A few days ago I went on my regular visit to a couple of crystal and mineral stores in my town, and in one of them I was quite surprised to see what the owner claimed to be small faceted pink amethyst loose stones. The surprise was even greater because at first glance I thought the gemstones were exceptional quality rose quartz crystals. Rose quartz crystals are usually opaque, since more often than not they have a sort of microscopic fiber structure, but if found as transparent they can be really beautiful. After a more careful examination I saw however that the color of the pink amethysts was different than what one would expect as "rose quartz pink". It was more of a Lavender Pink, or shell I say it had a hint of lavender, contributing to the striking appearance of the gems. Here is an example of a 10k Yellow Gold Pink Amethyst Ring.
While this site is primarily devoted to discussing green amethyst - prasiolite, and in particular its properties, meaning, and application in jewelry production, from time to time you can also find articles about ordinary purple variation, for example, about amethyst properties and meanings, or about some special variations, like spirit amethyst. In this text I wanted to address the pink variation of this semi precious gemstone, in my view not so justifiably named "pink amethyst". Along with the Lavender Pink, on the markets there are to be found also light gray lilac specimens of amethyst, under the same name. Their color is again not so similar to the genuine pink, a rose quartz would possess.
Obviously, there is a slight confusion and, if you like to put it that way, a popular misconception about pink amethyst. Is there in reality such a pink variation in this category? If you look at this issue more closely, there is actually no such thing as pink amethyst. Amethyst can be either purple, which is its normal color, or from time to time it can be found as green, considering the natural prasiolite stones. We have seen that the green form is kind of another type of stone, but it goes under the name "green or greened amethyst" due to the fact that it can be produced artificially from the violet variation, by thermal treatment for example.
There is another expression for light colored amethyst used so often on the Internet, you may or may not know, but what does actually the expression "Rose de France" means? Apparently, rose this variation should represent amethyst crystals with pale lilac tones originating mostly from Brazil. Some other references even connect this manufacturer's trade name with pink synthetic corundum. Still other sources claim that the Rose de France amethyst used to be very popular in South America some 60 or 70 years ago. This fact has been abused by some merchants who sell their pink amethyst jewelry as popular in Victorian times, which seems not to be the case.
To go back to the topic here, I believe that pink amethyst is a somewhat misleading term. To me, pink is something which is reserved for rose quartz. If the jewelry producers want to introduce a new trade name in order to take advantage of the newest fashion trends which include pink, so be it. I cannot however fail to notice that the pale shades of quartz, in this case of amethyst, are very popular these days. Think sage (pale grayish green) in the case of green amethyst. Think pale lilac in the case of pink amethyst. The pastel gems are obviously in. People probably like the refreshing tones of these gemstones, since very often they combine so well with diamonds in various jewelry items on one side, as well as with the other more prominently colored gemstones, on the other side.
As Modern Jeweler reports, choosing pale tones of quartz crystals "gives the jewelry in which they are featured greater wardrobe functionality for women who want jewelry on call for myriad occasions. This is certainly the case with green quartz, but not as much with Rose de France. According to Elena Furmansky, a colored stone buyer for David Yurman, deeper tones of amethyst far outsell lighter ones."
So it appears that green amethyst outsells the pink variations and on the other hand deep colored amethyst stones are more popular than the light colored ones. The jewelry producers claim to be able to sell most of their green amethysts without much problems.
The value of the "so called" pink amethyst should not be higher than the value of the deep violet amethyst variations. At least this is what the classical wisdom should tell us, since the most priced amethyst stones possess intense purple color, have great clarity and perfect cut. As always, the color of the stone is not the sole parameter that determines the price. It very much depends on the weight, setting, other gemstones used, and of course on the design. Larger, more perfect stones can easily reach the price of several hundred dollars, regardless of the exact color nuance.
In conclusion, if you are really attracted to the pale rose nuances of amethyst, and if you know for sure that the color of the stone has not been altered on artificially enhanced, there is no reason why not to select a nice jewelery article adorned with it. After all, amethyst is amethyst -- one of the most beautiful stones there can be found on our planet Earth. The rose nuances are especially attuned to the hearth, and very often can bring consolation, gentle love and tolerance in addition to the other properties of violet quartz. To me personally, after the diamond, this is my stone of choice, be it purple, lilac, green or pink amethyst.
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