DigMyGem Gem encyclopedia

Peridot

Natural Faceted Gems

Peridot is the transparent yellowish-green to green gem variety of the mineral olivine, usually rich in forsterite. Iron within the crystal structure produces its color, so unlike many gems it occurs only in shades of green.

Identity

Material or variety
Peridot
Scientific or material identity
Olivine (peridot variety)
Classification
Natural mineral or mineral variety
Aliases or trade names
Chrysolite
Composition or formula
(Mg,Fe)₂SiO₄
Crystal system or structure
Orthorhombic
Geological or manufacturing origin
Can form in more than one geological environment, or combines several materials.
Mohs hardness
6.5 to 7

Origins

China · Egypt · Ethiopia · Kyrgyzstan · Myanmar · Norway · Pakistan · Sri Lanka · USA

Appearance & optical properties

bright olive-green transparent olivine.

History & discovery

Zabargad Island in Egypt’s Red Sea is the oldest recorded source, with mining possibly beginning between 340 and 279 BCE. Peridot was often confused with emerald and topaz; some green gems in Cologne Cathedral long identified as emeralds are actually peridot, showing how persistent that confusion became.

Uses & care

Common uses
Transparent crystals are faceted or cut as beads and cabochons for rings, earrings, pendants, and other jewelry. Peridot-bearing meteorites are also prized as scientific and collector specimens.
Handling and cleaning
Use warm soapy water. Avoid steam, ultrasonic cleaning, rapid or uneven heat, acids, hard blows, and abrasive contact; peridot can fracture under thermal shock and its polish can scratch.

Jewellery

7 pieces of Peridot jewellery. Learners earn each one in DigMyGem by learning words; until then it shows as a silhouette.

  • Silhouette of Evening Emerald Pendant

    Evening Emerald Pendant

    Pendant

    A large oval peridot in a filigree gold frame, its yellow-green glow giving it the old name of evening emerald.

  • Silhouette of Zabargad Ring

    Zabargad Ring

    Ring

    A cushion-cut peridot in gold, the same yellow-green stone that Cleopatra's Egypt took from the island of Zabargad.

  • Silhouette of Peridot Drop Earrings

    Peridot Drop Earrings

    Earrings

    A pair of olive-green peridot pears on gold hoops, glowing warmly against the skin.

  • Silhouette of Olive Bar Brooch

    Olive Bar Brooch

    Brooch

    A slim gold bar brooch set with three round peridots in a row. It is the kind of plain everyday piece given for an August birthday.

  • Silhouette of Pallasite Window Pendant

    Pallasite Window Pendant

    Pendant

    An imagined pendant cut from a pallasite meteorite, the stony-iron kind in which peridot crystals sit inside a metal web. Polished thin, the slice lets light through its yellow-green crystals like stained glass.

  • Silhouette of Ptolemy's Topazios Collar

    Ptolemy's Topazios Collar

    Necklace

    An imagined Egyptian broad collar honouring the peridot mine of Ptolemy II, from the age when the Greeks called this green stone topazios. Rows of gold and peridot beads fan out to falcon-headed terminals.

  • Silhouette of Reliquary of the Green Magi

    Reliquary of the Green Magi

    Jewel

    An imagined gilded reliquary in the manner of a medieval cathedral shrine, its arcades set with green gems said to be peridots. A legend among its keepers holds that the stones were mistaken for emeralds for centuries.

Sources