Peridot was mined in Egypt for over 3500 years then forgotten and only rediscovered in around 1900. The name derives from the Arabic faridat which means gem. Now many depsoits of this gem are found worldwide with some of the best still coming from the mountains in Pakistan but here it is only mined for a few months a year due to the harsh weather conditions. Peridot was brought to europe by the crusaders in the middle ages. There are some cut Peridot which came out of a meterorite that fell to earth in eastern sibera in 1749. It has a mohls hardness scale of 6.5-7 and a refractive index of 1.650-1.703. Although Peridot in the past was found in large sizes it is now becoming rarer to find peices over 10 carats