I was having a look through the 1925 Fersman catalogue of the Russian Imperial jewels that was put together before they were sold.
You can download this document here
https://archive.org/details/RussiasTreasureOfDiamondsAndPreciousStones
and the 1927 sale catalogue here
https://archive.org/details/ChristiesJewels00n
On page 18 Fersman points out:
"Also missing our iridescent emeralds and the celebrated alexandrites once so abundant in the imperial caskets. No explanation of this loss has ever been given.."
"Many of us remember the fatal year of 1906 when the Section of TT. II. MM Household offered for sale a great quantity of very ancient gems, property of the tsarita. Bought by foreign lapidaries, a portion of the lot easily fetched over one million roubles gold and if truth be known the stones thus disposed of, were unique specimens unique, large emeralds and all Catherine II famous amethysts (not mentioning a series of minor historic jewels".
In the 19th century Siberian Amethysts and Alexandrites were highly sought after jewels. The best amethysts were a deep purple with a red flash in their depths while natural alexandrites have never been abundant stones.
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