New Acquisitions - Beryl
- Photography by Ken Larsen. Faceted by and gift of David A. Brackna, 2007.
The mineral beryl occurs in many colors. The best known gem varieties are the deep-green emerald and the sea-blue aquamarine. However, beryl also is found in shades of pink (morganite), red, and yellow (heliodor), and in some cases is colorless (goshenite). The heliodor gems and crystal shown here are from Tajikistan and exhibit a deeply saturated golden-yellow color. The gems were faceted by award winning gemcutter David Brackna. The 56.62 carat heliodor is a skewed lozenge cut; the center stone, 30.70 carats, is cut in a Turkish star having the effect of facets reflecting off of each other. The crystal at right exhibits the natural shape of beryl. These are beautiful examples of heliodors from a locality not previously represented in the National Gem Collection.
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