Peridot Cleaning and Polishing

 

Introduction:

Thank you for your purchase.  Your treasure hunt has arrived and now the fun begins!  As this material is still dirty from the mine, the first thing you will want to do is wash it thoroughly in warm water and a little dish soap.  It is best evaluated while wet and under a good light source, such as a desk lamp.  This should give you a really good look at what you have.
 

A background about peridot:

Peridot is a gem that has been connected to superstition throughout the ages. Associated with the sun, peridot is believed to have the power to break evil spells and dispel the mysteries of the dark. During the Middle Ages, people wore peridot to gain foresight and divine inspiration. The Gem of the Sun was thought to dissolve enchantments. When pierced and worn around left arm, it drove away evil spirits. Peridot was held to cure liver disease and dropsy. And it ended night terrors and relieved the wearer of envy. Peridot, held under the tongue, lessened thirst during fever.

Peridot is always a popular gemstone and when it is bright, clean and well cut, it is especially brilliant. Peridot is currently being mined in in Arizona, China, Burma, and Pakistan. Peridot is hard enough to be used for almost any kind of jewelry
 

What should I do next?

After you have washed them in warm water and dish soap (this works very well in a strainer), there should be plenty of green peridot in plain sight and the matrix sometimes conceals very nice peridot hidden within.  Hold each piece up to the light to see if it has gem potential otherwise you could overlook something valuable.

Next, remove the matrix.  The easiest way to remove the matrix on the peridot is to tumble them.  If you do not have a tumbler, another good method is to flake the matrix off with a knife or a heavy sewing needle.  A dremmel tool with a diamond tip will also work, but it is a bit tedious.

It is not important which method you use and sometimes you may need to use more than one method to fully remove the matrix; the important thing is that sometimes the best stuff is found inside the matrix.
 

How can I tell if they are good?

The three factors of value for peridot are Clarity, Color, and Cut (the 3 C's).

Clarity:  How well you can see light through the stone and (relative) absence of flaws.

Color:  The color scale is used to describe the color tones of a gemstone. For color gemstones, the color is measured by tone and hue. Color is the most important criteria in determining the value a colored gemstone has. More important than clarity and cut, even subtle differences in hue can correspond with marked variations in valuations.

Cut:
     -en cabochon - cut smooth and rounded, used for opaque stones like turquoise
     -faceted - cut with sparkling polished planes, like a diamond