Chemistry: Be3Al2Si6O18

Crystallography: Hexagonal

Refractive index: 1.600 – 1.560

Hardness: 7.5 – 8

Specific gravity: 2.67 – 2.90

Cleavage: Indistinct

Heat sensitive: No

Wearability: Very Good

Special care instructions: Avoid rough handling

Enhancements: None

Morganite is a beryl, colored by traces of manganese. 

Although violet and peach are possible colors, the most common and preferred color is pink. 

Heat and light will remove the yellow component from peach beryl, so it is often heated to get “pinker” stones. 

This gem entered the American market in 1911 when Tiffany & Co. introduced it and named it in honor of financier J.P. Morgan. 

The person that named it was another man that had his name attached to a typical pink stone, then Tiffany’s colored stone specialist, Mr. George Kunz.

Original deposits from Madagascar are now worked out, but Brazil, Namibia, and other locations produce rough. 

Growth tubes are a typical inclusion in beryl and often seen in Morganite. 

Near colorless specimens are often offered as morganite when they more appropriately should be labeled goshenite (colorless beryl). 

Although it takes a larger stone to develop a really good body color, smaller stones can be very brilliant. 

Like most beryls, morganite makes an excellent jewelry stone requiring no special care.

Aside from its good inherent toughness and wearability, it is its color that attracts buyers, especially, in recent years, for the making of engagement rings and bridal jewelry.

Morganite pink shades are the softest and most feminine of all, and these can be used on rose rings or partial mountings with the great aesthetic effect! 

The price is an obvious upside for this choice of engagement ring center stone: much cheaper than colorless diamonds, and much, much cheaper than pink diamonds, a morganite engagement ring will give an excellent buck to bling ratio! 

Want numbers? The 6.01 carat pink diamond ring that Ben Affleck gave J. Lo. in 2002 was purchased for 2.5 million USD… as opposed to roughly 1500-2000 USD for a ring with a top-quality morganite of the same weight!!!

Boom.

I am always happy to discuss engagement ring options with my client, and morganite is often on the table.

So, don’t hesitate to go have a look here if you are considering a custom made morganite ring.

Medium light to medium pink, clean stones with custom cuts are the most valuable. 

Very light and included stones are on the lower end of the value spectrum. 

As morganite frequently occurs in larger crystals, there is not an exponential increase in price with the size we see in so many gems. 

Paradoxically, smaller morganites, (if they show good color,) can be more valuable than larger ones. 

Large gems, in order to show good color, must be so large as to limit their reasonable use in jewelry. 

As is the case with unheated greenish blue aquamarine, a small but growing segment of collectors prefer the unheated peachy color and are willing to pay a premium to get an unenhanced piece.