Scientists Discover “Caramel Sapphire,” A Gemstone Harder Than Diamond
Shefa YamimCarmeltazite, also known as a “caramel sapphire.”
In January of this year, the mining community and the public alike marveled at the discovery of a gemstone previously unknown on earth.
Discovered in northern Israel’s Zevulun Valley near Mt. Carmel, the gemstone was found inside sapphires, though deemed to be of a different composition. Even more shocking is that the gemstone was even harder than diamond.
Known as carmeltazite, the material is similar to rubies or sapphires but unlike any that exist on Earth – in fact, it has only been found previously in outer space.
Due to the fact that it exists only inside other gemstones, like rubies or sapphires, it had been one of earth’s best-kept secrets. This also had made it very hard to mine, leaving it undiscovered until now.
This also makes it incredibly expensive. Gems are priced based on their rarity, which is why large diamonds and other similar gems are so expensive. This means that, once it’s brought to market by mining companies, carmeltazite could be even more expensive than rare diamonds.
So far there hasn’t been enough of the stone mined to produce or sell, but the principal company behind the mining has hope that within a few years it will be a major competitor to diamonds.
