When people look to buy gemstones, it is either for its healing properties or for their prestigious collection. Whatever reason you are buying the gemstone for, it’s important that you look into the authenticity of the gemstone, its origin, clarity and cut.

• Origin
The finest quality of Alexandrite gems are produced in the mines of India and Russia. Some of the good one also come from the mines of Sri Lanka, Brazil, Tanzania and Madagascar. The best color change effect is shown in the natural rare and precious stones from Russia. In the order of value, the next best stone comes from India and Brazil.

• Color-Change Effect
The most unique feature of Alexandrite is its colour-changing effect. Its colour shifts from daylight to artificial light. The daylight hues range in greenish tones; deep green, yellow-green, brownish green, bluish green, and dark green. Under the artificial yellow lamp lights, the hues range in reddish tones; deep red, brownish red, pinkish red, pinkish brown, purplish pink, purplish red, and orangish pink. The sharper the colour of the gemstone, the better the quality. Stones are less desirable if the stone is excessively dark or too pale.

• Clarity
The Alexandrite gemstone is transparent and the Type II clarity gemstone is expected to have some visible flaws. Mica platelets, rutile, multi-phase inclusions, fluorite and apatite crystals, fingerprints hollow tubes are the forms in which inclusions occur in Alexandrite crystals. The quality and value of the Alexandrite can reduce significantly in the market if there is the presence of these internal flaws in the locations or if it has a high density.

• Uniqueness
Alexandrite Cat’s eye is a rare and exclusive gemstone that is known for the breath-taking visual effects on its surface. Along with the colour-change effect, this gemstone shows a ‘Cat’s eye effect’ when it is viewed under a direct light source. This occurs due to a parallel alignment that contains the presence of rutile needles.

• Cut
Alexandrite gems bring out the best colour change effect without causing much weight loss due to its rare availability. While round and oval cuts of Alexandrite are pretty common, customized square and cushion cuts are rare and precious. To obtain a central cat’s eye effect, the gemstone with rutile inclusions are cut and polished to form smooth cabochons.

Even though Alexandrite is known as a semi-precious gemstone, it can still fetch prices that are equivalent to a fine ruby or emerald. This is because Alexandrite gemstones are rare in nature and remarkably beautiful. The stone value in the market is determined by considering its colour change property, origin, clarity, cut and carat weight.

Note – The Alexandrite price in India currently starts from Rs 50,000 per carat ($770) but can reach as far as Rs 2, 00,000 per carat ($3075) for top grade gemstones. The prices in other countries like the US, UAE and UK may differ considerably due to the variability in supply and demand.

• Origin
Russian Alexandrite value remains the highest in the gemstone industry due to its quality, rarity and historical significance. The price per carat for Russian Alexandrite usually ranges between Rs 50,000 per carat ($770) to Rs 2, 00,000 per carat ($3075 and plus. The Indian and Brazilian Alexandrite value is comparatively as it is the second most sought-after stone.

• Colour
The most precious Alexandrite stones tend to have a strong and distinctly visible change-of-color featuring pure shades. If the Alexandrite gemstone has a minor colour change whether it is lighter or excessively dark, its value lowers. The most valuable and rare Alexandrite gemstones show 100% color change in pure green and red.

• Clarity
In the assessment of the overall worth of Alexandrite, clarity plays an important role. Alexandrite cost for fine quality faceted stones increase dramatically as stones good transparency and minimum flaws are rare to find. The Alexandrite cabochons that are round or oval, non-faceted, polished gems are mostly opaque and fairly included. However, these imperfections will be ignored during the pricing only if the colour change is significant.

• Cut
The most affordable Alexandrites are the round and oval ones compared to the customized gems as they cause minimum weight loss. For valuable gemstones like Alexandrite, the shapes and cuts that save maximum carat weight without disturbing the beauty are always preferred. If the colour change of Alexandrite cabochons is phenomenal, then it is also considered valuable.

Carat Weight:
When determining Alexandrite per carat value, the size is always a matter of concern. If you are looking for a fine quality gemstone, it is extremely rare to find one above one carat. Hence, for stones above one carat, Alexandrite price per carat increases exponentially