Russian Emerald Mines

Russia is regarded as an important source of the fine quality emeralds. Although, it contributes only 1% to the world’s total emerald production but the quality is phenomenal. This emerald variety is also addressed as ‘Siberian emerald gemstone’ because earlier Siberia was a part of the Russia’s Ural region.

Russian emerald is chiefly resourced from the Ural emerald mines (also called Malysheva deposit) of the Russian province. It is extracted from the Ekaterinburg region near Russia’s Ural Mountains. These Russian emerald mines have provided some world-class emerald gems between the mid of 19th century and 20th centuries.

• It is interesting to know that the first green gemstone in Russia was discovered in the year 1830 first month by a forest worker Maxim Stefanovitch Kozhevnikore in the roots of a fallen tree. He took the gem-specimen to the Royal Lapidary factory of Ekaterinburg for identification.

• These green gems were identified as the precious Russian emeralds (Siberian emeralds). The mineral quality was quite similar to the light and bright colored emeralds of the Coscuez mine in Colombia. This discovery initiated the search for mines in the nearby regions. Finally, in the year 1833, Malysaheva deposit was discovered. At that time, it was named as Mariinskoje Mine, in honour of Maria, the daughter of the last emperor Tsar Nicholas I.

• Some other emerald mines were also discovered later. Historically, there were two emerald bearing veins in Russia – one running north to south (Mariinskoje, Lubinsky, Troitzky and Stretiensky mines) and the other covering the northwest to southeast (Chitny, Ostrowsky and Krasnobolotsky) region.

• Unfortunately, the mining in Russia was halted during the World War I. The Mariinskoje mine was re-opened in the year 1924 and renamed as Malysheva in 1926 to honour the revolutionary hero, Ivan Mikhailovich Malyshev.

• Later, it was noted that the best quality natural Russian emeralds from the Malysheva mine closely resembles the fine Muzo and Chivor emerald of Colombia. But despite its good quality and glorious history, Russian emerald didn’t get huge popularity like the Colombian ones. This is because many gem suppliers and wholesalers started selling the fine quality Russian emeralds by the trade name ‘Old Mine Colombian emerald’ to inflate its value in the markets where origin determination was not a major issue. The premium quality Russian remained unidentified for a long time by the designers, collectors and gem enthusiasts.

Quality

Russian emerald is a precious natural gemstone that is used for astrological as well as jewelry purposes. Since the top-quality emeralds from Russia need a significant investment, it is very important to know how to choose the best quality Russian Emerald gemstone. The color, clarity, luster and cut are the four major quality aspects associated with this gemstone. Typically, a good quality Russian Panna stone boasts bright, vivid green hue, fine clarity and symmetrical shape.

• Color

   – Most of the natural Russian emeralds are light to medium green in color. The presence of yellowish green and bluish green tone is quite common. The most sought-after Russian emerald stone displays evenly spread, intense green hue, like the finest colombian emerald. Such high-quality emeralds are found in a very small percentage and are quite valuable.

• Clarity

   – A natural Russian emerald is recognised by its crystal-like transparency and high concentration of mineral inclusions and internal fissures. Being a Type III clarity gemstone , inclusions in emeralds are acceptable up to a certain limit. Most of the emeralds of Russian origin tend to have dense clustered inclusions, amphibole needles, liquid filled two-phase inclusions and irregularly distributed small brown crystals. The high-quality gems with good transparency and minimum visible inclusions are rare and remain in demand.

• Luster

   – The brilliant glow of Russian emeralds makes this gemstone unique. The loose Russian emeralds with brilliant, vitreous luster are considered highly desirable for astrological purposes. Russian emerald in low quality may appear dull and lustreless.

• Cut

   - Generally, the fine quality Russian emerald rough is faceted whereas the lower quality, highly included and dull colored raw Russian emerald are cut in cabochons (polished oval or round gem). Emeralds in good symmetry and protective cut (rectangular or square octagonal) is highly preferred as it enhances the beauty, reduces the chance of damage without causing significant weight loss.

Russian Emerald Value

In the gemstone market, Russian emerald price largely depends upon its quality and size. The color, clarity, weight and cut are the major factors that influence the Russian or Siberian emerald value in the market. All these parameters are collectively checked before calculating Russian emerald price.

• Color

   – Emerald gemstone is loved for its green color. Therefore, color quality bears a strong influence on the price of Russian emerald stone too. A bright, green colored Russian emerald with uniform color consistency and no visible color zoning always command a higher premium. In contrast, the yellowish-green or bluish green Russian Panna stone rate drops, accordingly.

• Clarity

   – Generally, lesser are the inclusions, better is the transparency and higher is the rate of Russian Panna in the market. The quality, nature, location and volume of inclusions often affect the overall price of Russian Panna stone. A considerably clean, transparent Russian emerald always attracts a higher pricing than heavily included gems.

• Cut

   – Being a precious stone, Russian emerald gems are often faceted carefully to enhance the beauty while avoiding any major rough wastage. The stone wastage incurred in the processing of a stone gets reflected in its increased prices. A highly faceted Russian Panna stone price is always more than a round or oval cabochon.

• Carat weight

   – In comparison to other emerald varieties, Russian emeralds are more readily available in bigger size. However, increase in size also heightens the chances of natural contamination. This is why Russian emerald price per carat increases exponentially for cleaner and bigger pieces.