Larimar: A Caribbean Classic
Larimar is a gemstone that gives us the beautifully calming colors of the Caribbean Sea. Found only in the Dominican Republic, larimar is a piece of island paradise that is very rare, yet affordable. Since it was created from volcanic activities, it could be said that larimar is a blast from the past.
Larimar has only been found in one location in the world. The province of Barahona, which is in the mountainous southwest region of the Dominican Republic, has this as its claim to fame. In fact, larimar was actually discovered there twice. In 1916, Father Miguel Domingo Fuertes Loren found some blue rocks and asked the Dominican Republic’s Ministry of Mining if he could perform mining operations to search for more, but his request was dropped due to some sort of confusion.
In 1974, Miguel Mendez and Norman Rilling, a United States Peace Corps member, encountered more blue stones. Miguel named the stones larimar (a named he derived in honor of his daughter, Larissa, and the Spanish word “mar,” which means sea).
Larimar is a pectolite, which is a secondary rock formed from volcanic activities. Pectolite is found in numerous places, but blue pectolite has only been found in the Dominican Republic. Pectolites usually contain sodium and calcium, but the blue color is due to the cobalt content instead of calcium. The Bahoruco River washed some of the eroding volcanic stones downstream toward the Caribbean Sea. In doing so, the stones were being polished by nature. The stones Rilling and Mendez found had gone through this process. Currently, the only mine producing larimar is the Los Chupaderos Mine, which is located upstream.
Larimar has colors that are identical to the colors of the water found in the Caribbean Sea. Larimar can be a variety of blue colors, or green, with white patterns (all soothing, calming). Color and patterning are two of the main things taken into consideration when grading larimar. In terms of value, the darker, deeper blue (called volcanic blue) is considered best quality, while white is considered lower quality. Green colors fall in the middle of blue and white, and the stronger the green, the better its quality.
In addition to being known as blue pectolite, larimar has been called Atlantis stone. Many people hold the belief that the Dominican Republic is part of the vanished continent of Atlantis.
Larimar ranks about 5 on the Mohs scale of hardness, although some of the volcanic blue larimar stones are a little more durable. Most larimar is set into silver jewelry, although some of the better quality (volcanic blue) stones are sometimes found mounted in gold jewelry. When wearing or caring for your larimar jewelry, avoid situations where the stone could accidentally become scratched. Avoid coming into contact with household detergents, bleach, or chlorine. Use the same methods you would use when caring for pearls. A jewelry polishing cloth is advised.
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