Citrine
Name
The name Citrine comes from the Latin word "citrus" (lemon), which is a well chosen name due to its lemon like color.
Colour
The color of citrine ranges from transparent, pale yellow, golden yellow, brownish orange, mandarin orange to Madeira red and even to green. The coloring substance in citrine is iron. The most common shade is an earthy deep brownish or reddish orange. The finest citrine color is a yellow to reddish orange.
Cut
The citrine usually has a facet cut. It's where the stone best comes into its own.
Faceted cut: There is wide variety of faceted cuts - some of them are displayed in the picture to your right.
Power
In ancient days citrine was considered a gem of luck and used as a talisman against evil thoughts, snake bites and other venomous reptiles. It has also been widely used in medicine as it is thought to aid digestion, remove toxins from the body, protect against plague and bad skin, and be useful in the treatment of depression and diabetes. It is also assumed that citrine stimulates mental abilities, creativity and encourages intuition and self-confidence. Furthermore it is said to be the stone of hope and renewal, to strengthen sensitive people and to support determination.
Birthstone
The citrine is the birthstone of November. With it’s soft shades of brown, orange and yellow it is the perfect gemstone for this beautiful autumn month. You can see and feel the summer sunset after glow in this special gem.
Mineral group
The Citrine belongs to the quartz family, such as the amethyst, the rose quartz or the tiger's eye. Citrine is rare, and today citrine quartz is the result of heat treatment of amethyst quartz. Also interesting to know: The quartz is the second most abundant mineral in the earth's crust after the feldspar.
Locations
The most popular citrines are found in Brazil, Madagascar, Uruguay and Mozambique. Other locations where citrines are found are in Russia, Argentina, Burma, Spain, France India, Scotland, Mexico and the USA. Also interesting to know: the multicolored citrine as well as the ametrine are found in Bolivia. Limonine citrines mostly come from Zambia and Tanzania.
Mohs scale
The Mohs hardness describes the hardness of a mineral on a scale of 1 to 10 and is named after its inventor, the German mineralogist Friedrich Mohs (1773 - 1839). It is the basis of the hardness test. Friedrich Mohs scored various minerals against each other and arranged them according to their hardness. The scale consists of a series of 10 minerals, each of which "scratches" all standing in front of him. Diamonds have a Mohs hardness of 10 and are therefore the hardest minerals.
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1 + 2 can be scratched with the bare fingernail
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1 - 5 can be scratched with the knife
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6 - 10 can be scratched with pane
The citrine has hardness 7 on the Mohs hardness scale.
Care
Please be aware that most gemstones should not be exposed to direct sunlight for too long since they will gradually bleach and loose their vibrant color. The best way to care for an citrine is to clean it with warm, soapy water and a soft cloth. Ultrasonic cleaners are usually safe except in rare instances where a stone is dyed or treated by fracture filling.
Not recommended: Steam cleaning and subject to heat.
Combination
The warmth of yellow gold fits perfectly with the citrine. Combined with brown tones it results in a wonderful autumn image.