Jewel from Iletsk salt

29.07.2021

In Sol-Iletsk, where one of the oldest rock salt deposits in Russia is located, halite, a natural crystalline mineral, is mined.

Iletsk salt, mined in modern times by the forces of the Russalt company, is not inferior in beauty and transparency to some types of gems. At one of the tourist forums in the capital, Elena Prodius, a master of the hospitality industry from Orenburg, suggested that the Moscow Association of Jewelers try to cut halite like a precious stone.

Elena delivered the crystals to jeweler-gemologist Alexander Leontiev.

Alexander noted that modern cutters and craftsmen of the past have never managed to cut halite. Moreover, large defect-free halite crystals are quite rare.

However, although not on the first try, his colleague, the outstanding Russian jeweler Igor Kolbas, still managed to cut a single crystal of halite, giving it the shape of a classic “baguette” with a step cut. Thus, the first diamond was created from salt weighing several carats.

However, halite cannot be used to make rings or pendants. They literally melt in the water. But not everything that a person does has a utilitarian meaning.

Faceted halite is a rare sample of crystals that can decorate any mineralogical collection🙌🏻

The jewelers gave the salt diamond as a gift to the director of the Russalt company, Sergei Vasilyevich Cherny. They preferred to keep the cutting technology a secret.

Residents of Orenburg once again made sure that our salt is a real treasure! Sol-Iletsk masters of salt cutting, having studied the information about the diamond, are ready to try to repeat the cutting of halite using their original technology.

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Драгоценность из илецкой соли