Peridot is a bright yellow green or golden green diversity of olivine. It was originally found on Egypt's St. John's Island once known as Topazios, in the Red Sea, which is now known as Zeberget. It is also found in Burma, Sri Lanka, USA and Norway.
Because there hardness is lower than 7, they are not ideal for use in rings, and should be treated with sensible care.
Vivid golden green, but can vary to darker green or greenish yellow. Peridot has also been known as Chrysolite, although this is an old name which was applied fairly randomly to any yellow and greenish yellow stones. It was also once wrongly called topaz. There are also brown peridots. Since1952 many stones believed to be brown peridots have been found to be a different mineral called Sinhalite.

The brilliant, slightly golden iridescent green of Peridot is the ideal gemstone colour to harmonize a light summertime outfit. This is no surprise – Peridot, after all, is assigned to the summer month of August.
Peridot is an ancient and yet presently very accepted gemstone. It is so old that it can be found even in Egyptian jewellery from the early second millennium BC. The stones used in those days came from an incidence on a little volcanic island in the Red Sea, about 70 km off the Egyptian coast, off Assuan, which was rediscovered only around 1900 and has been completely demoralized since. Peridot, however, is also a very modern stone, for only a few years ago Peridot occurrences were discovered in the Kashmir region, and the stones from there show a unique beauty of colour and clearness, so that the image of the stone, which was somewhat blunted over the ages, has received an effective polishing.

The ancient Romans were already quite fond of the gemstone and the popular the brilliant green sparkle, which does not change either in artificial light. They already named the stone “Evening Emerald”. Peridot is found in Europe in many medieval churches decorating several treasures, like, for example, in the Cologne Cathedral. In the era of Baroque the deep green gemstone experienced another short flourishing, before it became ancient history.

Ideal summer stone

Peridot is a gain for the green gemstone’ colour palette. There is tendency to use it not only as individual stone, but also in jewellery series. And since the world of fashion has just exposed a favourite for the colour green, the reputation of this deep green gemstone has improved accordingly.
And the rich occurrences in Pakistan and Afghanistan have provided the market with adequate raw material, so that the particularized taste and each budget can be met. But if the “right” stone for you is a large and translucent one, powerfully coloured, be prepared: they are quite rare and expensive. Peridot is a gemstone which one should definitely get to know. Its fine pistachio green or olive green ideally complements a light summertime outfit.