This yellow sun stone seems to be created to cheer up and give joy. Since ancient times, it has been used to create jewelry. Citrine looks equally good with both gold and silver. Of course, more often you can see more gold items on the shelves. For example, gold earrings with citrine. But silver fans should not despair, as clear or light-colored citrines can look great in white metal settings.
The stone also looks good in company with other gems, which allows craftsmen to create masterpieces of jewelry art.
The natural shade of the stone is so bright and cheerful that many secular fashionistas choose jewelry from this amazing stone.
History
Despite the fact that jewelers have been working with citrine since ancient times, jewelry with this stone is not widely usedgot. This is due to the fact that natural gem-quality crystals are quite rare.
In the Middle Ages, faceted citrine crystals adorned the crowns of European sovereigns. Seals and amulets were also carved from this stone, and many court ladies wore jewelry with yellow quartz. True, in those days the stone was called Spanish or golden topaz.
The mineral got its name only in 1747, from the Latin word citreus ("lemon").
Citrine coloring
Citrine belongs to a large group of quartz and is a close "relative" of amethyst and rock crystal.
Its chemical formula, silicon dioxide SiO2, has long been well known to specialists. And the shades of natural citrine depend on the presence and amount of impurities of iron, lithium or aluminum.
In nature, the yellow-green color of the crystals, which makes the stones look like topaz, is very rare. Therefore, jewelers highly appreciate every stone they find.
Opaque specimens are much more commonly mined, which are suitable for making crafts or decorative inserts in jewelry. However, mineral samples occur in nature when there are noticeable inclusions of foreign materials in the crystal. It seems to be a useless marriage, but such stones are highly valued by professionals because of their uniqueness. They are called "moss citrine", and it is from such finds that exclusive citrine jewelry is obtained.
Not only nature
Compared to other quartz, citrine is quite rare. Its deposits in the form of transparent crystals are found in Brazil, Russia, the USA, Spain and France.
However, since the Middle Ages, enterprising jewelers have come up with a replacement for natural citrine. If other minerals of the quartz group are exposed to elevated temperatures (from 300 to 500˚С), the primary color of the stone will change to a rich yellow, sometimes with a noble reddish tint.
For example, in the Urals they found a lot of smoky quartz, which had almost no jewelry value. But, after the quartz crystals were baked in bread or heated in a pot of ashes, they turned into a sparkling likeness of citrine. Often the "created" crystals turned out to be more beautiful than natural ones, they have a more saturated shade, and the color scheme is more interesting. In addition, only transparent, clean samples, without cracks or veins, were heated to maximize their value.
Today, stones are no longer baked in a loaf of bread, the production of citrine from inexpensive quartz has been put on an industrial scale. And this is not bad, we managed to get a unique shade of the stone: a thick wine color with a golden sheen. The color was called "Madeira" and such jewelry with citrine is highly valued.
Cut or cabochon
The form a stone will receive after processing depends on its transparency and the presence of defects. Gemstones of class III, completely transparent and with good brilliance, are brilliant cut. Then afterprocessing, the stone begins to sparkle and shimmer with all its facets. Sometimes, in order to fully reveal the beauty of the crystal, a combined gem cut is used. Such blanks are used to make gold jewelry with citrine.
Opaque minerals or stones with foreign impurities belong to the ΙV class of semi-precious stones. For inserts into rings or pendants, a "cabochon" cut is used, after which the stone acquires brilliance and texture. And for jewelry inserts in products, the master can simply grind the mineral plate.
By the way, despite the fact that artificially created citrines have a brighter and richer color, true craftsmen value weakly colored natural crystals for their rarity. Therefore, do not be surprised if a women's jewelry with a smaller and paler citrine costs much more than its brighter counterparts.
Mystic properties
For a long time, people were attracted not only by the sparkling beauty of citrine, but also by its wonderful power. In ancient Rome, only philosophers and senators, people highly respected in society, could wear jewelry with this stone. It was believed that the mineral allows you to reveal natural talents, overcome insecurity and even cope with depression.
In different centuries, citrine jewelry was considered as a powerful mystical amulet. Many believed that the stone enhances psychic abilities and develops a prophetic gift.
In the East, people believed that the possession of citrine brings abundance and we alth, as well asprotects its wearer from snake and scorpion bites.
Features of jewelry selection
This solar stone may well become a kind of talisman to its owner. The main thing is to keep citrine with you as often as possible, so it is better to choose a piece of jewelry that can be worn every day. It can be a pendant or earrings with citrine, and for the stronger sex, a ring with a faceted stone is suitable.
The beneficial effect of citrine is enhanced by other stones. You can safely combine a yellow shard of the sun with carnelian, pomegranates and jade. But from the neighborhood with zircon, tourmaline or opal, the properties of citrine weaken.
Like all minerals of the quartz group, citrine can lose its color from exposure to sunlight. It is better to store jewelry in a closed box and not wear it on a very sunny day.
Citrine and Zodiac signs
Almost perfect citrine jewelry will suit representatives of earth signs (Taurus, Capricorn and Virgo). It is for them that the stone will help to gain financial well-being and irresistibility.
Fire signs treated with crystals will give inner comfort and additional inspiration. Air signs will also get creativity and self-confidence.
But for the signs of Water, especially for Scorpio, this stone is contraindicated. In this case, it weakens the energy and deprives its owner of vitality.
