Grandidierite 2.12 ct – Round Cut, Madagascar

This grandidierite weighs 2.12 ct and comes from Madagascar. It is worked in a round cut and is untreated — in this size it is among the very rare exceptions. Grandidierites over two carats in cuttable quality are hard to find on the market.

The round cut is the most demanding test of symmetry and polish — every inaccuracy shows immediately. At the same time it is the shape that displays the colour and fire of a grandidierite most completely.

About grandidierite

Grandidierite was discovered in Madagascar in 1902 by Alfred Lacroix and named after the French explorer Alfred Grandidier. For decades the mineral was known almost exclusively in a cloudy, opaque form — facetable, clear material remained the exception and still comes almost entirely from southern Madagascar. Cut stones above one carat count as a rarity among collectors.

Its colour lies between blue-green and green-blue and comes from iron in the crystal lattice. The pronounced trichroism is striking: depending on the viewing direction, the same stone appears colourless, blue-green or dark green. With a Mohs hardness of 7 to 7.5, grandidierite is considerably more robust than many other collector stones; a distinct cleavage nonetheless demands care when cutting and setting.

Specifications

• Stone type: grandidierite
• Weight: 2.12 ct
• Origin: Madagascar
• Cut shape: round
• Treatment: none, untreated
• Cutting: our own workshop
• Location: Austria
• Availability: unique piece, one only

Further single pieces from the same material can be found under Grandidierite, rare species beyond it under More gemstones. Would you like your own rough stone cut, or an existing stone reworked? We take that on in our workshop — more under Services.