Ural gems: description of stones, their use

The Urals are rightfully called the treasury of Russia. This is a malachite box filled with a wide variety of precious stones.

They began to mine beautiful Ural stones a long time ago, from the time of the appearance of the first Russian settlers. At the end of the 16th century, caravans with goods began to go from Europe to Asia and back, from Solikamsk to Tura and Tyumen. Then iron ore was discovered, followed by patterned ornamental stones - agate and jasper. They are first mentioned in the 17th century.

At that time, the extraction was carried out in an artisanal way, excavations were carried out using a pick and a shovel. Pits, pits and adits were almost not strengthened by anything, and the work posed a danger not only to health, but even to life. Often, beautiful gems were found simply on the surface of the earth, along the banks of rivers and streams, plowed during the cultivation of vegetable gardens. Prospectors-miners at first simply sold rough stones to dealers. But gradually masters began to appear who learned how to cut, make original boxes, jewelry, souvenirs.

Almost all minerals of interest to jewelers are found in the Ural deposits, and in large quantities. Some of them are found only in this area.

In the science of mineralogy there is such a term as "the semi-precious strip of the Urals". This is an area of ​​occurrence of precious, semiprecious and ornamental stones, located on the eastern slope of the Ural Mountains. Its length from north to south is about 100 kilometers. At the professional level, the gems of the Urals began to be studied only at the end of the 19th century.

The first and largest deposit at that time was the Murzinka settlement.It was here in 1668 that the first precious stones were found by the Tumashev brothers. From that moment on, the life of the settlement changed radically. Residents of nearby villages began to mine gems. Prospectors from other places began to come here, the village grew.

Stone business was further developed during the reign of Peter the Great. He issued a decree according to which anyone, anywhere, could search for and extract minerals, thanks to which many factories appeared in the Urals. At the same time, the construction of St. Petersburg began. For the construction and decoration of buildings and palaces, more and more different types of stone were required, as well as craftsmen who knew how to process it. Mining specialists began to be sent to the Urals to organize mining on the required scale.

Over the more than 200-year history of development, hundreds of tons of beautiful gems and semi-precious stones - topaz, beryl, alexandrite and many others - have been exported from the Murzinsky mines.

Another famous deposit is Malyshevskoye. Here valuable emeralds of stunning beauty are mined. It is still in operation. In 1993, a crystal weighing 1.2 kilograms was mined at this mine, and in 2013 - a little over one kilogram.

Malachite has been the pride of the Urals, one might say, a visiting card, for many years. From the beginning of the 18th to the 19th century, this stone was mined on a huge scale. Malachite was used to make caskets, countertops, vases, wall mosaics, and various small souvenirs. It was sold abroad. For example, in Versailles there are apartments decorated with polished plates of this stone.

In the folklore of the Ural miners and prospectors, there were such images as Copper Mountain and its Mistress, who was the owner of underground treasures and could help an honest worker in their search.

Kyshtym, Tagil and Mednorudyansky were also famous. Now the explored deposits of malachite are almost completely depleted, only in some places can you still find small-sized samples. However, some scientists, geologists and mineralogists are sure that many untouched reserves of this amazing stone are stored in the bowels of the Urals. So the search continues, and perhaps there will be another era of malachite abundance.

A variety of minerals are found in the Urals. The list can include the following natural precious and semi-precious stones.

• Alexandrite... Closes the top five of the most expensive and rare gems in the world. Its distinctive feature is the color change from green under natural light to reddish under artificial light. It got its name in honor of the Russian Emperor Alexander II. Currently, the alexandrite deposit in the Urals is considered depleted, the stone is not being mined.

• Amethyst... The chemical composition is quartz. Has a purple color, sometimes with a reddish tint. It is attractive not only in cut, but also in the form of rough druses. Ural amethysts are called Siberian abroad.

• Emerald... According to mineralogical terminology, it belongs to green beryls. It is a gem of the first group, and is also one of the five most expensive of them, taking an honorable third place. It was first discovered in 1830. The emeralds of the Ural deposits are characterized by the depth and saturation of the green color.

• Topaz... The famous researcher, mineralogist, academician Alexander Evgenievich Fersman said that Russian topaz stands out for its color and beauty among similar gems from other countries, and they can rightfully be called our pride. Stones from different workings differ in color. For example, colorless crystals are found in the Ilmenogorsk belt.The largest ones weighed more than 10 kilograms. Yellow and blue come across in Murzinsky and Aduysky. Crimson, pink and bluish - in the South Urals.

• Demantoid, or green garnet. Very rare and most expensive of all known pomegranates. The first stone was found in 1868, in the region of Nizhniy Tagil. 6 years later, in 1874, demantoids began to be mined at the Sysert mine. The color of the stones can vary: green, pistachio, yellowish honey, golden.

• Diamond... One of the hardest minerals. Comes in different colors. The most common are white, transparent, black, gray. There are specimens with green, brown, yellow, blue and pink tints. Diamonds from the Urals are among the most expensive.

• Mariinskite... The newest find of scientists. In 2011, a mineral was discovered in the Ural Mountains, which in its composition is close to alexandrite. The stone is green, the color does not change when the lighting is changed.

• Aquamarine... Refers, like emerald, to the group of beryls. It was first discovered at the end of the 19th century, at the Aduy deposit, north of Yekaterinburg. Has good transparency and sky blue color.

In the Middle Urals, rich deposits of tourmalines, rock crystal, smoky quartz, chrysolites, beryls of various colors and many other fine gems of high quality were discovered.

A separate group is represented by the so-called ornamental stones. They are used to make inexpensive jewelry - pendants, beads, rings, bracelets. And also various figurines, vases, stands, cigarette cases. The most common are the following.

• Malachite... The most famous Ural stone. Soft, easy to handle, it can be sawn, grinded, polished. The original delicate cut pattern allows you to use it in the production of mosaics, to decorate interiors.

• Eagle, or rhodonite. The Urals have the largest reserves of this species. The color of the mineral ranges from light pink to dark cherry, with a huge variety of shades. Most often, coasters, vases, candlesticks are made from it.

• Jasper... In the Urals, 8 types of this ornamental stone are mined. There is especially a lot of it in the southern part, there are whole rocks made of jasper. The color scheme is diverse: green, gray, yellow, red shades in the most bizarre combinations and patterns. The mineral is durable, amenable to processing and polishing, from which products of excellent beauty are obtained.

• Serpentine... A stone with a soft structure. The color is dark green with black or brown blotches.

• Pyrite... Has increased hardness, but works well. The color is yellow-gold; when polishing, a shine similar to metallic appears.

• Chalcedony and its varieties - agate, onyx, cat's eye, carnelian, flywheel. Rings, earrings, pendants are made of these minerals. The color of the stones can be very different: green, yellow, brown, blue, with many shades.

• Nephritis... Greenish gray, bright green, sometimes milky white. The hardness is quite high. Usually used for the production of souvenirs.

For several centuries, products from the Ural gems have been the pride of Russia. They are widely used in various branches of jewelry and stone-cutting art. The magnificent works of the Ural masters are highly valued... Interior items, souvenirs, jewelry boxes, jewelry and exclusive jewelry are in great demand not only in our country, but also abroad.

These are the gems of the Urals. Different in color, composition, application, but equally beautiful.

For an overview of the Ural gems, see the next video.