According to a popular but controversial story, alexandrite was discovered by the Finnish mineralogist Nils Gustaf Nordenskiöld (1792–1866), and named alexandrite in honor of the future Tsar Alexander II of Russia.
A study conducted in 2000 at the ASVAK Laser Center in Ankara, Turkey comparing alexandrite laser and electrolysis for hair removal on 12 patients concluded that laser hair removal was 60 times faster, less painful and more reliable than electrolysis.