Topaz Clarity

How Clarity Affects the value of topaz
The Best topaz gemstones are perfeclty clear without any inclusions (internal impurities or cracks) whatsoever.  Fortunately, topaz of such clarity is relatively easy to find.  Topaz with less-than-perfect clarity tends to look milky or slightly opaque.  These topazes are usually cut en cabochon or made into beads.

blue topaz with poor clarity

small blue topaz cabochon

typical blue topaz

brown topaz with a nice cut

Terrible Clarity: These topaz beads are so heavily included, they are almost opaque.  (For this reason, they were made into beads rather than being faceted).  Since very clear peices of topaz are so available, there is no reason to buy peices of such poor clarity. Poor Clarity: The topaz in this ring is cut en cabochon – a cut only used for topaz with poor clarity.  The haziness inside this stone prevents it from sparkling as much as a clearer stone. Good Clarity:  This topaz is clear enough to be faceted.  However, the clarity is still not perfect: we can see small specs of inclusions in the insed of the stone. Perfect Clarity:  This topaz has perfect clarity.  It spakles uninhibitedly.  There are no visible inclusions or haziness.  Topaz of this clarity is available affordably ( under $100- depending on other factors.)