Aquamarine
Variety of beryl
Uncommon · Be₃Al₂Si₆O₁₈
Blue beryl coloured by ferrous iron. Forms in granitic pegmatites as well-developed hexagonal prisms. Its name derives from the Latin for sea water. Heating to 400 to 450°C removes greenish tones, producing a purer blue.
Identity
- Formula
- Be₃Al₂Si₆O₁₈
- Chemical class
- Silicate
- Mineral group
- Beryl, Emerald
- Also known as
- Blue beryl
- Used in alchemy
- Aquamarine Powder
Crystallography
- Crystal system
- Hexagonal
- Habits
- Prismatic, Columnar
- Fracture
- Conchoidal
Physical properties
- Mohs hardness
- 7.5
- Density
- 2.72 g/cm³
- Luster
- Vitreous
- Colors
- sky blue, blue-green, blue, pale blue
- Streak
- white
- Transparency
- Transparent, Translucent
Geology
- Origins
- Igneous, Hydrothermal
- Host rocks
- Granite
- Associated minerals
- Tourmaline, Quartz, feldspar, Mica
- Found in
- Pegmatite deposit
- Geography
- Brazil, Pakistan, Madagascar, Russia, Nigeria
Classification
- Rarity
- Uncommon
- Gem quality
- Yes
Arcane properties
- Affinity
- Water, Air
- Effects
- Scrying, Healing
- Planar origin
- Material Plane
Sources
- Aquamarine. Mindat.org (Hudson Institute of Mineralogy).
- Aquamarine. Gemdat.org (Hudson Institute of Mineralogy).
- J. W. Anthony, R. A. Bideaux, K. W. Bladh, M. C. Nichols, Beryl. Mineral Data Publishing, Handbook of Mineralogy, 2001.
- Beryl. Mindat.org (Hudson Institute of Mineralogy).
- Aquamarine. Gemological Institute of America, Gem Encyclopedia.
- M. Pasero and others, IMA Commission on New Minerals, Nomenclature and Classification, The New IMA List of Minerals, updated September 2026. International Mineralogical Association (CNMNC), 2026.
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