Peridot

Peridot is the beautiful, vivid green birthstone for August.

The name peridot derives from the Arabic word “faridat’ which means gem. This beautiful stone is one of the few gemstones that comes in only one colour – it’s always green. The intensity of the green of each stone is determined by the amount of iron in the chemical make-up of the peridot. The colour shades are found from yellowish green through to olive, and even a brownish green.

The formation of these stones takes many years, which makes them a valuable stone as they are not available in high numbers. It’s suggested that the most beautiful quality stones are mined in the border area between Afghanistan and Pakistan, and Burma, with other deposits in Arizona, China and Vietnam. Some stones are also found in Queensland, Australia.

Peridot is not particularly hard – only 6.5 to 7 on the Mohs scale (see the Moh’s scale here) – but it is easy to look after and fairly robust.

Some historians suggest that peridot is the oldest of all gemstones, with it being mentioned in records that date as far back as the 1500s, and documented in Egyptian jewellery. Read more about peridot here...

Peridot looks equally as beautiful in both yellow and white gold, or silver, and we have set many beautiful peridots in both metals.

Peridot also looks beautiful as a contrast stone, like in the ring below.

If you have any questions about peridot, we would love to talk to you about them at our studio workshop. We would also love to clean any of your precious peridot – pop in and see us at Highgate and we can do it while you wait.