Colorado Mineral – Aquamarine    With the fine color of sky-blue to the softest of greens, aquamarine has been valued for centuries. Aquamarine is a variety of the mineral beryl; other varieties of beryl include emerald, morganite, which is a pale pink hue, and goshenite, which is completely clear. Aquamarine was valued greatly by the Egyptians, Sumerians, and Hebrews and was considered to be a lucky stone for anyone planning to take a voyage over water. The stone is also associated with the apostle Thomas and was even considered at one time to be an antidote for poison!    Colorado has one extremely famous locality for this beautiful gem – Mount Antero, near Buena Vista. The finest pieces from this area range from a pale sky blue to a deep ocean blue, although the darker specimens are often fractured. Claims and mines in this are among the highest in the world, at over 13,000 feet! While many climb to this area to look for this rare gem, Mount Antero is often a very treacherous site, with sudden storms and lightning. Even so, the beauty of the gems recovered from this area (and the incredible vistas offered by the mountain, which tops out at more than 14,000 feet) make seeing this mining area well worth the trip.    Be sure to see the beautiful specimens of this sea-colored mineral on show at Denver’s best bead and mineral shop, Desert Gems!