This content was first published on IGR – Italian Gemological Review no. 3 in 2018. The information provided here is therefore current as of the original publication date.
The most famous gems are four: diamond, ruby, sapphire and emerald! In Italy there are so many wonderful things and, among them, also the presence of two locations where emeralds are extracted.
Emeralds can be found in the western alps in Piedmont. They are found in the albitites of the Alpe Rosso above Orcesco and in those under the peak of Pizzo Marcio in Val Vigezzo (Novara). These fields were discovered in the early ‘70s and became famous when two new mineralogical species: vigezzite and roggianite were found.
The stones are found inside a pegmatite with a partially schistose albite. At the beginning there were doubts on whether it was an emerald beryl or simply a green one (due to the very low percentage of Cr analysed in some samples). However, nowadays they proved that among the beryls of the Val Vigezzo some authentic emeralds exist (Figures 25 and 26).
We should say that those crystals, though they represent a mineralogical and gemmological wealth for Piedmont, are, on average, of a mediocre colour, in particular when compared to commercial emeralds, though some fairly good gems around a carat were cut.
Unfortunately, beside the not exceptional colour, the emerald from Piedmont is rarely clear and never reaches a quality that could be compared to the gems coming from classic locations (Columbia, Brazil, Zambia). Sometimes fairly good cabochons are obtained.
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Curated by the qualified group of expert of the section Gems of Italy, published on IGR – Italian Gemological Review #3, January 2018.
