HIDDENITE, N.C. — There is only one place in the world where the rare emerald-green hiddenite gem can be found, and it's about an hour north of Charlotte, North Carolina.
Hiddenite, North Carolina, with a population of a few hundred, is located in Alexander County. It's home to the fourth rarest gemstone in the world: Hiddenite. The hiddenite variety of spodumene was first discovered around 1879 near the White Plains settlement.
It was named hiddenite in honor of geologist William Earl Hidden who had been charged by Thomas Edison to find platinum in North Carolina to help make his light bulb invention last longer. He didn't find platinum, but he did find hiddenite.
The town was named after the gem, too.
“The whole time you’re here, you’re kinda immersed in this rock-hound lifestyle of, what’s underneath the next foot of soil," Drew Ervin, who is a gemcutter and jeweler with Emerald Hollow Mine, said.
For those who want to try to be a rock hound, the 120-acre Emerald Hollow Mine is open seven days a week from 8:30 a.m. until 6:30 p.m., weather permitting. It's the only emerald mine in the world that's open to the public. People who go sluicing, digging or creeking there can encounter more than hiddenite, including gems like emeralds, aquamarines, sapphires, garnets, topazes, amethysts, citrines, rutiles and tourmalines. Prices vary depending on the activity chosen.
Hiddenite has reportedly been found in other countries like Brazil and Madagascar, but local experts will specify that the kind found within a four-mile radius of Hiddenite is considered the true hiddenite because it's the only spodumene colored with chromium. It is the only precious gemstone that cannot be synthesized or recreated by man, according to geologists.