Peridot (Pronounced: Peh-ree-doe) Peridot possesses a rich, glowing velvet luster, and exhibits colors that range from golden tsavorite lime greens to rich emerald grass greens, the latter of which command the highest prices. Peridot is an idiochromatic gem, which means that its color comes from the basic chemical composition of the mineral itself, and is an indispensable element in its make-up. This runs to the contrary of gems such as ruby or sapphire, which get their coloration from trace elements present as impurities. Top quality Peridot is clean, and even under a loupe will display no inclusions. Peridot possesses a hardness of 6.5 to 7 within Moh’s scale of hardness with no visible cleavage.

Peridot is often referred to as Chrysolite or Olivine. By today’s standards both these latter terms are misnomers based on ancient non-specific classifications of color. In fact, Peridot is actually related to a mineral member within the Olivine family. The Olivine group is one of the most common mineral types on the Earth’s surface, it is a magnesium/iron silicate in which the ratio of magnesium and iron vary between the two mineral extremities: Forsterite (Mg2SiO4) and Fayalite (Fe2SiO4). Peridot is the transparent gem variety of Forsterite Olivine.

Although Olivine is an abundant mineral, gem quality Forsterite i.e. Peridot, is not found in nearly as many locales as diamonds or sapphires technically making Peridot rarer. Historically, Peridot heralds from the ancient sources of Egypt, Ethiopia and Burma, but today’s major sources are the U.S., Pakistan and China.