The world’s most expensive gemstones

Expensive gems are often thought to be diamonds, rubies, emeralds, sapphires and so on. But there are many other types of precious gems, some that you may have never heard of because they are so rare and expensive! Here is a list of the world’s most expensive gemstones.

Tanzanite

This colour-changing gem has a blue-to-purple hue depending on the orientation of the crystal and the lighting. It is only found in the foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. Because it can only be mined in this single location, it comes with the hefty price of £500 per carat.

Taaffeite

This gem comes in a beautiful colour range of translucent to pink. Only a handful of stones have been found in Sri Lanka and Tanzania, making this stone extremely rare and valuable. It is valued at more than £1,000 per carat.

Black opal

The black opal is the rarest among opals. These black stones are speckled with bright colours so each is unique and gorgeous. Almost all black opals are mined in New South Wales in Australia and go for around £1,900 per carat.

Poudretteite

This pink stone was originally found in Mont St Hilaire in Quebec, Canada. This was thought to be the only location for many years, but it is now known to be found in Magok, Myanmar. This gem is worth more than £2,600 per carat.

Benitoite

This is a beautiful blue gem can be found in Japan and Arkansas, in the US, and is also mined in San Benito, California. Because of the rarity of Benitoite, it is usually sold in increments of less than one carat. Per carat, the price of this gemstone is more than £2,600.

Red beryl

Often called the scarlet emerald, this gorgeous red crystal is said to be 1,000 times more valuable than gold. It is found in the Wah Wah Mountains of Utah and is sold at more than £8,000 per carat.

Alexandrite

Named for Tsar Alexander II, this color-shifting gem ranges from red to green, depending on light, making it much coveted. The original deposits, found in the Ural Mountains of Russia, were nearly gone when new deposits were found in East Africa, Sri Lanka and Brazil. It is still extremely rare and has a price tag to match, coming in at almost £10,000 per carat.

Serendibite

This gorgeous gem, which ranges in colour from pale yellow, to blue, to deep black, is found in Sri Lanka and the Mogok area of Myanmar. It is valued at more than £14,500 per carat.

Jadeite

Not to be confused with jade, jadeite is much rarer and much more expensive. The deep green stone is found in Myanmar and carries a price tag of more than £16,000 per carat.

Grandidierite

Also coming in at more than £16,000 per carat is this semi-translucent, blue-green gemstone. This exquisite and rare stone is found in Madagascar.

Musgravite

For many years, only eight occurrences of the blue-purple stone were found in South Australia. Recently, however, small quantities have been found elsewhere. The stone is still one of the rarest in the world and is worth almost £29,000 per carat.

Painite

Only two specimens of the orange to brick-coloured gem existed for many years. More have been found in Myanmar, but it is still extremely rare and priced fairly at around £ 41,000 per carat.

Pink Star Diamond

Finally, the gem priced at £68,298,350. This 59.6-carat pink diamond was mined in South Africa and sold at the highest price ever for a gem.