TSAVORITE
In 1967, a gem prospector named Campbell Bridges made a discovery of a beautiful rich green crystal on the Eastern Border inside of Tanzania. The beautiful gem proved to be a rare form of garnet, called grossular garnet. Prior to this discovery, only random crystals found in river deposits had ever been found. No known mineral deposits of this rarity had ever been found. This particular crystal was also a much richer green than any other previously known grossular garnet. Mr. Bridges had the stone cut and identified, and tremendous interest from the Gem World followed.
Mr. Bridges applied for a mining claim from the Tanzanian Government. His request was denied as the government was not willing to allow export of this new find. After a year of frustration, Campbell Bridges decided that the geological formation seemed to extend into neighboring Kenya. He crossed the border and began his search. In 1971, he found that the source in Tanzania was just a small vein from the central deposit.
He then approached the Kenyan Government to procure a mining claim. Although the Kenyan Government did give their approval, there were two large obstacles to overcome. First was that the deposit sat on the inside edge of the Tsavo National Park. This preserve was a vast open area of the Serengeti.
Although he was given permission to mine the area, he was not allowed to bring in large scale mining equipment. The gem would have to be mined by hand. This was complicated by the second problem. The Tsavo National Park is also home to the highest concentration of the deadly King Cobra snake on earth. This meant a second group of men was needed to be on constant snake patrol. Despite all of these obstacles, the mining proved to be very successful. It was not long after the supply proved to be consistent and relatively abundant, did Mr. Bridges realize that the stone needed a new name.
Campbell Bridges christened his new gem find as TSAVORITE. It was, of course, named after the Tsavo National Park, where the stone was discovered.
Tsavorite is a dark green gem with nice transparency and a high reflective property. The stones are a darker green than a typical emerald but are less included and a more reflective than their better known green gem, emerald. When selecting a TSAVORITE, it is important to focus on two factors, color and size. The first is the color. The color should be a dark Kelly Green. There is a slight yellow undertone, but it should be as little as possible. There are a few very rare gems that seem to have a slightly bluish secondary tone. But there have only been a handful of these stones ever found. The green should also not get too dark, where the stone starts to lose its transparency and can start to go inky. The other spectrum is if the stone gets too light and starts to have a yellowish green cast. The other large factor in value is size.
The Tsavorite crystals grow very small and grain like. This makes finding stones above 2 carats very difficult. Anything over 5 carats becomes a museum or collector gem.
Here at Gauthier, we were fortunate enough to have owned the largest known Tsavorite ever mined in our collection. The stone was an amazing gem and was sold to us by Campbell Bridges’ son years after his father passed. We were given the opportunity to purchase the largest ever discovered Tsavorite because we had purchased some of the other more significant stones throughout the years. We were excited to sell and set this magnificent gem in a beautiful ring for one of our collectors in 2016.
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HISTORY AND FOLKLORE
The history of Tsavorite reads like an Indiana Jones story. It was discovered first in Tanzania by Campbell Bridges. The story he told was he was out prospecting for gems when he was charged at by a raging wild buffalo. He dove into a deep ravine to same himself and ended up landing face down staring at a beautiful green crystal. His find was taken from him because all mined objects belong to the Tanzania government. Undeterred, he crossed the border and found the mother load. After years of finding, naming, and promoting his precious find, the story takes a dark turn. Some locals that were not hired by him to mine started to set up camp next to his claim. They then built tunnels into his area and started stealing his Tsavorite. One night Campbell, his son Bruce, and a few others went to confront the smugglers. A fight ensued and on August 11, 2009, Campbell Bridges was stabbed and lost his life. His son Bruce continues his legacy even today as mining still continues.
The spiritual meaning of this stone is also interesting. Tsavorite is considered to be the most powerful prosperity stone known. It is believed to enhance wealth in every aspect. Be it creative, financial, artistic, or emotional wealth.
WEARING AND CARING
Tsavorite is considered a nice hearty stone with a hardness of 7.5 out of 10 on the Mohs hardness scale. It can be worn as a daily stone. However, it should not be exposed to overly aggressive wear and tear that could cause the stone to scratch or chip. Small facet abrasions after years of wear can be polished away every so often to extend the life of the stone.