-Mined in Africa, Brazil , Pakistan , Afghanistan , Russia , Zambia , Columbia and India .

As with all colored gems, the greenest emeralds are the most valuable, though there are many other types of gem that produce lovely green tones. The only rarer member of the beryl family is the red emerald. Emeralds are normally brittle in the extreme, ranking 7.5-8 on the Moh hardness scale (as opposed to diamonds that rate 10), so despite their hardness, their durability isn't very high, but if worn carefully, they make the most impressive and beautiful pieces of jewelry. Emeralds are the rarest variety of the mineral beryl, and they are rarely found in perfect clarity grades, so expect them to be flawed in some way. In fact, emeralds are so notorious for a high rate of inclusions that any emerald offered you with the claim of ‘extra-fine' or higher rating is immediately suspect as they are frequently treated in some way to improve them. The current price for fair-grade emeralds today is about $1000 per carat for anything under the 2-carat range. Bigger emeralds will cost far more; in the range of $2500-$14,000 per carat. Anything larger than 5 carats will cost even more than that.

Cracks are routinely filled using an epoxy resin that has its roots in the early Greek period and has survived until today, with various improvements. Fracture-filled emeralds are commonly called “clarity-enhanced” emeralds to disguise the fact that they should cost a lot less then emeralds that haven't been enhanced in any way. They are also commonly oiled in tinted green oil or wax. This is considered accepted practice with emeralds as long as the information is disclosed. This treatment isn't permanent and is susceptible to cleaning detergents. For this reason you should never clean an emerald with an ultrasonic cleaner, but instead with an ionic cleaner, which is appropriate for almost all gems and in emeralds this is even more important, as emeralds are generally weak and this treatment protects them. Epoxy resins are permanent and will not be removed with a detergent. In expensive emeralds this treatment is not preferred. Vacuum/heat treatment is also common in emeralds, so be doubly cautious buying any emerald untested.

The sheer, constant popularity of the color has produced some negative side-effects over the years. Glass imitations are also abundant, doublets and triplets, either made of genuine gems or cheap simulations are also copiously found and fine-quality synthetics are now flooding the market, impersonating real emeralds. Sadly, this is one of the most suspect gems and many people trying to buy this type of gem fall prey to fraudulent practices.

African emeralds, quite like the African rubies, display a varied mix of undertones, usually a dark blue. They are of good quality, with very few blemishes and display great fire. They have a lovely green hue but their dark tonality makes them less desirable in the market and so African varieties are usually less expensive and less reflective of light, despite their quality. They can be a good purchase because they usually sell for less per carat weight, and well-mounted can make a striking piece of jewelry.

Columbian emeralds are considered a much higher grade of gem than the African. They are of good, clean color; displaying bright, vivid greens with only the faintest tints of blue undertone color that reflect light beautifully. They also sell for much more per carat weight. A Columbian emerald is distinctive the world- round; the colors produced from there are unique and precious. It's considered by connoisseurs to be the best grade in the world.