In 1972, one of the largest treasures of tourmaline in the world was unearthed in the western mountains of Maine. That discovery was 59 years ago; we are approaching the half-century mark. For all of these 50 years, Cross has been the most passionate buyer of the gems from this gargantuan find. There were numerous firsts in this mother load of gems. First is size, two metric tons of tourmaline were found. A quantity so vast we are still cutting gems from this discovery. Second, the gems from this find were the finest pink tourmaline the world had ever seen, everything from Whisper Pink colors to deep, rich burgundy colors. During this half century we have purchased thousands of Maine gems, designed and created many thousands of pieces of fine finished jewelry. Even today, we still acquire one or two dozen pink Maine tourmaline each year. We are ready to declare ourselves as the world’s leading authority on Maine tourmaline.
After this build up, we also occasionally acquire really nice tourmaline from other parts of the world. Having a sensitivity for awesome Maine color, when something extra special comes along in World tourmaline, we recognize it, and for six or eight pieces each year we jump at the opportunity to add to our collection of world gems.
When I saw this classic halo design it had a red gem, it looked like a ruby. It was actually a World tourmaline, most likely from Africa. Redder than any Maine tourmaline…great color…pure gem magic. It’s surrounded with a halo of diamonds. It has an articulated bail with a row of micro diamonds set in 14K yellow gold on an 18-inch chain.
Buy this, present it to your love and she will have a truly rare gem necklace. We’ve had nice pink and burgundy Maine tourmaline, nothing, though, as red as this world tourmaline.
The Cross Tourmaline Firewall. We sell Maine tourmaline exclusively, except when an exceptional World gem comes along. It may be a rare color, exceptional cutting, or a combination of the two. In either case, we clearly identify it’s non-Maine origin and document it on the tag, on the sales slip, and in its appraisal documentation. This is a 5mm round red tourmaline likely from Africa (not Maine).
