Anyolite
Encyclopedia
Although anyolite is advertised as a variety of the mineral
zoisite
from Kenya
and Tanzania
, anyolite is actually a metamorphic rock
composed of intergrown green zoisite, black tschermakite
, and ruby
. It is said to be named after the Maasai
word anyoli, meaning "green." Anyolite is also referred to as ruby in zoisite or Tanganyika artstone.
The contrasting colours make anyolite a popular material for sculptures and other decorative objects. It was first discovered at the Mundarara Mine, near Longido
, Tanzania in 1954.
In 2010 it was suggested that a 2 kilogram stone known as the Gem of Tanzania owned by the defunct company Wrekin Construction and fraudulently valued at £11 million was actually a lump of Anyolite worth about £100, although it was eventually sold for £8000.
Mineral
A mineral is a naturally occurring solid chemical substance formed through biogeochemical processes, having characteristic chemical composition, highly ordered atomic structure, and specific physical properties. By comparison, a rock is an aggregate of minerals and/or mineraloids and does not...
zoisite
Zoisite
Zoisite is a calcium aluminium hydroxy sorosilicate belonging to the epidote group of minerals. Its chemical formula is Ca2Al3O...
from Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
and Tanzania
Tanzania
The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...
, anyolite is actually a metamorphic rock
Metamorphic rock
Metamorphic rock is the transformation of an existing rock type, the protolith, in a process called metamorphism, which means "change in form". The protolith is subjected to heat and pressure causing profound physical and/or chemical change...
composed of intergrown green zoisite, black tschermakite
Tschermakite
The endmember hornblende tschermakite is a calcium rich monoclinic amphibole mineral. It is frequently synthesized along with its ternary solid solution series members tremolite and cummingtonite so that the thermodynamic properties of its assemblage can be applied to solving other solid solution...
, and ruby
Ruby
A ruby is a pink to blood-red colored gemstone, a variety of the mineral corundum . The red color is caused mainly by the presence of the element chromium. Its name comes from ruber, Latin for red. Other varieties of gem-quality corundum are called sapphires...
. It is said to be named after the Maasai
Maasai language
The Maasai language is an Eastern Nilotic language spoken in Southern Kenya and Northern Tanzania by the Maasai people, numbering about 800,000...
word anyoli, meaning "green." Anyolite is also referred to as ruby in zoisite or Tanganyika artstone.
The contrasting colours make anyolite a popular material for sculptures and other decorative objects. It was first discovered at the Mundarara Mine, near Longido
Longido
Longido is a small village north of Arusha in Tanzania and south of the town of Namanga, on the Kenya-Tanzania border. It is primarily Maasai but includes other East African tribes as well....
, Tanzania in 1954.
In 2010 it was suggested that a 2 kilogram stone known as the Gem of Tanzania owned by the defunct company Wrekin Construction and fraudulently valued at £11 million was actually a lump of Anyolite worth about £100, although it was eventually sold for £8000.