Iolite (Cordierite)

Item Description

A nice little Iolite gem from Tanzania. The stone is virtually eye clean with a "Radiant" cut. A good representative gemstone of this classic material. Iolite means "violet stone" when translated from Greek. It's actually a gem grade variety of the species Cordierite, and faceted stones are sometimes known as "Water Sapphire" in various corners of the gem world. Iolite is strongly pleochroic and shows a strong blue color one direction, a violet color another direction, and a yellowish color in the third direction.