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Ten of the world's most precious stones

The history of the world's most precious gems is always full of surprises and fascination, often intertwined with that of kings, emperors and wealthy businessmen. Even in our time, they have kept intact all their beauty, rarity and pricelessness that always leave one breathless.

No one knows when man first discovered gemstones, but from the earliest civilizations they have meant power and wealth.

Some people believe that wearing them can bring success in business, good luck and keep bad luck away.

Wikimedia
The 10 most precious stones in the world
The value of a gemstone is determined by many factors including cut, size, and brilliance. Generally, gemstones are divided into two broad categories: diamonds and colored gems. Rubies, emeralds, and sapphires are all classified as colored gems.
Rob Lavinsky, iRocks.com – CC-BY-SA-3.0, CC BY-SA 3.0
Tanzanite ($600 to $1,000 per carat)
Tanzanite is a blue stone with a purplish hue and is only found in Tanzania. The stone remained hidden from humans until 1967.
David Hospital, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
Taaffeite ($1500 - $2500 per carat)
It is red, purple or almost colorless blue. The stone was discovered in 1945 by the Earl of Taaffe, after whom it was named; it is one of the rarest gems.
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Black opal ($2,300 per carat)
It is a beautiful stone that comes in many different types. Average stones are not very valuable and can be found somewhat all over the world, although the most valuable opal stones can compete with the most expensive rubies and diamonds.
Rob Lavinsky, iRocks.com – CC-BY-SA-3.0, CC BY-SA 3.0
Bentonite ($3,000 - $4,000 per carat)
This stone was discovered along the San Benito River in California in 1907. Although some specimens have been found in Arkansas and Japan, the only commercial quality is San Benito County, which is why it is considered the official gemstone of California.
Rob Lavinsky, iRocks.com – CC-BY-SA-3.0, CC BY-SA 3.0
Red beryl ($10,000 per carat)
This rare gemstone is known by different names: bixbite, red emerald or scarlet beryllium. The stone is so rare that one is found for every 150,000 diamonds found.
User: at en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia
Alexandrite ($12,000 per carat)
It is a very rare gemstone that changes color depending on illumination: green under sunlight and red under lamplight.
Di Dave Dyet(http://www.shutterstone.com, http://www.dyet.com) - Opera propria, Pubblico dominio, ht
Jadeite ($20,000 per carat)
Jadeite's name is reminiscent of the semi-precious stones commonly known as Jade, but jadeite is much more precious and rare.
By DonGuennie (G-Empire The World Of Gems) - Own work www.g-empire.de, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons
Musgravite ($35,000 per carat)
This gemstone is incredibly rare and belongs to the same family as taaffeite. Only eight specimens were found until 2005.
Rob Lavinsky, iRocks.com – CC-BY-SA-3.0, CC BY-SA 3.0
Painite ($50,000-60,000 per carat)
Very few transparent crystals are cut in gem form, and their value is priceless. Until 2002, it was considered the rarest gemstone on Earth.
Rob Lavinsky, iRocks.com – CC-BY-SA-3.0, CC BY-SA 3.0
Pink Star ($1.4 million per carat)
It was named Pink Star Diamond (also known as Steinmetz Pink), a 59.60-carat pink diamond mined in 1999 in South Africa. For the past few months it has been owned by the famous auction house Sotheby's, which bought it for $83 million, the highest price ever paid for any gemstone sold.
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