Post subject: Huge Tsavorite Clear - to good to be true?
Posted: Tue Sep 14, 2021 5:34 pm
Hello everyone!
I am Al from Switzerland. I moved to Tanzania a while a go and met a guy who quickly became my friend. He gave me that Stone as a gift and told me it is a moldavite from Tanzania. After doing lots of research I came to the conclusion that it very vell could be a Tsavorite. It has a defined crystalline structures and is very colorful. Very clear but small, small bubbles inside. What I wonder is: the Size must be outstanding, right? it weights 15.1g. I did not find compareable sizes online.
You may ask me to go to a lab but seriously I don't trust anyone here enough to get this done. At least not now.
Can you help me - could this be Tsavorite? If yes how much can one get for a stone like this, raw. I need to find a good cutter who wants to get his hands on this beauty.
I wish you a wonderful day and all the best, Al
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Post subject: Re: Huge Tsavorite Clear - to good to be true?
Posted: Wed Sep 15, 2021 9:24 pm
Active Member
Joined: Wed Aug 09, 2017 8:33 pm Posts: 80
good day Al, welcome.
I would just advice you to not get your hopes up. Let me be clear I am no trained gemologist and one will surely answer here in no time but in my opinion this specimen does not seem to have any signs of the crystal characteristics I have seen in raw Tsavorite. Also as far as I know, there is no known alluvial tsavorite that would make a smooth round form like the one you have. If it is indeed a tsavorite, clean with just a few small "bubbles", and at that size, it would never be mislabelled as something else. It is too rare and coveted of a resource to have gone unnoticed and not priced accordingly from its very discovery.
my humble 2 cents
I wouldnt send it to a lab and waste money on it before you perform a few simple tests to get a better idea of what it is. You mentioned it has "defined crystalline structures". What exactly you mean by this?
Post subject: Re: Huge Tsavorite Clear - to good to be true?
Posted: Wed Sep 15, 2021 9:52 pm
Gold Member
Joined: Tue Apr 05, 2016 7:58 pm Posts: 1424 Location: San Marcos, CA
Just because it's green, doesn't make it moldavite and no moldavite I have or seen is that color. It may be glass on the other hand. Just because you got it in Tanzania and it's green does not warrant an assumption to be tsavorite. It is moot as to its gem value currently. The best advice is to learn some basic gem tests you can perform yourself, and at some logical time get it to a qualified gemologist or lab. If it is truly a Tsavorite of that size finding a great cutter will be easy, but the sharks that hear of it will find you first. Safe to say most likely stipled glass.
Post subject: Re: Huge Tsavorite Clear - to good to be true?
Posted: Wed Sep 15, 2021 11:48 pm
Site Admin
Joined: Sun Oct 16, 2005 12:22 pm Posts: 21602 Location: San Francisco
Welcome Einklang (aka Al from Switzerland). So glad you found us.
Not to get too hung up on details (cough cough) but moldavite, by definition, is a tektite which is locality specific.
Sidebar It is currently accepted that moldavite was formed nearly 15 million years ago by the asteroid impact that created the 14.5 mile diameter Nördlinger-Ries crater near Stuttgart, Germany. The heat and pressure caused by the impact resulted in liquefying the target rock, propelling it into the atmosphere where it cooled and returned to the Earth as glass, which explains how it ended up in the Moldau River Valley in the Czech Republic nearly 450 km (280 miles) away from the actual impact.
I'm not aware of any of these liquefied bits being hurled into space and landing 6,502 km (4,000+ miles) away in Tanzania.
Post subject: Re: Huge Tsavorite Clear - to good to be true?
Posted: Thu Sep 16, 2021 3:46 am
Ok thank you for your replies and for the warm welcoming to the forum.
There are a lot of stones here in Tanzania who have not been digged in a mine but have been collected by the indigeneous ppl, eg the massai. They find worldclass stones on the field pushed up naturally by big trees like the baobab. they become huge and push a lot of material up to the surface which becomes washed by rain. Anyway, not every stone comes from a mine and from a controlled lane. Thats why he gave it as a present, for them its just a very beautiful stone. I don't know if this one comes from a mine or was collected freely, but my friend told me it comes from lindi, Tanzania.
I am sure its not glass, youll see it more clearly on the fllowing pictures where I also tried to get that crystalline structure i mentioned mor visible. Also the white stone indicates a natural stone
That green is also more realistic, the other pictures are highly oversaturated.
I will not bring it to a lab, only of one of you can recommend me someone who is trustworthy and known.
I am happy to hear from you and appreciate every answer
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Post subject: Re: Huge Tsavorite Clear - to good to be true?
Posted: Thu Sep 16, 2021 1:45 pm
Gold Member
Joined: Tue Apr 05, 2016 7:58 pm Posts: 1424 Location: San Marcos, CA
Genuinely your answer is in your thread title. It was a gift and whether it be a prized gemstone or a nicely structured piece of green glass, the gift was in the giving not an assumed unknown value. Get it tested.
Post subject: Re: Huge Tsavorite Clear - to good to be true?
Posted: Thu Sep 16, 2021 3:29 pm
Site Admin
Joined: Sun Oct 16, 2005 12:22 pm Posts: 21602 Location: San Francisco
glhays wrote:
Genuinely your answer is in your thread title. It was a gift and whether it be a prized gemstone or a nicely structured piece of green glass, the gift was in the giving not an assumed unknown value. Get it tested.
That's a heartwarming response. Absolutely! Treasure the gift with the good intentions it came with. Keep in in your pocket as an eternal good omen.
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