Okay, meet red beryl. It’s also called “bixbite,” but don’t call it that unless you want to sound like a geologist at a party. This stone is so rare that for every one red beryl found, about 150,000 diamonds are unearthed. One to 150,000. Do the math. It hurts.
Where does it come from? Mostly a single mountain range in Utah. Yes, Utah. It forms in rhyolite, which sounds like a dinosaur name but is just volcanic rock. The color? A deep, juicy raspberry red. It glows like a stoplight for your wallet.
A single carat of top-quality red beryl can cost you $10,000 to $15,000. Per carat. That’s ten times more than a good diamond. And good luck finding one bigger than a pea. Most are tiny, like, “hope you have tweezers” tiny.
But Wait—There’s Something Even Crazier
What about taaffeite? Oh, you haven’t heard of it? That’s the point. This stone was discovered by accident in 1945. A jeweler named Taaffe bought a box of spinels (common stones) and found one that looked weird. It was doubly refractive—fancy talk for “it bends light differently.” No one knew what it was.
Taaffeite is so rare that most gemologists have never held one. It comes in pale mauve, lavender, or pink. A one-carat taaffeite can fetch $2,000 to $4,000. But here’s the kicker: a flawless, large taaffeite (like two carats) is virtually priceless. We’re talking $15,000 per carat or more, if you can even find a seller.
It’s like the unicorn of gemstones. You can’t just go buy one. You have to know a guy. And even that guy probably doesn’t have one.
12 Most Expensive Gemstones In The World
