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Peridot only comes in greens, from pale yellow green, through intense bottle green to vibrant apple green. The best material comes from Pakistan near to the Afghan border. The large fine deposit of peridot found there have a beautiful deep colour and sell for high prices. Peridot is termed an idiochromatic gemstone. This means that the colour comes from the chemical composition of the stone and not from impurities within which normally provide gemstone colour
Peridot is generally transparent but can contain a wide array of inclusions. The most common are "fingerprints" or "lilypads" made from very small drops of silica glass. Dark brown, black and silk like type inclusions can also be found. Generally peridot does not have a great brilliance, and the lustre ranges from vitreous to greasy. Occasionaly star and cats eye effects can be found.
Peridot can be found in Brazil, Australia, Egypt, China, Myanamar, Pakistan, South Africa, the USA(Hawaii, and Arizona) and Zaire.
Peridot can resemble green zircon, green tourmaline, green apatite and even green sapphire. It may be oiled or opticoned to reduce the appearance of flaws. Opticon is a polymer filler that is frequently used to enhance emeralds.
The high cost of larger , strong coloured stones reflects the difficulty of finding large "clean" rough material , but also the time it takes to cut and polish the peridot. Peridot is more readily available in paler colour which are more reasonably priced.
Peridot is generally faceted as a step cut or mixed cut to obtain the best cut and reduce the risk of breakage. It can be dificult to polish and will pick up scratches easily, so it is importatnt to keep peridot stones set in jewellery clean in order to look their best.
