Rare Topaz

The topaz is a naturally colorless stone which, when treated gives out some of the most exquisite and stunningly beautiful colors imaginable. According to legend, both Romans and Egyptians believed that the fiery glowing topaz represented the sun god and therefore revered it. Being the birthstone of those born in the month of November, wearers of the stone are said to be protected from harm and bad luck. Another interesting story is one that says the topaz changes color when drink is poisoned and this resulted in royalty wearing rare topaz to protect themselves.

A stone that has been associated with many colorful legends, the Greek thought the topaz was capable of making them strong as well as invisible whenever they were in the presence of danger. Most unusually, even 19th Century Russians were under the impression that by wearing a topaz they could increase their intellect, cure sicknesses and provide relief from depression. There is of course no evidence to prove any of these legends whereas the beauty of the stone remains undiminished and thrills the eye of the wearer as much as the beholder.

Although quite attractive, and having given birth to such exotic tales, the topaz is relatively an inexpensive stone which is one reason for its popularity and the propensity for many people to have jewelry made out of it. Rare topaz such as the Imperial topaz which is a yellowish orange in color has small prisms inside the stone while the blue topaz which is even rarer, is in fact colorless with shades of blue flashes that can be seen inside.

This unique stone comes in beautiful hues that have been given equally exotic names such as the mystic topaz, imperial topaz, Neptune's Garden Mystic topaz etc. all of which goes on to show the fascination people have had with this gemstone since its discovery. Topaz is usually found in its clear pure form or at times with a tinge of silver or white. Being a hard and tough gemstone, it's crystal structure is sometimes mistaken for Diamonds because the topaz has the same clarity and density of the more precious Diamond. The topaz however crystallizes into a variety of shapes such as pyramid shaped, tubular or dome shaped and prism like.

If you are in the process of looking for rare topaz, green and blue are said to the most rare of all topaz with the blue topaz being heat treated than most other stones to make it a commercially viable gemstone for anyone to purchase. It is the natural clear topaz that is treated with irradiation to turn it into blue topaz while the Imperial topaz is also treated in the same manner to bring out the deep gold that is much sought after by many collectors. When ever you buy rare topaz, its always better to purchase it from a reputed gem merchant who will be able to advice you as to the genuineness and true worth of the stone. Keep in mind that its very seldom you will come across a rare topaz that has not been treated in some way, and such untreated gems might not look as attractive as those that have been treated.

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