Aquamarine is appreciated for clarity and calm blue colour more than spectacle. Well-cut stones often look almost water-clear at first glance, with the blue becoming more apparent as light travels through the body of the gem.

The character of Larimar comes through in its aqua, blue, cyan / blue-green, green, and brown colour and the way that colour interacts with a silicate structure. That combination of aqua body colour, 6.5 Mohs hardness, and vitreous lustre is what usually makes it recognisable in practice. The secondary blue note often matters more than people expect when separating it from lookalikes.

Paraiba Tourmaline profile is under factual gemological review. Properties shown here are provisional unless marked as verified.