Emerald inclusions are quite interesting, but before we dive into this, we need to talk about clarity.
Emeralds typically fall into the type II sort of gemstone. You’ve got three types.
Type 1 is one that’s very easy to see through, and there aren’t any inclusions. Aquamarines, and even heliodor are great examples of this.
There are also Type II sorts of gems, which are those with some sort of inclusions. Sapphires, rubies, and even some quartz are examples of this.
Type III is a final one, where they show off the inclusions, and this is usually where the emeralds come into. Many emeralds do get oiled in order to improve clarity.
There are some terms used for inclusion of this. Jardins, or gardens of this are what they’re called. The emeralds all have inclusions which do showcase a garden, especially since they’re creations based on mother nature. No sets of Jardins do get the same, and they also are used for creating a way to figure out gems individually.
What Inclusions Are
So most of the time, inclusions are called Jardins because they literally look like moss. Those that have a lot of inclusions and are hard to see through are definitely treated. They do need extra care due to the fact that they are susceptible to damage from inclusions. Now, despite all of this, they’re much more durable than even the fingers you have. [
Inclusions do happen because of how things occur in the wild. Mother nature works and commingles with different elements within the ground.
Gems that are transparent and beautiful are usually what people want, but the thing is, if you get specific locations, there are different types of inclusion there. However, source-specific inclusions aren’t always there on every single emerald.
A lot of inclusions do vary with the way that they’re found, and there are also diagnostic tools that are used to assess each of these in order to find the origin country.
Fractures, along with inclusions that are there in liquid form tend to be the most useful, and usually, inclusions sometimes can be different types of inclusions.
Crystals and Liquid Inclusions
Crystals are a unique one, as they involve this crystallization of different materials within each emerald. There are many different inclusion of crystals that are there, based on how many crystals are present within this. It's also quite interesting because you can sometimes find halos that surround this, which is created by differences in the melting temps of each of the emeralds and the crystals during the formation process.
Liquid inclusions are another really common one, as they are essentially a way to fill different cavities within emeralds. They also do form when there are gas bubbles, as they create what’s called phase two inclusions. These are very common in emeralds. There are also three phase types of inclusions where liquids, gasses, and crystals form here. In some rare instances, gasses will bubble within this, or the crystal included moves within each cavity that’s there.
Fingerprints
Finally, we’ve got fingerprints, which are seen in a lot of sapphires and rubies. They usually are coarser and heavier, but they do oftentimes resemble fingerprints that we have and create, as they create a veil that’s wispy. This is something that’s different because of the range of each appearance.
The fingerprints do form when you let the gas and liquid form within this, and it makes two phase inclusions with this.
Finally, you’ve got longer crystals known as needles. After falling with this, you’ve got growth tubes that are hollowed, and leftover from different crystal formations.