5 Gems That Make Diamonds Look Average

Diamonds have long been celebrated as a 'girl's best friend' and the ultimate gemstone. But what may come as a surprise is that these sparkling stones are not that rare and often not that expensive compared to other precious jewels.

According to TrueFacet, one of the top online marketplaces for jewels, diamonds are among the most common gemstones.

Many assume diamonds are a rarity, perhaps because they were up until the mid-1800s when diamonds were unearthed in Kimberly, South Africa. In 1888, De Beers Consolidated Mines LTD was formed, creating a monopoly on all production and distribution of diamonds. This flood of new diamonds threatened to bring down their value which is why De Beers swooped in to stockpile the diamonds and limit supply, thereby driving up demand and costs.

While white diamonds are relatively abundant, some diamonds are indeed very rare such as the coveted blue diamond, worth a reported US$3.93 million per carat or the pink diamond worth US$1.19 million per carat, according to Astteria, a luxury diamond manufacturer.

But if the classic diamond isn't that special, it leaves us wondering: What is? Unbeknownst to us, there is a dazzling assortment of stones far rarer than diamonds—half of which you have probably never heard of before.

We went down the rocky rabbit hole to discover just which of these jewels are the rarest and most valuable.

What Gems Are More Expensive Than Diamonds?

Jadeite

Jadeite most commonly appears in shades of green but is also found in hues of red, lavender, yellow and black. Though rare, these stones also have particular significance within Chinese, Maori and Meso-American cultures and are thus even more sought-after. This dense green gem is reported to be worth up to USD $3 million per carat, according to Astteria.

Painite

This scarce gem was discovered by British mineralogist and gem dealer Arthur C.D Pain in the 1950s. The deep orange-red stone was found in Myanmar and originally misidentified as a ruby. Red-hued painite is particularly rare and is thus worth a whopping US$50,000 - $60,000 per carat.

Musgravite

Musgravite, named after the Musgrave Range in South Australia, was first discovered in 1967. The olive-grey stone has since been found in other locations such as Greenland, Antarctica, Sri Lanka and Madagascar but is still especially scarce, and worth up to US $35,000 per carat.

Alexandrite

Alexandrite is incredibly unique with its chameleon-like properties, appearing as a dazzling peacock blue-to-green in daylight and ruby-red-to-purple in incandescent light. The stone was first discovered in Russia's Ural Mountains in 1830 and named after Tzar Alexander II. New deposits have since been found around the world, but the sparkling stone is still rare and worth upward of $12,000 per carat.

Red Beryl

This rare red gem, sometimes referred to as red emerald or Bixbite, can be found around Utah, New Mexico and Northern Mexico. But the greatest concentration of gem-grade red beryl is located in the Wah Wah Mountains of Utah and worth upwards of US $10,000 per carat.