绿柱石六方柱状晶体（Berylloid beryl）
产地：新疆富蕴
特征：
绿柱石，化学式为Be3Al2(SiO3)6，其中含有氧化铍（BeO）14.1%，氧化铝（Al2O3）19%，氧化硅（SiO2）66.9%。六方晶系，晶体呈六方柱形，柱面有纵纹，晶体可能非常小，但也可能长达几米。硬度为7.5-8，比重为2.63-2.80。纯净的绿柱石是无色的，甚至可以是透明的。但大部分为绿色，也有浅蓝色、黄色、白色和玫瑰色的，有玻璃光泽。
绿柱石是铍-铝硅酸盐矿物。它的几个变种颜色不一，有淡蓝色的（叫海蓝宝石），有深绿色的（叫祖母绿），有金黄色的（叫金色绿柱石），有粉红色的（叫铯绿柱石）等等，其中浅蓝绿色的最为常见。绿柱石一般为六方柱形晶体，呈现的颜色一般多为各种颜色或组合色。
至今的研究发现，多数绿柱石是产于岩枝状的花岗岩中，这种岩枝状岩体是岩浆活动晚期的气液充填围岩的裂隙形成的，由于有充分的结晶时间因而结晶单晶体都很大，地质上称它们为伟晶岩，这意味着在其中的矿物晶体都具有很大的尺寸。
Berylloid beryl
Provenance: Fuyun, Xinjiang, China
Characteristics:
Berald is green beryl, colored by trace amounts of chromium and sometimes vanadium. Emeralds in antiquity were mined by the Egyptians and in Austria, as well as Swat in northern Pakistan. A rare type of emerald known as a trapiche emerald is occasionally found in the mines of Colombia. A trapiche emerald exhibits a star pattern; it has raylike spokes of dark carbon impurities that give the emerald a six-pointed radial pattern. It is named for the trapiche, a grinding wheel used to process sugarcane in the region. Colombian emeralds are generally the most prized due to their transparency and fire. Some of the rarest emeralds come from three main emerald mining areas in Colombia: Muzo, Coscuez, and Chivor. Fine emeralds are also found in other countries, such as Zambia, Brazil, Zimbabwe, Madagascar, Pakistan, India, Afghanistan and Russia. In the US, emeralds can be found in Hiddenite, North Carolina. In 1998, emeralds were discovered in the Yukon. Merald is a rare and valuable gemstone and, as such, it has provided the incentive for developing synthetic emeralds.