This stone is often compared to an emerald, and though it looks very similar to the precious mineral, its value is hundreds of times less. Even though you can see a star inside of it.
The name diopside has Greek roots. In translation, the name of this stone means "two-faced," and this is no coincidence. The mineral has a wide palette of colors and shades, so it is easy to mix it up with other gems.
Not without reason, chromediopsid, a rich green variety of the stone, is even called the Yakut emerald. This is the most inexpensive natural jewelry stone of such appearance. Compared with other minerals with the same look as an emerald, chromediopsid stands out for its rich, saturated coloring, play of light, and, most importantly, its affordable price.
It was especially popular back in the Soviet period, when the large Inaglinsky deposit was discovered in the south of Yakutia. The stone was in wide demand not only in the domestic, but also in foreign markets. Such a wide distribution played a cruel joke with the mineral. The mining of this rare gemstone increased many times in its pursuit. By the beginning of the XXI century, the amount of deposits sharply declined.
Today, Russia still has the largest reserves of the mineral, and the richest deposit is still Inaglinskoye, located high in the mountains. Although less than 15% of chromediopsides suitable for further processing are obtained from the mined material.
Since snow falls early and melts late in the area, stone is mined only during the warm season. That is why mines are idle for almost half a year. The work is complicated by impassable roads and the constant freezing of the territory. But there are no plans to stop the mining, because no alternative sources of chromediopside of the same quality have been found yet.
Besides green, diopside can also be colorless, yellow, white, pink, purple, blue, brown and even black.
This last variety of mineral is considered very rare and is mined only in the south of India. The main feature of this type of stone is the silvery-white star with four rays, which appears on the surface of the gem. This unusual optical effect is called an asterism. To get it, you need to direct a point source of light at the convex polished mineral. Interestingly, when you move it, the image also changes its location. As a result, the effect of a star shimmering from within is created.
In the East, since ancient times, it was believed that the black diopside has magical powers and can protect from all kinds of trouble. The ancient beliefs say that the stone contains the power of the sleeping dragon. If you spill a drop of blood on it, the spirit of the beast will wake up and give the wearer courage and longevity.
Scientists explain the properties of asterism by the presence of rutile micro-crystals of the mineral inside the diopside in the form of thin needles, which form a star-shaped cluster. It is noteworthy that the different inclusions change the effects present in the mineral. For example, the tube-shaped formations in diopside give the illusion of a cat's eye pattern on the surface of the stone.
In addition to starry diopside, collectors value highly specimens with several colors, smoothly merging into one another. Among the other forms or crystals that have been fused with other rocks, they are of curious interest. In the big mineralogical museums of the world one can find diopside stones weighing several dozens of carats, which are regarded as big stones in the jewelry business. For example, there is a 133-carat black Indian stone in the Smithsonian Institution, and a 38-carat green diopside in the American Museum of Natural History.
Due to its softness, diopside is easy to work with. That is why it is used for different souvenirs and interior details. For the same reason, the jewelry made of the mineral is easy to damage. Jewelers advise to keep articles containing the stone in a separate box and to wrap them in a soft cloth.
