Source: Topaz Define Light

“LIGHTING THE DIVINE LIGHT OF IMAGINATION”

Topaz promotes individuality and creativity while providing self-confidence in your own decisions. It helps to remove doubts about your decisions and promotes the expression of ideas. Topaz acts as a catalytic trigger, and activates the laws of attraction and manifestation of your desires – it helps you to have faith in the universe’s desire to help you, prompting receptivity and willingness to act.

• It helps one to creatively change one’s personal world.
• Helpful in correcting unwanted, unloving behavior patterns.
• Acts to replace negativity with love and joyfulness
• Helps to initiate faith and further the quest for the enlightened state.
• Enhances relaxation, creates lightness of spirit, and stimulates feelings of peace
• Restores loss of taste, healing of wounds and skin eruptions, liver disorders, gall bladder, endocrine glands
• Topaz balances emotions and calms passions. It releases tension and gives feelings of joy. Topaz is known as spiritual rejuvenation gemstone
• Silver enhances the effects of topaz, acting as an additional conductor for topaz’s energy.
• Topaz is particularly powerful when combined with Amethyst. As the topaz activates the laws of attraction and manifestation, the amethyst transforms the energies into spiritual vibrations to produce a soothing, clearing and stabilizing effect.
• Topaz stimulates the endocrine system. It assists in general tissue regeneration. Topaz is valuable in the treatment of hemorrhages. It also increases poor appetite and helps fighting blood disorders.

Colors: Pink, green, red, gold, yellow, blue, white, reddish yellow, brown, gray and colorless.

Wedding anniversary: Topaz is the anniversary gemstone for the 4th and 19th year of marriage.

Imperial topaz is the anniversary gemstone for the 23rd year of marriage.

Description: Topaz is an aluminum fluorite silicate containing fluorine and has a chemical formula of Al2F2SiO4. It is one of the few gem minerals which, under suitable conditions, grow into enormous crystals. Topaz typically occurs in cavities in rhyolites and granite, in pegmatite dikes, and in high-temperature veins with cassiterite and tourmaline.

The stone is transparent with a vitreous luster. A light yellow, brown and pink variety of topaz are valued as a gemstone. The pure crystals of topaz used a great deal in jewelry.

History: It is believed that the topaz of modern mineralogists was unknown to the ancients and that the stone called topazos was the mineral chrysolite or peridot.

In ancient times, a figure of a falcon carved on a Topaz was thought to help earn the goodwill of kings, princes, and magnates. Topaz is Stone of Strength noted by Greeks. During medieval days it was thought to heal physical and mental disorders as well as prevent death.

In 1750 a Parisian jeweler discovered that the yellow Brazilian topaz becomes pink on exposure to a moderate heat, and this treatment has since been extensively applied so that nearly all the pink topaz occurring in jewelry has been heat-treated. Such “burnt topaz” is often known as Brazilian ruby, as is the very rare, natural red topaz.

Name’s Origin: The origin of the name Topaz generates confusion, as some references point to the Sanskrit word “tapaz”, meaning fire, while others believe it is named after Zeberget, an island in the Red Sea that the Greeks called Topazius, the ancient source of Peridot.

While some sources think this was due to ancient confusion between Topaz and Peridot, it now appears more likely that this name might have come from confusion with the Greek word “topasin”, which means to guess or conjecture, possibly in reference to the way fisherman sometimes lost the island in fog. Regardless, in history, the name was not consistently or specifically applied (it was once used to describe most yellow gems) and sometimes Topaz and Peridot are mentioned as being the same and sometimes different. Interestingly, in the famous book “The Curious Lore of Precious Stones”, the esteemed gemologist George Frederick Kunz (1856-1932) states that these two gems are the same species.

Topaz is an inherently romantic gem and features regularly in the titles of romance novels and honeymoon destinations. Its name indicates beauty, rarity, and wealth, and imparts a sense of timelessness.

While the golden yellow and blues of Topaz are the most widely known, topaz actually comes in a diverse array of striking colors. This combined with its beauty and durability makes topaz jewelry ideal for all occasions.

LEGENDS AND LORE

Many ancient traditions and beliefs have created a brilliant history for Topaz. Like Peridot, the Egyptians called Topaz the “gem of the sun”, believing it was colored by the golden glow of their sun god Ra and thus a powerful protector from harm.

Greeks and Romans also associated the golden crystals with their sun god, Jupiter. They believed the gem increased their strength and could neutralize enchantments.

Topaz is mentioned in the Bible as being one of the “stones of fire” (Ezekiel 28:13-16) that were given to Moses and set in the breastplate of Aaron (Exodus 28:15-30). Topaz is also one of the twelve gemstones set in the foundations of the city walls of Jerusalem (Revelations 21:19) and associated with the Apostle Matthew.

Bushmen in Africa used Topaz in healing ceremonies and rituals to connect with ancestral spirits.

In medieval courts, kings, judges and other noble persons were often presented with an engraved Topaz to win favor and cultivate positive relationships.

If you are on a journey of spiritual change, Topaz is believed by crystal healers to make an excellent companion. It apparently teaches you to trust in the universe, aiding you to fully recognize the magical laws of attraction, increasing your ability to manipulate them.

Once believed to make you invincible during danger, Topaz is also believed by some crystal healers to strengthen confidence and to help you make correct decisions by giving you the courage to follow through on choices, thereby changing dreams into reality.

Meditations with Topaz are believed by some to help awaken sleeping talents and illuminate co-creative energies.

