Sakura agate, better known as flower agate or cherry blossom agate, is a recent darling of the gem world, first appearing from Madagascar around 2018. It is a milky pink to peach chalcedony holding three-dimensional plume inclusions that look remarkably like tiny blossoms and seed heads suspended in the stone. The flowers are opaque chalcedony plumes that formed before the surrounding material sealed them in. Because the blooms sit at different depths, a good cutter can polish down to reveal whole gardens.
It wears like the chalcedony it is: 6.5 to 7 on the Mohs scale with good toughness, comfortable in everyday rings, pendants and beads. It is cut as cabochons, palm stones and freeforms, with the best pieces chosen for clear, well-placed blossoms. Every stone is a one-off bouquet. Care is simple, just warm, soapy water and a soft cloth. Its layered, in-the-stone flowers are hard to imitate, so the main thing to compare when buying is simply the charm of the pattern.
Moss and crazy lace agate are fellow patterned chalcedonies, while rose quartz shares a similar pink colour.
