Dark Secret

Having lost my love forever,the colours of the rainbow gone with him,all that’s left is a black abyss’. Sorry to start on a sombere note this week,but that’s what came to my mind when I thought of all that’s black and dark! On a more positive side,in the world of gemstones there’s a black beauty with an unusual sounding name. It’s called Schorl. A semi-precious variety belonging to the Tourmaline group of minerals,it has been long and most famously worn as ‘mourning’ jewellery in Europe during the Victorian era. The name ‘Schorl’ is derived from ‘Zschorlan’,the name of the 15th century village in Saxony (Germany) where it was classified by the German physician Ulrich Rulein von Calw. Although it’s accessible in plenty this variant of Tourmaline is somehow the least experimented in jewellery. It is obtainable in transparent to opaque crystals and it emerges as vitreous to resinous and scores fair to brittle on the toughness factor. Schorl is typically black or charcoal-grey in colour but also includes bluish-black hues in its kitty. Its natural streak is white. This sub-metallic stone is pretty hard and takes remarkable polish which distinguishes it from other black stones. The iron-rich mineral is a common accessory mineral in igneous and metamorphic rocks and can form amazing crystals. Schorl used as an ornamental stone when found as inclusions in quartz and is often addressed as ‘tourmalinized quartz’. Prime sources of Schorl include Brazil,England (Cornwall),Germany (Saxony),Namibia,Pakistan and USA. Black Tourmaline is excellent choice for jewellery and other bejewelled accessories. Although sometimes too opaque,the various hues of Schorl may well be incorporated in suitable design sensibilities. The greyish-black tones come forward grand if strung in tribal or hammered gold look. A black lustrous may be well mounted on a bold men’s cocktail ring accented with diamonds to enhance its striking colour. There is never any dearth of reason to accessorize in stunning black jewels. Available and affordable,go for it!

(The writer is a city-based researcher specialising in jewellery art and can be contacted at sameeraahaan02@gmail.com)