Find out What Rocks and Minerals Worth Money

Someone says “rocks,” and the mind immediately conjures up an image of a dull, Gray, hard lump. While most rocks, in our general view, are just that, certain types of stones and minerals can procure a good price.

These special gems obviously have a huge demand in the world of fashion and jewelry. Many gemstones are exotic and not easily accessible.

However, several precious and semi-precious rocks and minerals occupy areas as common as our backyard. Gemstones are worth a dramatically large sum of money. Here is a list of some of the most expensive ones.

Blue Diamond

Blue diamond is valued at a whopping 3.93 million dollars per carat. Except for the additional blue hue, this diamond has the same properties as the regular diamond. The tint is obtained from trace amounts of boron that meddle with the crystalline lattice structure. Diamonds have multiple subcategories. Accordingly, the blue diamond is a fancy color diamond that flaunts an intense hue.

Jadeite

As the name suggests, Jadeite is from the Jade family. It is priced at 3 million dollars per carat, and deservingly so. Jadeite is the purest type of Jade. It is incredibly vivid and unique. This mineral is pyroxene. It has a rich, emerald-Esque green color which can drive people crazy. To illustrate with an example, a necklace studded with 27 beads of jadeite was put up for auction. Inevitable, the piece was sold for an unbelievable sum of 27.44 million dollars.

Pink Diamond

One of the rarest types, only about 0.0001﹪of all naturally occurring diamonds are pink. Pink diamonds have been valued in the price range of approximately 1 to 1.2 million dollars per carat. In 2017, an extraordinary 59.60-carat pink diamond was put up for auction in Hong Kong. The winning bid was a mighty 71.2 million dollars. This diamond has a stark pink shade and is often referred to as “the pink star.”

Red Diamond

This one is sought after even more than its blue, pink, and colorless counterparts. Red diamonds have a distinct red hue. Valued at a minimum of 1 million dollars per carat, they tremendously differ from other colorful diamonds. Unlike blue and pink diamonds, red is derived from a rare atomic structure instead of impurities like boron and nitrogen. People often confuse red diamonds with rubies. Rubies have a much sharper shade of red. red diamonds, on the other hand, are gentler in their purest form.

Emerald

Emerald is a dearly loved gem. It is cool, bluish-green hue is so enticing that it has led emerald to be priced at as much as 5.5 million dollars per carat. This precious gem derives its color from the impurities of chromium and/or vanadium. South America, Columbia, and Brazil are leading in the production of quality emerald gems. The continent of South Africa is a close second, with Ethiopia consistently producing top-quality emeralds that do not require oil treatments.

How to Find if Your Rocks are Valuable?

While all of these are precious stones, finding or buying them might be a distant dream. Instead, there are quite a handful of pretty minerals that are easier to access. They also happen to fetch a reasonable price. For instance, consider Quartz. Quartz is a crystalline mineral that just might be lying in your backyard right now. It is a semi-precious stone and is comparatively more freely available.

Amethyst is a rarer form of quartz and is much more valuable. You can try looking for it in rock geodes, as it is much less likely to be found simply lying in the yard. Garnet and Turquoise are two more gemstones that you can stumble upon. Garnet typically has a deep red hue, while Turquoise has its iconic shade of blue. Both gems are quite popular in the world of ornaments.

There might be valuable rocks in your backyard. However, it is important to note that simply coming across them on your evening stroll is only a minuscule possibility. You will need a selection of tools at your disposal and will be required to actively put in efforts if you wish to look for gemstones.

A pickaxe is important for it will enable you to chip away at compact lumps of dirt or rocks. A shovel is essential if you are keen on digging up some dirt and reaching for buried treasures. You might also need a pair of tweezers to handle tiny gems that can easily slip through fingers,

Exploring the backyard might be a good idea; the most promising place to look for semi/precious stones is by a waterbody. If you live near the ocean or have a river or creek nearby, try scouting on the ground near it. Be sure to do your homework before engaging in this adventure, though. It is essential to research what the crudest form of a gemstone looks like to identify one when you find one.