Mountain Peaks

BurmaTriple strand necklace of aquamarine and apatite variety with silver embellishments.

Aquamarine is named after the color of seawater. It is a pale-blue to light-green variety of the beryl mineral. It became a state gemstone for Colorado in 1971. The mountain peaks of Mount Antero and White Mountain in Colorado contain some of the finest quality gem aquamarine known. Colorado's geological symbols are red (rhodochrosite, the state mineral), white (yule marble, the state rock), and blue (aquamarine).

Aquamarine is found in Afghanistan, China, Kenya, Pakistan, Russia, Mozambique, the United States, Brazil, Nigeria, Madagascar, Zambia, Tanzania, Sri Lanka, Malawi, India, Zimbabwe, Australia, Burma, and Namibia.  

Apatite is one of a few minerals produced and used by biological micro-environmental systems. Hydroxyapatite, also known as hydroxylapatite, is the major component of tooth enamel and bone mineral. Moon rocks collected by astronauts during the Apollo program contain traces of apatite.

Apatite is found in Burma, Brazil, India, Kenya, Madagascar, Norway, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Mexico, Canada, and the United States. There are three minerals that actually contribute to apatite, which is the reason for the varied colors and shades of this stone.