Beryl · No birthstone month
Morganite
Pink beryl, the alternative engagement stone in rose gold.
- Hardness
- Mohs 7.5
- Toughness
- Good
- Daily wear
- Good for daily wear
- Price tier
- USD 100 to 500 per carat, fine quality
- Colours
- Peach, Pink, Salmon
- Origins
- Brazil, Madagascar, Mozambique, Afghanistan
Morganite is beryl coloured pink to peach by manganese, a sibling of emerald and aquamarine with aquamarine’s clarity. Named after the banker J. P. Morgan. Its soft colour made it the alternative engagement stone of the last decade, usually in rose gold. Large clean stones are affordable; saturated pink is rarer than peach.
How to buy morganite
Pay for saturation; pale stones look glassy once set. Larger stones show better colour. It is hard enough for a daily ring with a low setting and sensible habits.
Treatments
Heating to remove yellow tints is common and accepted.
Care
Warm soapy water; ultrasonic is safe for clean stones.
Lore
Discovered in Madagascar in 1910 and named by the gemologist George Kunz after his patron.
