The Value of Green

A tsavorite chunk

How a sought-after stone can mean life or death

 

Have you ever thought about the struggle to secure a gemstone that is wanted by others for themselves? Well the story of Dr. Campbell R. Bridges clearly shows just how dangerous controlling the production of a hot new gemstone can be when he discovered a new color of garnet, the tsavorite, that exhibits a vivid intense green.

Dr. Campbell Bridges with his find

Dr. Bridges discovered the first clumps of these rocks in 1967 in northeast Tanzania, reports the International Colored Gemstone Association (ICA). At first the stone was identified as green grossularite, a mineral part of the garnet family. However, the exceptional green color and transparency convinced Bridges that this was not grossularite. He attempted to bring the gemstones to the stone market, but the Tanzanian government would not give them the necessary mining permits.

Dr. Bridges' tree house

That did not stop Bridges though and he came up with a new strategy. He figured that the stone deposit stemmed from a larger formation that extended across the Tanzanian border. And he was correct. Bridges went to neighboring Kenya and rediscovered the bright green gem in 1971. The Kenyan government allowed the mining and selling of the gems, putting Bridges at the helm of the expedition.

Tiffany tsavorite earrings

A few years later in 1974, the legendary Tiffany and Co. set their sights on the new stone and launched a massive advertising campaign to promote it. It was Sir Henry Platt, president of Tiffany and Co. at the time, that named the mineral "tsavorite" after Tsavo National Park in Kenya.

Only also found in a small southern province of Madagascar, the tsavroite's rarity also increased its popularity. And with this new-found desire to acquire it came with its dangers.The Kenyan mining operation was constantly under threat from thieves and wild animals. Dr. Bridges lived in a tree house to protect himself from the predators of the jungle and even set a massive python to watch over the gemstones at night.

Even with all his precautions, one fateful day in 2009 a mob of 20 men armed with arrows, spears and machetes attacked the gemologist on his mining grounds. He died from his injuries upon arriving at the hospital. The attack was believed to be connected to a three-year dispute over control of the tsavorite mines as well as frequent death threats against Bridges. Kenya's Department of Mines and Geology took over the expedition soon after. The bloody struggle over this valuable gem gives new meaning to the saying "It's not easy being green."

A cut and polished tsavorite