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Birthstone for November

Topaz is a clear gemstone found in many colors and prized throughout the world for its hardness, clarity, beauty, and ability to provide strength, protection, and vision.

Topaz is normally found in hues of yellow or blue, but the birthstone of November is found in nature in many different colors, from pinkish-orange to colorless. Once valued in Ancient Rome and Egypt for its color of the setting sun, topaz is found among the Portugese crown jewels and world-famous collections, and inspired the name of a Hitchcock spy thriller in 1969.

Topaz is normally found in hues of yellow or blue, but the birthstone of November is found in nature in many different colors....

Yellow, Blue or Colorless Topaz

Topaz is a fluorine aluminum silicate cystal and, when completely pure, is clear and colorless. In nature, though, topaz occurs in several colors. The most commonly occurring natural topaz are clear, pale yellow, grey, orange, rose or red. The name is derived from either the Sanskrit word “tapas,” fire, or the Greek “topazos,” which means green gemstone.

Clear, grey, or pale yellow topaz can be heat treated and irradiated to produce the rare blue topaz, or coated with a thin film to give a surface rainbow effect. Pinkish-orange to red-orange “imperial topaz” is the most valuable variety.

Yellow topaz is often confused with less valuable citrine, and citrine is sometimes even marketed as “gold topaz,” “Madeira topaz” or “Spanish topaz.” Blue topaz is sometimes confused with aquamarine. Topaz is heavy and very hard, rating a hardness of 8 on the Mohs scale.

Topaz in Myth and History

The ancient Egyptians believed that topaz was colored golden by the touch of the sun god, Ra, and they used topaz in protective amulets and jewelry. The Romans connected topaz with Jupiter, also a god of the sun. The ancient Greeks believed that the topaz had mystical powers to protect a wearer from harm, make him or her invisible when needed, and to restore sight, both physical and metaphorical.

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