Zircon crystals are almost indestructible; some still around today are nearly 4.4 billion years old. They're like tiny time capsules that retain the chemical fingerprints of this extremely early time.
Zircon is the oldest mineral on Earth, dating back more than 4.4 billion years. Found in the Earth's crust, it's common in most sand and sedimentary deposits, as well as metamorphic rocks and crystallized magma.
This tiny piece of early Earth, a piece of the mineral zircon, dates to 4.374 billion years ago. In the scheme of cosmic time, that's not so long after the planet was born, roughly 4.56 billion years ago. This piece comes from the Jack Hills, an inland range north of Perth, in western Australia.
Part of Hall of Planet Earth. This quartz pebble conglomerate formed three billion years ago, but the zircon crystals in it are up to 4.276 billion years old, making them the oldest dated material on Earth.
By determining the amount and isotopes of uranium and lead in a zircon crystal, U-Pb dating can determine the age of the crystal. Highly sensitive ion probes can be used to obtain U- Pb ratios (and dates) from many areas within one crystal, as shown in Figure 1.
The Jack Hills are a range of hills in Mid West Western Australia. They are best known as the source of the oldest material of terrestrial origin found to date: Hadean zircons that formed around 4.404 billion years ago. These zircons have enabled deeper research into the conditions on Earth in the Hadean eon.
Zircon has a broad range of prices. It can be bought for as little as $30 per carat, with the rarest pieces fetching over $3,000 per carat. Like all gemstones, Zircon's value is dependent on the cut, clarity, color, and carat (size) of the stone.
Musgravite was first discovered in Musgrave Ranges, Australia, and later found in Madagascar and Greenland. Musgravite is a member of the taaffeite family of minerals and the separation between the two is based on magnesium content. What makes it so rare? Musgravite is considered the rarest crystal in the world.
Taaffeite: is considered the rarest crystal in the world because there are only around 50 known samples of this rare gemstone.
Zircon crystals are almost indestructible; some still around today are nearly 4.4 billion years old. They're like tiny time capsules that retain the chemical fingerprints of this extremely early time.
The major source of Australian gem quality zircons is alluvial deposits from alkaline basalts in Tasmania, New South Wales and Queensland. The most well-known fossicking location for gem-quality zircon is the Mud Tank field in the Strangways, Northern Territory.
Green is the rarest natural color. To learn more about zircon quality factors, consult our zircon buying guide.
Australia has some of the oldest geological features in the world with the oldest known rocks dating from more than 3000 million years ago and rare zircon crystals dating back 4400 million years located in much younger rocks.
Fun Facts About Zircon
Zircon is the oldest known mineral on Earth. Zircons can be found in multiple colors, from blue and pink to yellow or colorless versions. Blue zircon is typically the choice for a December birthstone.
Zircons often contain rare earth elements and may be metamict (amorphous). Yttria, which is commonly present, is related to the isostructural nature of xenotime (YPO4) to zircon. Some metamict zircons are mixtures of silica, cubic ZrO2, and baddeleyite (monoclinic ZrO2).
Naturally occurring radioactive material (NORM)
Therefore, zircon is radioactive; however, radiation levels from zircon are low, similar to that of other naturally-occurring sources such as granite (often used for worktops) and are not significantly greater than background levels normally found in the environment.
The Least Common Birthstone in Every State
February babies have the rarest birthstone of all. Diamond (April) is the rarest birthstone in a total of six states, while topaz (November) is the rarest birthstone in Montana, Wyoming, and Rhode Island.
Tanzanite is a shocking 1000 times more rare than a diamond. Discovered for the first time in 1967 and only found in the foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro, these gemstones go for about $1,500 per carat. Tanzanite has the ability to change color depending on the angle of light it is in.
But lonsdaleite, also called hexagonal diamond, since it's made of carbon and is similar to diamond, is believed to be even stronger. In a hexagonal crystal structure, each carbon atom can form six bonds with its neighbors - in theory.
Gem-quality rubies are significantly rarer than diamonds, though there are certain types of diamonds that are very rare too. If we weigh the most spectacular examples of rubies and diamonds against one another, diamonds that show color are even rarer.
Gem Black, Boulder, Crystal and White Opals are the world's #1 most valuable commercially available gemstone, yet they are complex with an exponentially large range of valuation characteristics than Diamonds, Rubies, Emeralds, Sapphires or Tanzanites. is actually 5000 times rarer than diamond.
When it comes to rare and expensive gemstones, most of us immediately think of diamonds, but, in fact, emeralds are more than 20 times rarer than diamonds and, therefore, often command a higher price.
Cubic zirconia itself won't tarnish or rust. However, a low-quality setting could potentially tarnish or rust. Low-quality metals are frequently used in cubic zirconia jewelry. Metals that tarnish or rust include copper, silver, bronze, and brass.
The microscopic zircon crystal used by Prof Valley in this study is now confirmed to be the oldest known material of any kind formed on Earth. A timeline of the history of our planet places the formation of the Jack Hills zircon and a “cool early Earth” at 4.4 billion years.
Blue zircon is called Starlite and was one of the most popular varieties of zircon during Victorian times. It is called Starlite because of its fiery nature.