Since the 1700’s, Brazil has provided the lion’s share of the world’s Topaz, the premier source of this heralding from the Topaz deposits of Ouro Preto in the state of Minas Gerais. The first Topaz crystals were discovered at Villa Rica, near Ouro Preto in 1735. In consequence to its wealth of unearthed gemstones, Ouro Preto became the states capital in the 1800’s, under the rule of the Portuguese colonialists.

During this period the most famous Brazilian Topaz was discovered. It was a colorless gem, possessing a fire so brilliant that when Portuguese gem savants mounted the 1680-carat Topaz into the Portuguese Crown Jewels, they named it the ‘Braganza Diamond,’ thinking they had found the world’s largest diamond.

Although many of these ‘Imperial’ crystals are sourced from the various mining locales near Ouro Preto, few are good enough quality to be faceted, and fewer still weigh more than one gram. Many golden-yellow to peach colored crystals are turned a very pretty rose pink by gentle heating, while pale Blue Topaz’s are enhanced by irradiation to enhance their color. To read more about enhancements in Topaz, please read ‘How Does A Blue Topaz Get Its Color?’