Dec-Topaz

December-born people have two nice birthstones to pick: topaz and citrine. While the former comes in as diverse colors as a rainbow, it's the latter for its amiable yellow and orange colors. Both December birthstones possess soothing energies that also introduce the wearer to good fortune and warmth. Most of the birthstones available in topaz and citrine are within an affordable budget as quality gems are less hard to find compared with their counterparts. This means that those born in December have many options to choose from. Your challenge will be deciding which one to pick.

Topaz Birthstone Meaning & History

Topaz Birthstone colors range from colorless to light blue, yellow, orange, pink, violet, brown, and rarely red. The majority of the blue topaz found today is the permanent result of treating colorless topaz with irradiation and heating. The rainbow effect seen in "Mystic Topaz" is created by coating colorless topaz with a thin artificial film.

Some say that "topaz" is derived from the word tapas, which means fire in Sanskrit. Yet others believe it originated from topazos, the Greek term for it. The December birthstone was long believed to confer many benefits. Ancient Greeks thought Topaz gave them strength. From the 1300s to the 1600s, Europeans believed that magic spells could be thwarted using it and anger dispelled. For centuries, many people in India have believed that topaz worn above the heart assures long life, beauty, and intelligence.

The distinctly pinkish-orange Imperial topaz birthstone has an aristocratic cachet. It is commonly believed that the name originated with the Russian royal family’s insistence on keeping the finest colors of this gem, which was mined in Russia’s Ural Mountains, exclusively for their use. Another reason, particularly in Brazil, is that it refers to the occasion of an 1881 visit by Brazilian Emperor Pedro II to Ouro Preto, the town nearest Brazil's most productive topaz mines, and a reddish topaz gift to him.

Blue topaz is the gem for the fourth anniversary and Imperial topaz is the gem of the 23rd wedding anniversary.

Where Is Topaz Found?

Minas Gerais, one of the most important sources of topaz of fine quality, has been mined there for over two hundred years. Yellow to orange, red, pink, violet, and blends of red with orange or purple are some colors discovered here. The town of Ouro Preto is a fitting companion nearby. In this UNESCO World Heritage, majestic colonial churches check the skyline and quaint cobblestone streets crisscross the city.

Northwestern Pakistan is famous for pink topaz. Ghundao Hill, near the small town of Katlang, has been mined since 1972. The most desirable color of pink topaz birthstone from Katlang has a violet tint, which some in the gem trade refer to as cyclamen pink. But even at Ghundao Hill, this fine pink December birthstone is only rarely found.

Today, other significant sources of this December birthstone include Namibia, Nigeria, Madagascar, Mexico, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, and the United States, along with the historical Russian localities.

Topaz Birthstone Care & Cleaning

Topaz is an 8 on the Mohs scale of hardness, but it has poor toughness, so care is required to avoid chipping or cracking. To clean this December birthstone, do not use steam cleaning or ultrasonic cleaners. Warm, soapy water is ideal. Extreme heat or dramatic temperature shifts can lead to internal cracking of topaz. In general, the birthstone is not sensitive to light, but prolonged heat or sunlight exposure could cause fading in some yellow-to-brown varieties. Some chemicals might slightly affect topaz.

The coating on Mystic Topaz resists ordinary wear, but there are some abrasives cleaners as well as buffing wheels that would wear off the layer. In cleaning the topaz birthstone so treated, only a mild soap solution should be employed.