Emerald
History:
The first emerald deposits were formed
nearly 3 billion years ago in what is presently South Africa.
Over time, numerous other deposits have formed on at least
5 continents, but with most being found in Africa, South
America, and South Asia. The Colombian emerald deposits
that produced the fine stones you'll find on this
site are estimated to have been formed between 40 and 65
million years ago.
The history of mined emeralds however is
much shorter. It began about 4000 years ago in what is now
southeast Egypt, some 400 miles south of Cairo. From mines
in the Egyptian desert, not far from the Nile River, emeralds
made their way to all parts of the 'known world'.
They became prized jewels of great civilizations throughout
the ancient world, to include the Romans, Greeks, Turks,
Egyptians, Persians, and even as far as India. (include
pic of early Egyptian mine)
Egypt enjoyed a position atop an emerald
monopoly for a few thousand years until 16th century Spanish
conquistadors came along and ruined everything. As they
laid claim to the lands and riches of Central and South
America, the Spanish across native Indians wearing amazing
emeralds that far surpassed the beauty and quality of the
Egyptian stones. These Indians had been trading in Colombian
emeralds with neighboring civilizations for over 500 years!
They believed the stones to be sacred objects..gifts
from the gods which possessed special powers of healing,
protection, and fertility. And so, from Mexico to Peru,
the Spanish encountered emerald-adorned natives and aggressively
searched for the mines from which they came from. In the
1550's the Spanish finally found what they were looking
for at the mines of Muzo and Chivor, in what is now the
Boyacá province of Colombia. The native Muzo Indians
fought savagely to protect these mines against the invaders
but eventually were defeated and put to work in the very
same mines they once called their own. Nearly a century
later, rich deposits were also discovered at a place called
Coscuez, not far away. (include mine map, pics)
For more than a century, emeralds flowed
from Colombian mines back to Spain, Europe, and throughout
the world bringing great wealth and prestige to the Spanish
empire. The unparalleled color and size of the Colombian
emeralds earned them their well-deserved reputation of being
the world's finest. Even today, these three mining
areas of Muzo, Chivor, and Coscuez are still considered,
without question, the best and most important emerald producing
mines in the entire world. Now under the security and regulation
of the Colombian government, these famed emerald mines continue
to produce and export top quality emeralds, and should do
so for the foreseeable future.. Just as they have for
the last one thousand years. (show fine emerald pics)
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