first published in Facette 22 (February 2016) Chrysoberyl is found in various colours, mostly yellow to green and brown due to iron, light green to bluish green (vanadium) or as the colour-changing variety alexandrite (due to chromium). In rare cases, chrysoberyl is also found in colourless and chemically rath

by Dr. M.S. Krzemnicki, first published in Facette 21 (February 2014) In 2013, Ms. Carina Hanser from the University Freiburg im Breisgau in Germany successfully completed her bachelor thesis on cobalt-spinel from Vietnam. Under the supervision of Dr Krzemnicki, Prof de Capitani (University Basel) and Prof

by Dr. M.S. Krzemnicki, first published in Facette 21 (February 2014) Since 2012, a new gem find near Didy (Madagscar) has produced some sapphires and rubies of outstanding size and quality (Pardieu et al. 2012, Peretti and Hahn 2012). This material originates from a remote area in the jungle south of the

Emeralds from Afghanistan are well known in the trade for their beauty and size, and are considered a historic source of fine emeralds. Despite the political turmoil of recent decades, these mines have recently produced again a number of gems of outstanding quality and size, as we could observe at SSEF during t