Citrine Gemstone | Natural Citrine Stone

Citrine

Citrine is the transparent, pale yellow to brownish orange variety of quartz.

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buyer's guide

A saturated yellow to reddish orange color free of brownish tints is prized in citrine. Dealers look for citrines without color zoning or visible inclusions.

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what to look for

Yellow, pear-shape, citrine, brownish orange, emerald-cut, bracelet

COLOR
The finest citrine colors are saturated, with little or no brownish component, and range from yellow to reddish orange, and even orangy red.

Eye-clean gems like these are perfect for the “Pluto” ring. The citrine and gold design was inspired by the stars and the cosmos. - Robert Weldon, gift of Patricia MB Gotthilf"

CLARITY
Much of the faceted citrine in the market is “eye-clean,” meaning it lacks eye-visible inclusions. Material with minor inclusions is often used for cabochons or carvings. Visible inclusions in pale-colored gems reduce citrine’s value greatly.

A jeweler’s display shows off citrine’s glowing shades with a designer-cut beauty alongside more traditional emerald-cut and oval gems.

CUT
Citrine is available in a wide variety of fancy shapes, including custom cuts. Many cutting styles are calibrated in standard millimeter sizes for use in mass-market jewelry.

Citrine is available in large sizes. Jewelry designers love it for creating bold, impressive designs like this 29-carat gem set with diamonds into a versatile clasp/pendant. - Robert Weldon, courtesy C. Y. Sheng

CARAT WEIGHT
Large-size citrine is not priced significantly more per carat than smaller sizes, making it a good choice for bold jewelry designs. Unlike other colored gems, smaller citrines can have strong color, making it easier to match sets of differently sized gems.

CITRINE QUALITY FACTORS: THE COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE

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VIEW SAMPLE REPORT ABOUT IDENTIFICATION REPORTS ANALYSIS & GRADING

QUESTION & ANSWERS

Q
IS CITRINE TREATED?
A
Because yellow quartz colors are rare in nature, most citrine is the result of heating, which converts less valuable shades of purple amethyst to the golden shades of citrine.
Q
IS THERE SYNTHETIC CITRINE?
A
Quartz is grown in laboratories for industrial purposes and to make laboratory-grown amethyst. Some of the material becomes laboratory-grown citrine quartz.
Q
HOW CAN I JUDGE CITRINE’S QUALITY?
A
Look for eye-clean gems with lively, pleasing color and attractive cutting styles.
Q
DOES GIA OFFER REPORTS FOR CITRINE?
A
GIA offers a Colored Stone Identification Report for citrine, but it is not commonly requested because of the cost of the report compared to the value of most citrine.