Emerald Origin & Colors

Emeralds have various sources, but one of the oldest continuing suppliers is the Muzo mine in Colombia. Natives of this area had been collecting emeralds from this source for a long time before the area was abandoned and eventually rediscovered in the 1700s by the Spanish conquistadors. Muzo is known for having perfectly green colors, however this is not ideal emerald color.

Chivor, Colombia is known for emeralds with a bluish component, which is the ideal emerald color. The third large emerald mining district is Cozcuez, also in Colombia, which is known for a more yellowish color. However, these are only guidelines for the colors of emeralds from these locations, though they are used to compare the color of emeralds from all other mines in Colombia.

Much like the various mines of Colombia, Brazil and Zambia have certain colors attributed to their emeralds (yellowish and bluish emeralds respectively). However, these are only generalities for these sources. Not strict rules, since various emerald sources have colors that frequently overlap. Brazil can produce bluish emeralds, and Zambia can produce yellowish ones.

Zambian Emerald

E1403 | play

Emerald ID: E1403
Weight: 4.56 Carats
Origin: Zambia

Ethiopian Emerald

E1107 | play

Emerald ID: E1107
Weight: 6.53 Carats
Origin: Ethiopia

Brazilian Emerald

E1356 | play

Emerald ID: E1356
Weight: 3.85 Carats
Origin: Brazil

See how similar all the colors are? Under no circumstances can color alone be used to determine an emerald’s origin. This is true of nearly every other gemstone, with the one exception of Kashmir sapphires. Unless the viewer can recognize the inclusions inside to verify a specific origin (which is not always possible), do not even try to guess the origin.

Out of all the deposits, the trapiche emeralds only come from the Colombian mines (specifically Muzo) in any stable supply, and sporadically from Brazilian sources. Often they do not come in high quality.