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Emerald, like aquamarine, is a variety of the mineral beryl. The largest gem-quality emerald crystal, found in Colombia's Cruces Mine in 1969, weighed 7,025 carats, or about three pounds. Class: precious Origin of Name: from a Persian word that later appeared in the Greek as smaragdos, from which the form esmeralde and later emerald were derived Color: blue-green to green Chemical Composition: beryllium aluminum silicate Crystal System: hexagonal Hardness: 7.5 Specific Gravity: 2.63-2.91 Geographic Origins: Colombia, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Pakistan, Russia, Australia, North Carolina Next Photo: ©International Colored Gemstone Association The Science Behind the Sparkle | Diamonds in the Sky A Primer of Gemstones | See Inside a Diamond Resources | Transcript | Site Map | Diamond Deception Home Editor's Picks | Previous Sites | Join Us/E-mail | TV/Web Schedule About NOVA | Teachers | Site Map | Shop | Jobs | Search | To print PBS Online | NOVA Online | WGBH © | Updated November 2000 |