Kämmererite Value, Price, and Jewelry Information

Comments

A chromium-bearing (Cr) variety of clinochlore, kämmererite shows red to purplish red colors. All clinochlores belong to the chlorite group. Of these minerals, faceters have only rarely cut kämmererites and sheridanites as gemstones.

However, cutting kämmererites isn't easy, because this material is micaceous. It will easily separate into thin sheets or layers known as laminae, which actually have a flexible tenacity. Kämmererites also have perfect basal cleavage, so they have a tendency to split when struck. Adventurous faceters would have to handle these stones with great care.

Gemstone aficionados would have to be even more adventurous to wear finished kämmererites as jewelry stones. They have a hardness of just 2 to 2.5. If you wore a kämmererite ring, a copper coin in a pocket or purse would scratch the gem. A more pervasive hazard, household dust (with a hardness of 7) would scratch it even more easily.

In mineralogical references, you may find these stones referred to as chromium-bearing clinochlores rather than kämmererites. Nevertheless, "kämmererite" is an accepted name.

Identifying Characteristics

Kämmererites have a low birefringence (0.003), and faceted specimens may have a very poor polish due to their low hardness. As a result, some faceted specimens may appear to be singly refractive when examined with a refractometer. Use a polariscope or dichroscope to confirm if such a stone is actually doubly refractive.

Synthetics

No known synthetics or enhancements.

Sources

Turkey is the main source of facetable material. The province of Erzurum produces distinct crystals.

India has produced some material that has been cut into cabochons.

Other notable sources include the following:

• Russia: Lake Itkul, near Miask.
• United States: California; Pennsylvania; Texas.

Stone Sizes

Facetable material is quite rare and always small. Minute gems, 1-2 carats, have been cut from Turkish material.

Care

You're more likely to find kämmererites in a mineral collection than a jewelry collection. Have a jeweler mount them in protective settings and reserve any jewelry pieces featuring these gems for occasional wear. Store them separately from other harder jewelry stones to prevent contact scratches.

Clean kämmererites only with a soft brush, mild detergent, and warm water. Consult our gemstone jewelry cleaning guide for more recommendations.