Blue is the Warmest Colour: Tanzanite Cape Town

If you’re looking to buy Tanzanite in Cape Town, then you should be paying attention to colour of the stone.  Tanzanite is unique in that it has the ability to show three colours within a single raw stone: blue, violet and red. This is due to the fact that, because of the stone’s crystalline structure, light passing through the stone gets refracted at different speeds. The human eye perceives these different refractions of light as different colours.

Once heated, however, two colours show in the stone:

Violet and Blue

Tanzanite stones are usually classified as either violet-dominant or blue-dominant. This classification system uses a capital letter for the dominant colour; vB for blue-dominant stones and bV for violet-dominant stones.

We are privileged to be able to source some of the highest quality Tanzanite available in Cape Town. The colour is largely determined by how the stone has been cut and polished and greatly affects the value of the stone. Very dark blue stones are often considered more valuable because of their intense colour and rarity. These are often thought of as the best Tanzanite investment option as they’re more likely to deliver a higher return and are often used as an alternative to the more expensive blue sapphire.

Personal preference also plays a big part in choosing the right stone and many people prefer the unique violet-dominated stones.

Depth of Colour

The depth of the colour of a Tanzanite stone is rated by its intensity and ranges from AAA+ (very intense) to A (faint). The depth of colour largely determines how valuable a stone will be, and buyers look for stones that have an intense colour that fills the entire stone.

Size and Colour

Larger Tanzanite stones display a richer and more intense colour because the distance that light has to travel through the stone influences its perceived colour. This combined with the carat size increases the value of the stone.

If you’re looking for a special piece of Tanzanite then browse our Tanzanite collection for inspiration and then book an appointment to learn more about these incredible stones and view our exquisite in-house Tanzanite jewellery collection.