FT NEWS

The traditional birthstone Topaz, along with the modern birthstone Citrine makes them the lucky birthstones. Topaz, also known as the “lover of gold,” is said to bring wealth and money. Citrine, on the other hand is said to be the stone of prosperity, wealth, protection and good luck.

The gem Citrine is a variety that does belong to the family of quartz displaying its pale yellow to brownish orange colour was often confused with the gem topaz in the earlier days.

People believed that both citrine and topaz carried the same powers as each other. A few called it “Merchant stone” for its penchant to attract, especially prosperity. It could have been why Egyptians used citrine gems as a talisman, while Greeks carved iconic images into them, and the Roman priest adorned them as rings. There were different names given to citrine like golden topaz, Spanish topaz or Madeira creating more confusion.

Today, science has clearly distinguished topaz and citrine as different mineral species and unrelated to one another.

The attractive colour, durability and affordability it shares with other varieties of quartz make it a choicest gem in its shades of yellow and orange. However, the contemporary jewellery collections carry the popular shades of brown or reddish-orange. The cause of these natural colour(s) is due to the presence of trace element iron in the crystal, and such colourful gems rarely occur in nature.