What is Organic Gemstones?

Calista
Aug 13
3 min read

About Organic Gemstone

Organic gemstones are gems formed from, formerly was, or formed with the help of living organisms. Unlike gemstones that has crystalline structure, organic gems are formed through biological processes of living organisms, such as plants and animals. These include pearls, amber, corals, tridacna, shell, and ammolite.

Pearl
Coral
Amber
Tridacna
Shell
Ammolite

Pearls

Throughout history, pearl has been referred to as "The Queen of Gems". It can be grown in saltwater or freshwater. Perfectly round pearl was once a rarity thus command a supreme price. This was a time where pearls can only be found in wild, and it comes in varied shapes and sizes but rarely in perfect round of desired size.

Cultured pearls are organic gems formed in mantle tissue of mollusks with human intervention and natural pearls are formed without human intervention. Due to their wide availability and affordability, cultured pearls become popular and occupies a high percentage of the pearl market now.

Coral

A colonial marine invertebrates, it is a fascinating gemstone that has charmed humans for centuries. However, due to environmental and legal factors, the supply of high quality, nice natural-colour coral of pink-to-red range has dramatically decreased. This caused an increased of dyed coral on the market to satisfy the incessant demand for coral.

Amber

Amber is fossilized tree resin of ancient tree sap, and dates back 25 to 99 million years ago, depending on their origin. Amber from the Baltic region are typically said to be 25 to 50 million years old, and amber from Myanmar are typically said to be around 99 million years old.

Amber comes in about 300 different shades, and common colours includes yellow to brown, reddish brown, and light brown. As amber was used as currency in history, some amber are undergoes heat treatment to create a consistent look. Apart from heating, it is common to find imitation amber in the market too.

Natural Burmese Amber, a type of organic gemstone — Organic Gemstone: Natural Amber (Burmese) Bracelet

Tridacna

Tridacna is a type of large saltwater clams. Well-known in Asia as one of the Seven Treasures in Buddhism, most are white colour and some in yellowish tone. Tridacna of good quality are said to have a jade-like appearance and takes a longer time to turns into a matte texture (due to our sweat) from long hours of wearing.

Shell

Used for centuries as decorative purpose, the usage of shell could be due to it being the by-product of food and its beautiful iridescence. It is used in many things, such as button, knife handles, cameos, and necklace. In term of jewellery design, abalone shell and mother-of-pearl are used typically.

Ammolite

Ammolite is an iridescent material that originate from the fossilized shell of extinct squid-like creatures called ammonites. The only known place of origin is Alberta, Canada. It first appeared in jewellery in 1960s and was only recognized as an organic gemstone in 1981. Despite its beautiful iridescence, Ammolite only became popular in Singapore around 2010s after it is said to be a powerful fengshui tool. ----- If you happen to have one for fengshui, we would love to hear your experience. Thanks in advance!