November 2008
Community Paper
copyright ©2008 by Community Paper College Park, Inc. All rights reserved.

NOVEMBER BIRTHSTONE - CITRINE OR TOPAZ!!
by Phyllis Stewart-Tuell, Gemologist, Stewart Jewelry
2212 Edgewater Drive, 407-425-1496
See this month's ad!

Citrine

Citrine Natural (Raw)

Topaz

Topaz has long been used as the November birthstone. The most important variety to the jewelry trade is sherry topaz. The appearance is softer than the dark-orange to dark orange-red commonly used. Topaz also occurs in blue, pink, colorless and green.

Citrine alternates with Topaz as the month’s birthstone. The name comes from the French word “Citron” which means lemon. Citrine is a species of quartz which is the most common single mineral in the earths crust. Quartz is often used in electronics when fused with glass, porcelain, optical instruments and other products. The stone naturally occurs in yellow to red-orange to orange-brown, is typically transparent, is nearly flawless and is less expensive then topaz. Like topaz, it is produced in Brazil and Madagascar.

Every year thousands of pieces of jewelry are sold with topaz-colored quartz as
a topaz. Let your jeweler show you the difference between the two stones as they both have their own distinct beauty.