Zultanite Explained

Zultanite is a gem variety of the mineral diaspore, mined in the İlbir Mountains of southwest Turkey at an elevation of over 4,000 feet. The mineral's name is a trade name and is equivalent to the trade name Csarite.^[1]

Turkey is the only place where the gem quality material has been found,^[2] and at the Ilbir Dağ deposit it has been "formed in open spaces by hydrothermal remobilization of bauxite components". The gem quality material was first discovered in the early 1980s.^[3]

Zultanite has a hardness of 6.5 to 7.^[4] Depending on its light source, zultanite's color varies between a yellowish green, light gold, and purplish pink.^[5] Its color can be pastel green in outdoor light and beige pink in incandescent light.^[6]

Notes and References

1. Web site: A Short History of Diaspore and its trade names Zultanite and Csarite . The Gem Society. Lisa . Rosen . 13 August 2024 .
2. Book: PROCEEDINGS 4th International Congress on "Science and Technology for the Safeguard of Cultural Heritage in the Mediterranean Basin" VOL. II. Angelo Ferrari. 978-88-96680-32-2. en.
3. Web site: New Acquisitions - Diaspore . The Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. 24 December 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20121024014824/http://mineralsciences.si.edu/collections/newacquisitions/2008/diaspore08.htm. 24 October 2012 .
4. Web site: Zultanite: A Color Changing Stone. 2021-11-24. en.
5. Hatipoğlu. Murat. Türk. Necdet. Chamberlain. Steven C.. Akgün. A. Murat. Gem-quality transparent diaspore (zultanite) in bauxite deposits of the İlbir Mountains, Menderes Massif, SW Turkey. Mineralium Deposita. February 2010. 45. 2. 201–205. 10.1007/s00126-009-0262-2. 2010MinDe..45..201H. 128606419.
6. Book: Jewelry & Gems - The Buying Guide, 7th Edition. 2009. Gemstone Press. 978-0-943763-71-2. en.