INDICOLITE/TEAL BLUE TOURMALINE QUESTIONS! H-E-L-P

[blithesome71]

Hi peeps! I have a quick question. Does an indicolite/teal blue tourmaline fluoresce Red under Long wave UV light? & does it have some very fine silky/needle inclusions? Been searching over the internet for info but no good... (I found one though: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tourmaline#cite_note-GRG-0)

'cos I recently purchased this native cut tourmaline from a local jeweler (same jeweler who sold me my fat-ass peridot). It's got a poor cut but I love the color. Will try to post some RL shots

...I hope some of you guys could give me helpful info. Thanks heaps & happy holidays!

 

[LD]

It's only possible to answer that Tourmaline can fluoresce. Typically it's fairly weak rather than a strong fluor. In terms of needle type inclusions, yes, this is also possible.

Can you post photos - that would be easier!

 

[zeolite]

I tested 55 of my tourmalines for both long wave and for short wave fluorescence. Not a single one fluoresced! Fluorescence indicates both the presence of chromium and the absence of iron. I suspect, due to the crystal structure of tourmaline (complex ring silicate) that they all contain some iron.

 

[zeolite]

Oh! 10 were blue tourmalines, plus many teal to green tourmalines.

 

[LD]

You may find this interesting. I believe however that if a Tourmaline has fluoresence it is typically weak.

http://www.fluomin.org/uk/fiche.php?id=891

From the Gemselect website, again it says a Tourmaline can have weak fluor.#

Tourmaline Gemology

Color: Colorless, pink, brown, red, yellow, green, blue, black, violet, multi-colored
Moh's Harness: 7-7½
Specific Gravity: 2.82-3.32
Refractive Index: 1.614-1.666
Double Refraction: -0.014 to -0.032
Fluorescence: Weak or none
Cleavage: Indistinct
Fracture: Uneven, small conchoidal, brittle
Crystal System: Trigonal. Long crystals with triangular cross section and round sides.

 

[blithesome71]

Yes, my teal tourmaline fluoresced weak Red under LWUV light... What's also interesting is that I tested it last night along w/ my 2 synthetic rubies; the fluoresence of rubies are distinct/strong unlike my tourm.

 

[blithesome71]

Ok, I managed to take some indoor photos using my cellphone so forgive the quality. I took these shots near the window sill on a early Thursday morning (just in time for the holidays hehe)

...Hmmm, it doesn't show dramatic pleochroism (perhaps due to its native cut, window, poor polishing & saturation) but it shifts to somewhat grayish/steel blue colour under incandescent light.

 

[blithesome71]

I forgot to switched off the flash mode. My apology ^__^

 

[blithesome71]

And the last one...

 

[blithesome71]

Sorry for the quality but I had a hard time capturing its exact color. I dunno why it looks so blue in my photos but in real life, it has this nice greenish tinge to it. In RL, especially in outdoor this is the exact color... (whew, it took me some time searching the net to find the exact color).

Here:

 

[blithesome71]

I'm just so happy with this purchase. I just visited my local jeweler when out of nowhere he mentioned that he found this gem while he's doing his inventory. It's surely old & it has some tiny chips on the table & pavillion & the facets aren't crisp but anyhow, I bought it because I loved it when he showed it to me... I almost forgot the dimensions. It's 4.97ct. 9x11 EC.

Happy holidays everyone!

 

[Lovinggems]

Awesome blue colour.