Description
This gorgeous pink tourmaline is a rich “bubblegum” pink color. The gem rough this was cut from was sourced from the famous Stewart Mine in Pala, California. Gems from the Stewart mine are renowned for their rich pure pink color with no brown overtones. However, they are becoming extremely difficult to find as the mine has been closed from active mining for several decades, with just occasional small-scale hand mining occurring, the last back in 2012. This gem was cut from a small parcel of rough I acquired from one the miners who did that work; it was part of his “miners cut” of the finds.
The gem weighs 3.02 carats and measures 8.95 x 6.75 mm; its the perfect size for a 9 mm calibrated mount. While most of the pink tourmaline found in southern California is included, this gem is remarkably clean. There is a just a slight amount of liquid/bubble inclusions tucked off in one corner visible in this magnified macro image. These are not visible without a loupe; the gem is eye clean. I faceted it in a custom trillion design I created that is designed to be easy for a jeweler to mount and also has a high crown to help enhance the color and scintillation of the gemstone.
