AMAZING PARAIBA TOURMALINE PLATINUM NECKLACE PENDANT Mesmerizing Caribbean Sea Color, *BIG* Gem: 6.57ct Pear Start Price USD 26,100.00 Current Price USD 26,100.00 Time Left 16 days 15 hours 14 minutes Bid Count 0 Buy It Now Price - Reserve Price - Start Time Sunday, September 28, 2008 End Time Monday, January 26, 2009 Location New York, New York See more about 'AMAZING PARAIBA TOURMALINE PLATINUM NECKLACE PENDANT' Description This extraordinarily rare, Caribbean greenish-blue, swimming-pool-colored cuprian (copper-bearing) tourmaline is a once-in-a-lifetime gemstone that most people never have the pleasure of laying eyes on. It has been set into a platinum prong basket setting with a butterfly bezel. Paraiba tourmalines are among the rarest and most highly sought-after gemstones in the world. The gemstone on offer in this auction is one of a kind; it would be nearly impossible to find another one of this size, color and clarity at this price. It is not unheard-of for high-quality Paraiba tourmalines to sell for upwards of $10,000 to $20,000 per carat. This particular gemstone is without question a “crowning jewel” museum piece for even the most discerning collector. The gem’s glowing greenish-blue hue (rather than bluish green) is considered by most connoisseurs of Paraibas to be the most valuable and desirable color. The gem is certified by the most reputable gemological testing center for colored gemstones, AGTA. The certificate contains the following data: Group: NATURAL TOURMALINE Species: NATURAL ELBAITE Variety: CUPRIAN BLUE TOURMALINEItem description: Loose stone Color: Greenish blue Transparency: Transparent Weight: 6.57ct Dimensions: 15.34mm x 9.80mm x 7.32mm Shape: Pear Cut: Fancy Enhancement: Indications of heating* *Note that most cuprian blue tourmalines are heat treated. This is the standard practice in the industry and does not affect the value of these stones. The following, from the International Colored Gemstone Association, gives some interesting history and background on Paraiba tourmalines: Paraiba Tourmaline Small, rare and very valuable are those copper-containing Tourmalines mined at the Mina da Bathalha in the Brasilian state of Paraiba. The vivid turquoise blue to green colours are not shown by any other gemstone in the world, The exclusive uniqueness of the legendary occurrence make these rare gemstones real treasures. "Paraiba" – the word as such holds a special charm and attraction for gemstone lovers, after all, this is the denomination of a gemstone showing an exceptional, almost electric blue to green shades. It was discovered not long ago, to be precise: in the 1980s. The world owes this sensational find to an individual man and his unshakeable belief: to Heitor Dimas Barbosa. Never tiring, he had been digging with his helpers for years in the pegmatite layers of a small mountain range in the state of Paraiba in Brazil. Heitor Dimas Barbosa was not just simply a gemstone prospector, and, first of all: he was not searching for something known. He was deeply convinced that somewhere under the famous "Paraiba" hill there was hidden something "completely different" – and in the end his vision proved to be right. As early as 1981 he had started with the first preliminary steps for excavations in old abandoned mines. Hole after hole was driven into the hard soil – but in vain. However, all of a sudden, five and a half years after the first digging, in the labyrinth of shafts and passages there showed the first hints of a Tourmaline occurrence. Finally in autumn 1989 a handful of finest Tourmaline crystals was brought to the light of day from one of the many dark passages. These crystals showed colours which had never been dreamt of before. Unfortunately the "Father of the Paraiba Tourmaline” had to recover from an illness at this time, and could not be there at the mines. The rough crystals were sold without him ever setting eyes on them. After the find had become publicly known, the most adventurous stories happened at the mines. For a period of another five years the relatively small mountain range measuring only 400 m in length, 200 m in width and 65 m in height, had been turned into a virtual honeycomb of shafts and tunnels, and the mountain had almost been levelled. But in vain. And by now, nobody expects another find any more. Copper makes the difference Brazil is the classical Tourmaline country. This multi-coloured gemstone family shows practically all the colours of the rainbow. However, a brilliant turquoise shade had always been missing for a long time – until the valuable find was made at Paraiba. Usually it is traces of iron, manganese, chromium and vanadium which are responsible for giving Tourmalines their many beautiful colours. But this is quite different for the rare Paraiba Tourmaline: it owes its spectacular colour to copper, an element which had not shown up in Tourmalines before. There is a clear part of its weight made up by copper. In addition, it often also contains manganese as scientists have found out. The combination of these two elements causes a wide range of beautiful and fascinating colours in Paraiba Tourmalines: emerald green, turquoise to sky-blue, sapphire blue, indigo blue, dark purple to red purple. Certain mixtures of copper and manganese may also result in pale grey to purplish-blue colours. A high concentration of copper is responsible for the much coveted brilliant blues, turquoises and greens, while purples and reds are caused by manganese. By heating the stones, experienced cutters are able to eliminate the red traces, so that only the bright copper colour will show. The exceptionally vivid character of Paraiba Tourmalines , however, can only be appreciated after the stone has been cut. When it has been faceted, a unique fire and brilliance is displayed, which makes the stone seem to glow and shine from within even when there is little light. Therefore the colour is often characterised as "electric" or "neon". Fresh and full of energy is the charm and attraction of these treasures of Nature. A Paraiba Tourmaline in "swimming-pool blue” is the epitome of vividness and easy to discern even for an amateur. Paraiba Tourmalines are almost always very small, as the beautiful copper-containing Tourmaline crystals mined in the "fine hill” at Paraiba were almost exclusively fragments and splinters. Larger, unfragmented rough stones weighing over 5 gram were rare, and only very few achieved weights of more than 20 gram. Therefore you will hardly find a larger Paraiba Tourmaline at a jeweller’s or gemstone trader’s, besides, only a select few of these will even carry this kind of stone. The beauty and vividness of colour shown by Paraiba Tourmalines gave reason to enthusiasm for the gemstone world . Within only a short period considerable popularity had been gained, and these stones today belong to the most coveted and most expensive stones in the world. Prices continue to go up, and in the meantime they have reached such regions which used to be considered utopian for Tourmalines in the past. Five digit carat prices are asked and paid for fine, larger Paraiba Tourmalines. The market almost completely and immediately soaked up the limited offer of rough stones. This is easy to understand, for here Nature created a gemstone which is second to none concerning colour, brilliance and luminosity. And without Heitor Dimas Barbosa and his vision to find "something completely different", it probably would not exist on the market at all. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ TERMS OF THIS AUCTION This item is returnable for a full refund within 14 days of receipt if unsatisfied for any reason. See below for more details. Due to high levels of fraudulent activity, I will only accept bids from U.S.-based bidders and will ship only within the United States to Paypal-confirmed addresses. Shipping is free by USPS registered mail with full shipping insurance.. Please note that this auction is for the necklace pendant only; the chain is not included and is shown in the photos only for demonstration purposes. Happy bidding! Place a Bid!