You've seen them. Those tiny, floating pink gems inside gold boxes that look like they belong on a velvet pillow in some fancy Riften manor. The first time you pick one up, the game hits you with "Unusual Gem." It seems harmless. Then you talk to Vex in the Thieves Guild and realize you've just signed up for the most notorious scavenger hunt in gaming history. Finding every location of stones of barenziah is less of a quest and more of a test of your actual sanity.
Most people quit. They find twelve, realize they have no idea which ones they've missed, and just let the gems rot in their inventory. It's a weightless item, sure, but it weighs on your mind. You want that Prowler’s Profit perk. You want to open a random urn in a Nordic ruin and find three flawless diamonds. But to get there, you have to scour the entire map of Skyrim, from the frozen shores of Winterhold to the deepest pits of the Reach.
Why the Hunt is Actually Broken (and How to Fix It)
The biggest problem with the location of stones of barenziah isn't that they are hidden; it's that the game doesn't track them. At all. If you find one in Dragonsreach and then forget you found it three months later, you’ll spend two hours backtracking for nothing.
Honestly? Use a checklist. A physical one. Or a mod if you’re on PC or Xbox. Bethesda designed this quest to be a "slow burn" discovery, but in practice, it’s a logistical nightmare. If you’re playing vanilla, you have to be methodical. There are 24 in total. Miss one? You’re starting over.
The Ones You Probably Missed Already
Some of these are tucked away in places you only visit once for a specific quest. If you didn't grab them then, you might be locked out or have to fight your way back through a cleared dungeon.
Take the one in Thalmor Embassy. In the original release, if you didn't grab the stone during "Diplomatic Immunity," you were basically screwed. Bethesda eventually patched this, moving the stone to Reeking Cave nearby, but it still trips people up. Then there's the one in Proudspire Manor. You can't just break in and take it. You have to buy the house. That’s 25,000 gold just to pick up a quest item. It's steep. It's annoying. It's Skyrim.
Mapping Out the Major Cities
Every major hold has at least one. Some have several. You’d think the Jarls would notice a floating, glowing gem sitting on their nightstand, but apparently, the security in Skyrim is as bad as the guards’ knee joints.
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In Whiterun, you’ve got two. One is in the Hall of the Dead, tucked away in the catacombs. It’s easy to miss because, let's be real, who goes in there unless they’re doing the Arkay quest? The second is in Dragonsreach, specifically in the Jarl’s bedroom. Just walk in like you own the place.
Solitude is a goldmine for these things. Beyond the expensive one in Proudspire Manor, there's another in the Blue Palace. Look on the bedside table in the Jarl’s quarters.
Windhelm hides one in the House of Curiosities (Calixto’s place) and another in the Palace of the Kings.
Markarth is arguably the worst. You have to go into the Treasury House—which is fine—but the other is in the Dwemer Museum. If you haven't done the quest for Calcelmo, you’re trespassing.
Riften is surprisingly light on them, considering it’s the home of the Thieves Guild. Check Mistveil Keep. Check the Jarl’s chambers. Notice a pattern? These gems love high-end real estate.
The Dangerous Out-of-the-Way Spots
This is where the hunt for the location of stones of barenziah gets lethal. You aren't just walking into bedrooms anymore. You're diving into necromancer dens and vampire pits.
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- Ansilvund: You’ll find this at the end of the ruin, right near the Ghostgate. It’s a slog, but the boss fight is decent.
- Sunderstone Gorge: This is a fire-mage-infested nightmare. The stone is right in front of the Word Wall.
- Pinewatch: This looks like a simple shack near Falkreath. It isn't. There’s a massive bandit sanctuary hidden behind a fake wall in the basement. The stone is in a locked room in the Treasure Room area.
- Fellglow Keep: You usually come here during the College of Winterhold questline. If you missed it, you’ll have to deal with some very grumpy mages on the way back in.
- Dark Brotherhood Sanctuary: Specifically the one in Falkreath. If you decide to destroy the Brotherhood instead of joining them, make sure you grab the stone off Astrid's dresser before you leave.
Dead Man's Drink and the "Hob’s Fall" Problem
One of the most easily overlooked stones is in Hob's Fall Cave. It’s located in a small room near the bridge area. It’s halfway between Dawnstar and Winterhold, a place most players only visit if they’re looking for specific spells or doing a radiant quest.
