Milk and Honey from the Land of Shangri-La

April 23rd, 2011 by James L. Sweaney, CGA, FGA. GG
Chrysoberyl Cat's Eye in 18K gold

Chrysoberyl Cat's Eye in 18K gold

This beautiful 18K gold ring we had made in the high Himalaya Mountains of Nepal shows the true magic of the Cat's Eye gem. Cat's Eye is an optical phenomenon seen in many different gems, including emerald, aquamarine, and tourmaline, to name a few, but the classic Cat's Eye effect is best exhibited in the chrysoberyl, so that in the gem trade, when we use the term Cat's Eye by itself, we mean chrysoberyl.

Cat's Eye is a particular type of the optic effect known as chatoyance, where a bright luminous streak of reflected light appears down the center of a cabochon cut gem stone. Light entering the cabochon from a single light source is reflected off minute fibers or inclusions within the stone. The rounded lens-like shape of the cabochon gathers and focuses the light into a sharp line of light, as we see in the photo above.

The fibers within chryosberyl, so fine they are microscopic, run parallel to each other across the stone. They transmit light much like the fibers in the optic fiber glass used in telecommunications– in fact, if you cut a piece of optic fiber glass into a cabochon shape, you will see a perfect cat's eye!

Because the fibers in the gem carry the light from one side of the gem to the other, a good chrysoberyl Cat's Eye exhibits the classic effect called “milk and honey” where one side of the gem is lit up and the other is dark

Wunder Der Schwangerschaft (tm : Pregnancy Miracle(tm In German!

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Milk and Honey

Milk and Honey

This particular 1.33 ct. Cat's Eye, most likely from Brazil, has a perfect eye with strong milk and honey because the fibers within are very evenly distributed and are so fine that the gem has excellent transparency. The eye is so bright you can actually see it under the light of a bright moon! In addition to milk and honey, if you move the light source or rotate the gem 90 degrees, the cat's eye will actually open, like the eye of a cat dilates in low light.

The cat's eye is watching you!

The cat is watching you!

You can also position the gem and the light so that we have an open eye and milk and honey! What other gem can you actually play with?!

Open eye with milk and honey

Open eye with milk and honey

This ever-changing Cat's Eye will fascinate and intrigue you since it constantly reflects what is happening in your life. Sure to get notice and comment! Our stock # is I-20925, attractively priced at $1695.00– give us a call. Meow!

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