“Forget the gold, forget the diamonds. The emerald is a romance that never ends. That emerald should reach in and just rip your heart out in your desire to possess it. It should be that beautiful. And that’s of course what Colombians call fiebre verde, green fever. The fire, the green fire in the emerald should really grab your heart.”
Manuel Marcial de Gomar as quoted in True The Magazine
Emeralds are amongst the rarest and most coveted gems on the planet! Their striking range of green hues and fire have captivated the hearts of mankind for millenia including one of mankinds most famous female leaders, Queen Cleopatra! The emerald has represented many things over time from fidelity to health, wealth and now hope and justice! Green is a color that goes with everything so from a fashion point it’s extremely versatile and is a must have in any wardrobe! Married with the sparkle and brilliance of diamonds and other gems, one can experience a real display of natures beauty in the form of wearable art. There is no doubt that this fabulous green gem has the ability to capture ones attention and heart in a powerful way. In the gem world this is called “catching green fever”.
The founder of Emeralds International, Manuel Marcial de Gomar, caught “green fever” at the young age of 19 when he broke open the outer layers of the earth and discovered his first emerald. Since then it has been a devoted love affair manifesting in a pioneering spirit of business and adventure beginning with the opening of the first all emerald store outside of Colombia in the 1960’s to his present day family run boutique in Key West a half century later, still specializing in these inspiring gems.
We asked Manuel to describe his first emerald recovery. Here is what he said:
“I had been searching for three months at a mine that the British had striven to find emeralds for many, many years, and they did not continue because the veins went down in to the Somondoco River. So, they abandoned the mine and I continued working it because I knew that I could find emeralds higher up, where they didn’t look. Again I looked for three months and didn’t find anything.
The Colombians have a saying that basically translates to “man proposes, but God disposes”. So I tried, you know, but nothing had happened for three months, and then one day torrential rain came down and uncovered some emerald veins. That’s how I found my first emerald, from the rains sent down from the skies. I saw this and I thought “wow this is amazing, here I’d been trying my darnedest for three months and not found anything, then all of a sudden one powerful rainfall uncovers emeralds.”
That day I found this rhombohedral shape rock and then I wrote the date on there to commemorate my first emerald find. I was with a friend of mine named Manuel “Mono” Posada and I have a picture of him and I, in my book, from my second emerald recovery.” (this picture is also seen at the top of this page).
Regarding his first emerald, Manuel said, “I still have it in my personal collection… that particular piece.” He then left the room, and returned with his first emerald matrix in hand. Although not the most impressive emerald he has recovered, this, quite understandably, is one of his most meaningful.
Even Superman wouldn’t resist this special green so why not “catch green fever” with one of our beautiful designs whether it’s a rough or cut emerald and discover why “The Emerald is a Romance That Never Ends!” ®
For more of Manuel’s stories you can follow along on this blog, or get yourself a copy of The Tears of Fura for much more detail on his life story. Buy on Amazon
