Ametrine is a mixt of amethyst (purple) and citrine (yellow) that is only found in eastern Bolivia, in the center of the tropical forest of Chaco, situated 30 km from Brazil, in the province of Santa Cruz, in one mine: Anahi
. From Puerto Suarez in Amazonia, it takes one day and one night boat trip to get to the Ametrine mine.
Because of its rarity, the Bolivians proudly name it "Bolivianite".
Legend has it that on her deathbed, Princess Anai offered this fascinating gemstone to her husband as proof of her eternal love.
Mining was clandestine and anarchic during the 70’s through the 90’s. Since then, the new owner has reorganized the mining operations. Now, the miners work for 35 consecutive days, cut off from the rest of the world, and then have 15 days off. They are paid based on the weight of ametrine that is extracted. But once cut, only 1% of the gem rough will yield high quality ametrine stones.
To learn more about the mineralogy of the ametrine, visit mindat.org.
