This item was handcrafted with care and may have minor colour or decoration anomalies or defects. These inconsistencies are the consequence of human intervention in the process, and they add to the completed product’s charm while insuring you get a one-of-a-kind piece.

Tanzanite has had a rapid rise to prominence among jewelers and gem enthusiasts. Although naturally reddish brown, this transparent zoisite variety achieves a stable, beautiful blue to violet color with heat treatments.

What Color is Tanzanite?

Before the discovery of tanzanite, the known varieties of zoisite made little impact on the gem market. Discovered in the shadow of Mt. Kilimanjaro in 1967, tanzanites show both dramatic color change and pleochroism. In natural light, tanzanites can appear an almost sapphire blue. In fluorescent light, they may appear more violet or amethyst-like. Naturally trichroic, these gems can show blue, red-violet, and yellow-green colors when viewed through each of its three crystal axes.

Their most coveted property, however, is their blue to violet color. Although Mother Nature very rarely produces a blue to violet stone in the rough (via the slow heat of the Sun), almost all tanzanites must receive artificial heat treatments to achieve that prized color. Typically, they’re heated to about 500-600º C or 932-1,112º F.