November gems

Topaz and citrine are both November birthstones, and they look so similar that they’re often mistaken for one another.

Many of us know the pretty blue spectrum of topaz, yet this is a gemstone that comes in a wide variety of colours, including yellow, brown, blue, green, orange, red, pink, purple, and is colourless in its pure form. Other colours are formed when it is tinted by impurities.

The name topaz derives from Topazios, the ancient Greek name for St. John’s Island in the Red Sea, where the first yellow gemstones were mined. Today the most valuable topaz is a rich pink or red colour.

November’s second birthstone, citrine, is a variety of quartz that ranges from pale yellow to brownish orange in colour, named after the citron fruit because of its lemon-inspired shades.

Citrine’s yellow hues are caused by traces of iron in quartz crystals, which rarely occurs naturally. Many citrine gems on the market are made by heat treating other varieties of quartz, such as the more common, less expensive purple amethyst and smoky quartz. Most natural citrine is a pale yellow colour.

It derives its name from the Latin word “citrina”, and according to legend, it is a “Sun Stone” that absorbs sunlight and harnesses its energy.

Image and rings from Youngs Jewellers.

Did you know?
Topaz is considered a mellow, empathic stone that soothes, heals, recharges and re-centres. Citrine symbolises happiness, abundance, success, and
wealth.