New Acquisitions - Ashley Tourmaline
- Photography by Ken Larsen. Gift of the Ashley Foundation, 2007.
The tourmaline family consists of more than ten distinct minerals, but only one, elbaite, accounts for nearly all of the tourmaline gemstones. Although best known in shades of green and red, elbaite also can be blue, purple, yellow or colorless. In the late 1990’s, copper-containing blue tourmaline was found in Nigeria. The material was generally paler and less saturated than the much prized Brazilian “Paraiba” stones, but the Nigerian gems typically had fewer inclusions. This unusually large tourmaline gem exhibits a beautiful sea-blue color that is very rare and highly prized. This important stone was acquired through the generous donation of the Ashley Foundation in 2007. The color, size, and source of this tourmaline make it a wonderful addition to the National Gem Collection.
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