What the Heck is a Herkimer Diamond?
Ok, so the first thing I'm going to tell you, is that Herkimer Diamonds are - SUPRISE - not actually diamonds! They are a type of crystal quartz. I know most of you are familiar with quartz - if not you should check out a previous Vannucci blog post about crystals and their (possible??) healing properties.
The thing that makes these crystal quartz nuggets so popular and unique is that they are double terminated. Usually, crystals grow over the course of millions of years from a rock matrix - as in, they are growing OUT of the rock. This means one side of the quartz is always flat-ish, since that's the end that is attached to the other geological elements in the area. Herkimer diamonds are formed in pockets of gas and air that were released by decomposing matter millions of years ago. This means they can form two terminated ends!
Herkimer diamonds also seem to have exceptional clarity. However, just like their name, this is misleading. They actually just SEEM to have more clarity because of their 18+ sides. This results in a natural brilliance and sparkle that one might find in cut diamonds at a jewelry store. Even when they have inclusions, they are more often than not intricate little black dots or rutilations that can give even more interest to the gemstone.
I personally discovered Herkimers for myself just a few short years ago, and have been dying to put together a collection using them. They're so special, and even though they can be found in many places across the world, most are found in Herkimer, NY - and that's where you get the name! In fact, as a regular ol' human, you can go to Herkimer, NY and mine these little treasures for yourself for a small fee (NOTE: mines are opening back up June 26th after covid closures). I hope to visit this August to mine the next batch of gemstones used in the Herkimer Diamond Collection - which is launching this Monday, June 29th! I hope you enjoy adorning yourself in these double terminated beauties as much as I enjoyed creating with them.