CARE AND TREATMENT

As Topaz has a hardness of 8, keep your gems in separate boxes to protect other jewelry from scratches. Also, avoid large temperature changes. Topaz often becomes paler if kept out in the sun. Do not clean topaz in a home ultrasonic cleaner. The best way to clean topaz is warm soapy water.

VARIETIES OF TOPAZ

Mined from both host rock and alluvial deposits, its unique crystal structure makes Topaz a hard and dense gemstone. Because of this, pure colorless Topaz has often been mistaken for Diamond. Weighing 1,680 karats, the huge Braganza gemstone mounted into the Portuguese crown jewels was originally thought to be a Diamond – in fact, it is a beautiful clear Topaz.

A hydrous aluminum fluorosilicate, Topaz is usually formed in granitic pegmatites and in Quartz veins.

BLUE TOPAZ

Blue topaz can generally be found in three different shades: pale sky blue, cool Swiss blue, and deep London blue.

The sparkling stones evoke images of the wind, sky, and water. Blue is the color of calm and quiet.

It can help us channel relaxing energies and fight off chaos and negative emotions.

Traditionally, the icy blue shades of topaz gemstones are associated with learning, understanding, creative inspiration and peaceful communication.

GLACIER TOPAZ™

A unification of fire and ice, Glacier Topaz™ mixes the pure clear whites of glacier ice with a fiery brilliance and luster reminiscent of diamonds.

Mined from the same region as Russian Alexandrite and Siberian Emerald, Glacier Topaz™ is yet another testament to the quality of Russian gemstones. Glacier Topaz™, arguably Topaz at its most pure, requires only cutting and faceting to reveal its hidden beauty.

Glacier Topaz™ is mined at one location on the planet, the famous Murzinka mines (named after the Ostyak’s Prince Murzin) in the Ural Mountains, Russia. Active for well over a century, the Murzinka mines produce some of the world’s finest Topaz, a gemstone for which Russia was once famous.

While Brazil is today the recognized powerhouse for Topaz, Russian Topaz is relatively difficult to source, particularly with respect to the pure natural perfection embodied by Glacier Topaz™.

The miners work the deposits of the Murzinka granite pegmatite fields by tunneling up to 30 meters below the earth’s surface in an effort to carefully extract Topaz crystals directly from the host rocks of the lucrative Mokrusha vein. Painstaking work, only a very small percentage of all the Murzinka Topaz mined has the necessary purity to warrant the distinction of being called Glacier Topaz™.

IMPERIAL TOPAZ

At the height of Imperial Russia’s power, orange pink Topaz was brought from Brazil to decorate the jewelry of the Tzarina. Since then, these colors have been known as Imperial Topaz and remain one of the most coveted varieties. Interestingly, some sources dispute this legend and state that Imperial Topaz was named in honor of Emperor Don Pedro of Brazil.

imperial topaz is used to:

• Encourage self-realization and confidence
• Impart strength to quiet wild emotions
• Banish bad dreams
• Bestow charisma on its user
• Topaz draws love to its wearer
• Protection against envy, disease, negative magic and sudden or untimely death
• Combined with tiger eye, topaz will bring wealth and money

Healing properties of Imperial Topaz

• Stimulate the appetite
• Aid in nervous exhaustion
• Activate life force and metabolism

MYSTIC TOPAZ

Displaying a flaming kaleidoscope of colors, Mystic Topaz (also known as Mystic Fire Topaz, Rainbow Topaz, Titanium Topaz, Alaskan Topaz and Caribbean Topaz) is one of the 20th century’s most beautiful new gemstones. First appearing in September 1998 at the Hong Kong Jewelry Fair, the popularity of Mystic Topaz increased dramatically when it was exhibited at the Tucson Gem Show in 2003.

Mystic Topaz is produced using the physical vapor deposition (PVD) coating process. Applied to top quality natural White Topaz, the treatment is permanent with normal wear. This process can induce an iridescent appearance, whose colors range depending on the light source and the viewing angle relative to both the gem’s surfaces and the light source.

DEPOSITS

Important sources of topaz are in Russia, Siberia, Brazil, Sri Lanka, Africa and China, Japan, Pakistan, Myanmar, Nigeria, Australia, Mexico, and in the United States (in Maine, New Hampshire, California, Colorado, and Utah). In the United States the best topaz has been worked near Pikes Peak, Colorado, and in San Diego County, California. The largest known deposits are located in Minas Gerais in Brazil.

The finest British topaz is found in the Cairngorm Mountains in the Central Highlands, especially at Ben a Buird, Scotland. The famous topaz rock of the Schneckenstein, in Germany, yields pale yellow crystals.

Fine Topaz occurs at several localities in the Urals and in Siberia, Russia, and beautiful crystals come from Takayama and Tanokamiyama in Japan.

TOPAZ	November’s birthstone
Origins	Brazil, Mozambique, Nigeria & Russia
Colors Found	Various
Family	Topaz
Hardness	8.00
Refractive Index	1.60 – 1.64
Relative Density	3.49 – 3.57

Topaz is a powerful stone in the way that quartz is. It is a balancing and calming stone that balances emotions, releases tension, balances emotions, and can bring joy.

Topaz is also believed to bring success and good fortune, and synchronicity. It is also used for protection, particular protection from the evil eye and greed.

Spiritually it brings in spiritual love and peace.It also is said to bring creativity, individuality, true love, and hope.

Physically, topaz is said in crystal healing to aid with gout, blood disorders, hemorrhages, poor appetite, tissue regeneration, tuberculosis, aging (reverses), endocrine system.  Note that healing crystal meanings are spiritual supports to healing and are not prescriptions or healthcare information.