| Tanzanite is only found in one place in the entire world, | | | | at 500+ degrees celcius the rough tanzanite crystals |
| in the foothills of Mt. Kilimanjaro. It is commonly thought | | | | turn their beautiful violetish-blue color. The rough |
| that tanzanite was discovered in 1967 by a Maasai | | | | tanzanite gems are then faceted into various shapes |
| tribesman. The tribesman found a transluscent blue | | | | in India, USA and Europe and then marketed to an |
| rock that he thought to be a sapphire. When the stone | | | | approved list of sightholders who wholesale the |
| was tested, it was found to have different properties | | | | finished gems to jewelry manufacturers and retailers. |
| than corundum (sapphire). What the tribesman had | | | | Tanzanite colors occur in various shades of gray, |
| found was determined to be the crystalline form of the | | | | brown, violet, blue, reddish-purple, and tints of green, |
| mineral zoisite. | | | | though the most valuable color is considered to be a |
| Mined with very primitive methods, most tanzanite | | | | strong bluish-violet color with flashes of purple and/or |
| crystals come out of the ground demonstrating a | | | | red. |
| dingey yellowish-brown color. Through heat treatment | | | | |