Tag Archives: blue gemstones

Why Collectors Love Kyanite

Never heard of Kyanite? You’re not alone. This gorgeous gem is a rare species and usually reserved for collectors alone. In its best qualities, it closely resembles Blue Sapphire. However, it is available in a wide range of light to dark blue colours and can also form in shades of yellow, green and brown, and, like Sapphires, can also be colourless. The name Kyanite even comes from its signature shade, as “kyanos” is the Greek word for dark blue.

Chemically, Kyanite is composed of aluminum, silicon and oxygen, which makes it a close relative of Andalusite. As is with Sapphires, Kyanite gets its beautiful blue hues from trace amounts of titanium and iron, and can sometimes display colour zoning (concentrated bands of colour) or a colour-change effect, showing a reddish to reddish violet hue under incandescent light. Kyanite is scarce, but can be found in Brazil, India, Kenya, Myanmar, Pakistan, Switzerland, Russia and the United States. While this lovely gem is not easy to find in jewellery, it does have the benefit of not often being colour treated.

One of Kyanite’s most unique traits is that it has two different hardness levels along its length and width. Along its length, it ranks at about a 5 on the Mohs hardness scale, while it is a 7 across the width of the crystal. In comparison, this range is similar to Lapis Lazuli or Turquoise through to Amethyst. While wearable everyday, it’s important to treat Kyanite with care and as the rare and delicate precious gem that it is. Avoid wearing it while being especially active, including cleaning, sports, etc. and be especially careful to avoid hard wear when showing it off in a ring. Overall, this lush blue gemstone is a highly unique jewel which is a pleasure and honour to have in your collection and a fantastic conversation piece for any jewellery lover.