Paraiba Topaz, 14KY Gold Pendant, P020

Introducing this elegant 14K Gold Pendant featuring a stunning Paraiba Topaz. In 1989, a new color of tourmaline was discovered in Paraiba, Brazil—a breathtaking neon blue, green, and teal hue. This rare gem was sold for as much as $15,000 per carat. It was rare, gorgeous, and intense, but now it’s pretty much gone. Small pockets of this color of tourmaline are still mined in Paraiba, Nigeria, and Madagascar, though they’re small, heavily occluded, and very expensive. So what is Paraiba Topaz? To be clear, this topaz is a look-alike of the Paraiba Tourmaline. It’s a natural stone, mined from the ground, but it has been enhanced. Back in the late ‘90s and early 2000s, a small company in California developed a treatment method to make topaz look like London Blue Topaz—without the expense of nuclear treatment. They baked a chemical into the skin of the topaz under high heat and pressure. The stones often turned too green, but a keen eye realized it looked very much like Paraiba Tourmaline—and thus, a new market was born for these “Too green for London Blue Topaz” stones. The term “Paraiba” is used as a unique color descriptor because no other phrase captures this vibrant hue. The color is truly amazing—nothing quite like it. This stone measures approximately 10x8mm and weighs roughly 3.3 carats, accented with a 5pt CZ. It’s set into a sturdy 4-prong basket setting. We cast our own mountings and will never use flimsy “snap-tight” mounts—it allows the most show of stone for the least expense in gold. The setting is very stable and built to last. In plain English, this is simply a very pretty stone, expertly mounted in a classic 14K pendant with a simple basket setting. This pendant is one of the nicest we make, and you’ll be proud to wear it.