Gaspeite

Consumer Information

What color is it?: Gaspeite is a medium green color with yellow modifying color as seen above.

What is the story behind this gemstone?: Named for its main source of occurrence, Gaspe, Quebec, Canada this gemstone is a fairly new item on the gemstone market. It has a pleasing “earth green” color and wears very well.

Can I wear it everyday?: Yes, for most purposes it will wear well with a hardness of about 4.8.

Is it expensive?: Relatively inexpensive. About the same price as a nice piece of Lapis Lazuli in the finest quality.

Is it a birthstone?: No

What do I need to know before going shopping?: First, don’t shop for gaspeite on eBay. This is a rather rare gem material that is only now being found in the open markets. I found the above specimen at the Tucson show. It is a very pretty stone that matches well with other earth tone gem materials.

General Information

Source: Canada

Chemical: (Ni,Mg,Fe)Co3 A member of the calcite group of minerals

Formation: In volcanic rock formation

Crystal System: Trigonal but rarely seen as crystals

Unusual Properties: None