Chrysolite
CHRYSOLITE, CHRYSOLYTE krĭ’ sō līte, a transparent yellow or green gemstone (Rev 21:20). The term is derived from the Gr. meaning “golden stone” and has been applied to various yellowish gems, particularly topaz (q.v.) (cf. KJV and RSV Exod 28:17), yellowish varieties of beryl (q.v.) and chrysoberyl, a beryllium aluminum oxide of greenish to yellowish green color. Zircon (zirconium silicate), tourmaline (complex borosilicate of aluminum) and apatite (fluophosphate or chloro-phosphate of calcium), in their yellow-colored varieties, also have been referred to as chrysolite. The term is now used in mineralogy to refer to pale green olivine (magnesium iron silicate) which is found as prismatic crystals. Olivine is an essential mineral of ultrabasic igneous rocks (e.g. peridotite). It occurs in many basalts and gabbros and is formed by the metamorphism of impure dolomite.