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Abstract: Oxygen isotopic composition of emerald from 62 occurrences and deposits in the world reveals a wide range in δ18O (SMOW) between +6.2 and +24.7‰. The δ18O-values for each deposit are restricted and can be used to determine the origin of emerald from the world's most important producers. The δ18O-value of emerald appears to be a fingerprint of its origin, especially for gems of exceptional quality from Colombia (eastern emerald zone, δ18O = +16.8 ± 0.1‰; western emerald zone, δ18O = +21.2 ± 0.5‰), Afghanistan (δ18O = +13.5 ± 0.1‰), Pakistan (Swat-Mingora districts, δ18O = +15.7 ± 0.1‰), Brazil (Santa Terezinha de Goiás, δ18O = +12.2 ± 0.1‰; Quadrilatero Ferrifero, δ18O = +6.9 ± 0.4‰) and Zimbabwe (Sandawana, δ18O = +7.5 ± 0.5‰). Furthermore, the 18O-composition of emerald appears to be a good marker of its geological environment because the data suggest that host-rock-buffering of fluid δ18O is considerable during fluid-rock interaction.