About Square Topaz Gems
Topaz of any type is an important jewelry stone due to its
hardness (8 on the Mohs scale) and high refractive index.
Topaz comes in many colors, including clear, brown, yellow, orange, red, pink and blue.
Blue topaz, with a pale to medium blue color created by irradiation can be found in very large sizes at affordable prices. The fine golden-yellow variety, known as
imperial topaz, is relatively scarce.
The most common shapes for finished gemstones are round, oval, square, marquise, baguette, cushion, heart and etc. For square-shaped gemstones,
princess-cut gems are most popular, cut with a 1:1 length-to-width ratio. Square faceted gems may also be step-cut rather than brilliant-cut as seen in the princess-cut style.
Brilliant-cut gems are designed to bring out the brilliance in a gem, whereas step-cut gemstones establish more emphasis on bringing out the natural color of a gem. There are even several mixed cut-styles that feature an overall square shape, perhaps featuring facets on the pavilion combined with a smooth, domed crown. Examples of mixed-cut gemstone styles include
rose-cut gems, buff-top gems and
checkerboard-cut gems. Square shapes gems are also offered as square
cabochon gems. Square cabochons are usually domed, but unlike oval and round cabochons, square shapes often come to a crease due to the overall shape of the gem.