December's Rarest Birthstone
Updated: Dec 19, 2018
Tanzanite
December's Rarest Birthstone
✧ Brilliant blue/purple hues ✧ May be gone by 2040
✧ Found only in one region of the world.✧
Quick Facts / At A Glance Highly prized for its rare beauty Discovered in 1967 Found only in Tanzania Deposits will likely be depleted in less than 30 years Mohs Hardness: 6.5 - 7
Attributes This gem is paleochroic, meaning it changes hue when viewed from different angles. Tanzanite is very carefully cut to bring out this color display. Tanzanite’s overnight popularity was due to Tiffany & Co.’s 1968 marketing campaigns. The high demand for its vivid color, high clarity, and larger sizes created its rise to fame to become the December birthstone. Celebrate Tanzanite this month with its beauty, intriguing history, and rarity.
History As the story goes, Maasai herders found these vivid gems peeking out of the earth after a lightning strike had set fire to an area near Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. Manuel d’Souza quickly registered a claim, as he thought it was a sapphire mine. Later, he realized he’d discovered a new gemstone, Tanzanite, and it started a mining boom!
Now you too can have a rare piece of history!