Alexandrite is a mineral from the chrysoberyl (an aluminate of beryllium with the formula BeAl2O4) family that is featured by chromium. It changes its’ colour from dark turquoise, bright turquoise, dark grass green or olive green during the daylight; and to red glow, purplish red, or just purple during evening light or an artificial darkness.

At first, alexandrite was found in Ural Mountains in April of 1834, during the archeological searches for Emerald stone, which is as far as 56 km northeast of Yekaterinburg, Russia. The Discovery of the new mineral has coincided the celebration of achieving the age of majority of the future Tsar, Alexander II, in honor of which the stone has received its’ name.

For a very long time, the Russian alexandrite remained the only one in the world. Nowadays, alexandrite is being discovered in a few other countries. The Good stones are usually found in Africa – Tanzania or Zimbabwe, in South America – Brazil and in India. One of the biggest alexandrite, in weight of 187 carat, was found in Sri Lanka.

Despite the discoveries in the world, the Russian Alexandrite remains the most beautiful in the world. They are exclusively rare, very expensive and are extremely beautiful. Inserts of high cleanliness, lack of defect, the size of more than 3 carat are unique and thus with well shown Alexandrite effect – effect of bewitching change of painting at change of spectral structure of illumination. Therefore an actual value of this stone which takes a worthy place in classifications of jewelry – can exceed cost of a brilliant of the cleanest water of the same size. Cost of one carat (0,2 grams) alexandrite of the premium quality at times reaches 45 thousand dollars …

This stone now is very popular in representatives of world elite. It is enough to tell, that during since 60th years on end XX of a century, its cost in the world market grew approximately in 25 times.

In Russia, on "native land" of alexandrite as it is sad about it the glory as about the "widow" stone goes. An origin of this absurd superstition, which has arisen in the USSR in middle XX of a century, is not absolutely clear. That it actually means – not clearly and is not explained anywhere.

It is not necessary to forget only, that the belief concerned not about a natural stone which wasn’t on sale and the use during Soviet time, and to its imitation- cheap synthetic Vanadium featured corundum with the effect of Alexandrite, the faceted inserts from which in gold were then on counters almost at each jeweler shop. It is quite probable, that it has been thought up for increase in selling because corundum-alexandrite was recommended to be carried in pair with same pseudo "alexandrite", ostensibly son that  the "widow" stone did not show the negative properties.