In 1703, a package of tourmaline labeled 'turmali' from Sri Lanka was sent by mistake to a stone dealer in Amsterdam.   Bright rainbow collections of gemstone varieties were called turmali parcels.   The name tourmaline  is said to have originated from this Sinhalese term which means 'mixed'.   Many of the stones in the Russian Crown jewels from the 17th century first thought to be rubies were actually red tourmalines.

The Dutch noticed that the stones attracted ashes and straw when heated, and named the stones 'aschenstrekkers' which means 'ash drawers'.  They used this unique property to clean their pipes.

It is estimated that tourmaline has been used as gem material for over 2000 years.  The Chinese have long valued this beautiful gem.  They have carved tourmaline ornaments for girdles, headdresses, badges, and buttons.  The last Empress of China, Tz'u Hsi, loved pink tourmaline and bought a ton of it from the new Himalaya Mine in California.  She is said to have had a tourmaline pillow carved from a huge crystal from that location for her head to rest in eternity upon her passing.

Nearly every color of the rainbow has been found in tourmaline.  Most cherished for jewelry has been the pink and green tourmalines as well as the rarer blue tourmaline.  Tourmaline is found in Brazil, Tanzania, Kenya, Madagascar, Mozambique, Namibia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, California, and Maine.