ABOUT
What is kornerupine?
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Kornerupine is a rare borosilicate mineral and gemstone. Its intense colors can resemble that of an emerald and depending on locality shift to browns, dark greens, mint greens, yellows and even blues! Kornerupine is mostly a collectors’ stone Given just how rare it is and how impossible it can be to keep a consistent supply/collection of it in stock. The stone was named for the outstanding Danish mineralogist Andreas Kornerup (1857-81), who explored Greenland where the mineral was first discovered at Fiskenaesset in 1884. Gem quality material however, was not found until around 1912 and the beautiful green/blues of tanzania we see today only started to appear around 1995.
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Currently the main sources for gem quality Kornerupine are Sri Lanka and Madagascar, However a Very rare form of kornerupine that was first found in 1995ish exists from the umba river valley area of Tanzania/Kenya. This rare form of kornerupine comes in beautiful Greens, Sometimes blues and even rarer purple colors.
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In recent years most of the areas where kornerupine was mined in Tanzania have now been closed off and protected by game wardens as important wildlife reserves leading to scarcity and incredibly rarity!
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Kornerupine Statistics:
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Hardness: 7. Kornerupine is suitable for jewlery and everyday wear, while not as hard as a diamond it will not be easily scratched or blemished without extremely forceful or rough care.
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refractive index: 1.67 to 1.69.
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Cleavage: Kornerupine Tends to have fairly good cleavage in atleast 2 directions.
