While both of them come with a sunshine sort of color to it, and are known to be November’s birthstone, they are quite different.
Read on to find out how both of these are alike, and yet so different in the grand scheme of things.
Citrine
This is a type of quartz and is taken directly from a French word called “citron” which means lemon. This is reflected in the gem’s color.
Most of the time, a natural color of citrine is very rare, and tends to be a palish yellow. But most citrine is a type of amethyst that has some kind of treatment of heat from this.
There are also some types of quartz that’s smoky to create this. you typically find these in Mexico, Brazil, Russia, Spain, Uruguay, Madagascar, and some locations within East Africa.
Yellow Topaz
Many people know yellow topaz because this is the birthstone for those in November.
It occurs in a wide different range of colors that are more than just a sunshiny yellow, but also blues and pinks. More natural topaz tends to be more colorless, or a yellow that’s palish with other colors being very rare within nature.
That means most of the topaz gems tend to have more heat treatment if they’re vibrant.
You can find these in Sri Lanka, the US, Russia, Brazil, Nigeria, and Madagascar.
What’s the Difference
So what’s the difference between citrine and yellow topaz.
Well, first is the color ranges. Citrine in general does have a range from a yellow that’s pale to an orange that’s light, or even a brown, and the most popular for them is called the madeira citrine.
Yellow topaz is much less varied, and they usually come in pale yellows, or even yellowish oranges.
The second difference is the most hardness. Citrine is about seven there, and on the flip side, yellow topaz is about eight.
While both of these are options and are good for jewelry pieces, the hardness does impact the resistance to scratching. However, while topaz does have a higher resistance to scratching, the material in that is also very apt to; cleave in some cases.
Some evidence from those that cut gems say that cleavage isn’t as much of a problem when you treat these gems and is also what creates a more affordable type of topaz. All of these gemstones need to be treated with the utmost of care, especially if they’re exposed a lot, or worn on the regular.
Citrine also tends to be more affordable for those who are curious, and that’s due to the fact of where it comes from. Amethyst is abundant, which means that citrine is easier to get. But it’s also easier to work with too. Topaz tends to be rarer, and holds a higher value, especially in shades that are deeper in color.
Finally, yellow topaz is a bit heavier. The weight is usually the measurement of the object’s density, rather than just the size of it physically.
That means, a yellow topaz that’s five characters will be smaller than a citrine gem that’s five carats. It’s far less dense, so you need to make sure that you make it bigger, as it will be able to handle a larger type of stone than a topaz.
Remember as well that quartz is one of the most abundant types of minerals out there. that means that in many cases, when it creates the right ions in order to form citrine, it tends to be easier to get.
These differences are important to understand, and you’ll be able to know the difference the moment you see it.