Then there's Dead Crone Rock. You have to climb a mountain, fight a Hagraven, and deal with Forsworn archers who have uncanny aim. The stone is sitting on the altar right next to the Word Wall. It’s a long walk for a small gem.
Why Even Bother? The Prowler's Profit Reality
So, you’ve spent ten hours. You’ve killed three dragons, forty bandits, and spent a small fortune on Solitude real estate. You turn them all in. You get the crown back from Tolvald’s Cave. What now?
The perk you receive, Prowler’s Profit, is a hidden passive ability. It doesn't show up in your active effects menu, which is weird, but you'll know it's working. Every time you open a chest, an urn, or a burial urn, you will find gems. Not just one. Usually three to five. Amethysts, Rubies, Flawless Diamonds—they will be everywhere.
By the time you finish this quest, you usually don't need the money. You’re already the leader of five guilds and have enough gold to buy the Empire. But there’s a certain satisfaction in it. It’s the ultimate "completionist" trophy. Plus, the reconstructed Crown of Barenziah looks pretty cool on its pedestal in the Thieves Guild.
Strategic Advice for the Modern Dragonborn
Don't go for these all at once. You'll burn out. Instead, integrate the location of stones of barenziah into your regular questing. If you're going to Markarth for the main quest, grab the museum stone then. If you're doing the College of Winterhold, grab the Fellglow Keep stone.
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Also, keep a mental note of Black-Briar Lodge and Dead Crone Rock. Those are the two that people usually forget until the very end. The Lodge stone is upstairs in the master bedroom. It’s heavily guarded, but if you’re sneaky, you can get in and out without a bounty.
A Quick Reference List for Your Map
If you’re staring at a map of Skyrim right now, here are the general areas you need to have marked. Cross them off as you go.
- Whiterun: Dragonsreach, Hall of the Dead.
- Solitude: Blue Palace, Proudspire Manor.
- Windhelm: Palace of the Kings, House of Curiosities.
- Markarth: Treasury House, Dwemer Museum.
- Riften: Mistveil Keep.
- College of Winterhold: Arch-Mage's Quarters.
- Dungeons: Ansilvund, Fellglow Keep, Hob's Fall Cave, Pinewatch, Rannveig's Fast, Sunderstone Gorge, Stony Creek Cave, Uttering Hills Cave, Dead Crone Rock.
- Misc: Dark Brotherhood Sanctuary (Falkreath), Black-Briar Lodge, Thalmor Embassy (or Reeking Cave), Yngvild.
The stone in Yngvild is behind the throne in the final chamber. You’ll be going there anyway if you pick up the "Habd’s Remains" quest or the journals for Vekel the Man.
Final Thoughts on the Grind
The hunt for the location of stones of barenziah is a rite of passage. It's frustrating, it's poorly explained, and the reward is purely for those who love hoarding loot. But it takes you to corners of Skyrim you might otherwise ignore. It forces you to explore the bedrooms of the powerful and the pits of the desperate.
To finish this efficiently, grab the stone in the Arch-Mage’s Quarters early on. You have to join the College to get in, but once you’re there, it’s just sitting on a shelf. It’s one of the easiest to get but often the last one people remember because they forget the College is a "private" area.
Get your checklist ready. Start with the cities. Work your way through the dungeons during other quests. Before you know it, you'll be the richest person in Skyrim, drowning in more flawless emeralds than you know what to do with.
Actionable Next Steps
- Audit your inventory: Count how many "Unusual Gems" you currently have. If they have stacked into a single slot, you haven't talked to Vex yet.
- Check the "Easy" ones first: Fast travel to Whiterun and Solitude. Most players miss the Hall of the Dead in Whiterun and the Blue Palace in Solitude simply because they don't look behind the beds or in the side rooms.
- Commit to a region: Spend your next play session solely in the Reach or the Rift. Clear out the dungeon-based stones in that specific area so you aren't bouncing back and forth across the map.
- Verify the Thalmor Embassy stone: If you’ve finished the main quest "Diplomatic Immunity," head straight to Reeking Cave. The stone was moved there in a patch to ensure it wasn't "missable" forever.