to 500 BC; however there was no impact of this stone on the European fashion scene until the latter part of the middle ages.

The name Turquoise is supposed to be derived from the French word pierre turquois meaning Turkish stone as the Europeans believed that the stone had come from Turkey. When actually it had been mined from the Sinai Peninsula or Alimersai Mountain in Persia around 5000 BC. The national gemstone of Iran (then Persia) has always been the Turquoise, which means victorious – “Ferozah” in the Persian language.

There was a huge demand for Turquoise during the beginning of the first Millennium AD when both the Chinese and the Native Americans were fascinated by the blue colored stone. The Chinese imported most of their stones from the Persians, Turks, Mongols and the Tibetans even though they had some mines in their empire. The Aztecs in Mexico mined Turquoise between 900 - 1000 AD; whereas the Anasazi people mined Turquoise in Arizona, New Mexico and Colorado. Turquoise from the city of Chaco Canyon found its way to the American continent and had also been unearthed from the great Mayan city of Chichén Itzá in the Yucatán. By the 16th century, the American Southwest societies were using Turquoise as a currency.

The Native American culture especially uses Turquoise in Navajo concha belts, Zuni bracelets, thunderbird motifs and squash blossom necklaces. This Indian style or Native American Jewellery with Turquoise mounted in silver is a new trend among designers. Prior to this, the Native Americans - the Navajo craftsmen made solid Turquoise beads, carvings and inlaid mosaics. However most of the Turquoise and Silver jewellery and ornaments, belts sold today in the US are made in China and Thailand as it is relatively cheaper in those countries.

Turquoise a hydrous phosphate of aluminum and copper CuO.3Al2O3.2P2O5.9H2O Hydrated Copper Aluminum Phosphate, has a Hardness of 5 - 6, a Specific Gravity of 2.6 - 2.8 and a Refractive Index of 1.61 - 1.65. This birthstone for the month of December is always an opaque gem but translucent stones though rare are known to exist.

Turquoise is believed to help one in new projects, warn the wearer of danger by changing color and bring happiness and good fortune to all. Many ancient cultures believed that the blue of Turquoise was supposed to have powerful metaphysical properties. The treasure of Montezuma displayed in the British Museum, consists of a carved serpent covered by a mosaic of Turquoise. In ancient times in Mexico, the use of Turquoise was reserved for the gods. The Asians believed that this stone could protect them from all evil. Whereas the Tibetans carved it into their ritual objects and wear it as part of their traditional jewellery. Thought to promote prosperity, the ancient manuscripts of Persia, Afghanistan and Arabia spoke about how the change in color of Turquoise determined the health of the person.

Turquoise rings are given as forget-me-not gifts in Europe even today. And the gemstones form Iran are said to be the best due to their clear sky blue coloration with no green color or black veins see in it. The bluer the blue the higher is the value of the stone. Since it is porous it should be kept away from chemicals and cleaned only with warm soapy water.

The presence of Topaz can be dated back to the Ancient Egyptian Empire. The popularity of this stone grew tremendously during the Middle Ages, when it was believed to contain the power to strengthen the mind. This sparkling gemstone has been used to create some amazing pieces of Topaz jewellery.

Many referred to Topaz as a yellow to orange gemstone in the past but today due to a large supply of blue Topaz in the world market, many believe that Topaz is exclusively a blue gemstone. However in reality Topaz occurs in a wide variety of colors and even exhibits some unusual effects as seen in smoky topaz. The name Topaz is derived from the Sanskrit word ‘tapas’.

Found in a variety of shapes, sizes and colors, Topaz is ideal for usage in a wide variety of applications. Though Brazil is the world’s largest supplier of Topaz, Russia and Pakistan are also emerging as new sources of Topaz.

The colors, which are rare and most desirable by gem collectors, are red and intense pink. Gems with these colors fetch a higher price. Also Imperial Topaz or bright orange colored Topaz fall in the moderate price range whereas the blue colored Topaz are priced lower than the rest and are very popular because of the color shades, sizes and shapes they are available in.

While determining the value of this stone one should take into consideration the intensity of the color and the clarity of the stone as well as the color preference of the wearer.