Larimar

Larimar is the tradename for a rare blue variety of the silicate mineral pectolite. It found only in Dominican Republic, around the city of Barahona. Its coloration varies from blue, green, purple, violet and indigo and it can come in many varieties and color mixes.

Larimar is a type of pectolite or a rock composed largely of pectolite, an acid silicate hydrate of calcium and sodium. Pectolite found in many locations, but larimar has a unique volcanic blue coloration, which is the result of copper substitution for calcium.

Larimar jewelry offered to the public in Dominican Republic, and elsewhere in the Caribbean as a local specialty. Quality grading is according to coloration and the typical mineral crystal configuration in the stone. It also comes in green and can have red spots, brown strikes, etc., due to the presence of other minerals or oxidation. The more intense the blue color and the contrast in the stone, the higher and rarer is the quality.