Peridot Mining: A Long History

Peridot Mining: A Long History

Peridot Mining: A Long History

Peridot is named from the French word peritot, meaning gold. Quite a few versions of the stone tend to be a good deal more gold than green. Peridot is the birthstone for the month of August and is also often the stone presented for a sixteenth anniversary.

Zabargad

Peridot owns a lengthy recorded heritage. Old papyri reveal the mining of these rocks as far back as 1500 BC. An important resource of peridot throughout the ancient world most likely was Topazo Island (currently Zabargad or St. John's Island) found in the Red Sea. Throughout early times, peridot stones were utilized as talismans. Island citizens were often forced into captivity to allow them to accumulate the gem stones needed for the Pharaoh's treasury. Old legend tells that soldiers guarding the island received orders that they must kill all trespassers at sight. It is thought that normally mining occurred by night because jewels were found to be hard to see in daytime. Often the pure gemstones were found to be nearly translucent and so were hard to spot until it became dark enough to allow a gem's reflection to be seen readily.

Egypt

The peridot gemstone is the official national gem of Egypt. In Ancient Egypt, the jewel became referred to as "the gem of the sun." Peridot rocks were mined for more than thirty-five hundred years on St Johns Island. As recently as the 19th century, Egypt boasted a real monopoly regarding the mines. For a while, the island's actual whereabouts was a mystery. It was rediscovered in 1905. From the Color Encyclopedia of Gemstones 2nd Edition:

"Zabargad is an island in the Red Sea that is often shrouded in fog, making it difficult for ancient navigators to find. The location has been lost in fact, for centuries, and was rediscovered in about 1905. The island is located 35 miles of the Egyptian coastal port of Berenica."

End of Zagarbad Mines

During the 1800s, peridot mines on Zabargad Island turned out millions of dollars worth of peridot. After 1905, output of the peridot treasures peaked, but by the late 1930's production tapered to almost nothing and came to a virtual dead end in 1958, when mines became nationalized. Old stones still come from Zabargad, but there is apparently no current active mining there.

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