| Rockhounding has become pretty popular in | | | | of the large cut gems are flawless -- and |
| America. I would call it a safe bet that everyone | | | | spectacular. |
| at least knows a die hard rockhound - if they | | | | Cutting gemstones is not the only value of |
| aren't onethemselves. There is unquestionably | | | | tourmaline, however. It is also usedto make a |
| something very special about gems thatyou find | | | | polarizing apparatus (tourmaline tongs), pressure |
| yourself. Ever wonder where it all started for Us | | | | measuringequipment, and specialist microphones. |
| in the USA? | | | | Scientists can use tourmaline to gainknowledge of |
| In 1820 tourmaline was discovered by Elijah | | | | the geological past for the area in which the |
| Hamilin and Ezekiel Homes at | | | | crystals are found. |
| Mount Mica, Maine. By 1822 America had it's first | | | | In the United States tourmaline can be found in |
| gemstone mine. It is hard to imagine another gem | | | | abundance in southern |
| being so right to represent the avent of | | | | California, Connecticut, Maine, New York and |
| America's love of gem hunting. | | | | Texas. It has also been found in |
| Having a hardness of 7.5, tourmaline makes easily | | | | Idaho, South Dakota, North Carolina, and a few |
| workable gem facitingmaterial. It also comes in | | | | other states in lesser quantities. |
| every color and hue imaginable. Many | | | | Worldwide, tourmaline is found in Africa, Brazil, |
| crystalscontain several colors within one stone, | | | | Madagascar, Mexico, Myanmar, |
| the "watermelon" stone with it's pinkcenter and | | | | Namibia, Sri Lanka, and The Isle of Elba. |
| green outer layers being the most well known. | | | | Identifying factors for those hunting tourmaline |
| Buergerite, elbaite,schrol, utive, foitite dravite, | | | | are: |
| povondravite, chromdravite, feruvite | | | | Color - from transparent to black, often |
| aliddicoatite,olenite are all mineral species of | | | | multi-colored |
| tourmaline, making 11 mineral species in all. | | | | Luster - vitreous to resinous |
| Tourmaline produces some sizable crystals, the | | | | Streak - uncolored |
| usual range falling from underan inch long to over | | | | Cleavage - none |
| a foot long and several inches wide. Needless to | | | | Fracture - variable |
| say manyspectacular huge gems, a 400 carate | | | | Specific Gravity - 3.0 - 3.2 |
| pink/red stone, 256 carate blue/green, a | | | | Chemistry - SiO2 + B, Al |
| 75 pound green/pink to name a just a few, have | | | | Crystal System - hexagonal |
| been cut from large tourmalinecrystals, and many | | | | Hardness - 7.0 - 7. |