Important Facts for buying Precious Gems
For centuries, we have prized precious gems because of their rarity and radiant beauty. For generations gems were the domain of Royalty, Nobility and the very wealthy. In the last thirty years, as prosperity has come to more areas of the world, more people have experienced the pleasure of colored precious gems. Affluency and economic growth has brought strong demand from Japan as well as Western Europe. Much of the Mid East oil wealth has gone into gems.
Surging demand during the late 1970’s helped push ruby, sapphire and emerald prices to records highs, particularly those of the very finest quality. A new demand cycle promises to repeat itself as it has done in the past. For a knowledgeable and well prepared jeweler this increase could provide a tremendous opportunity for higher profits. The key will be successful buying; and the key to successful buying is knowledge and source.
Some of the factors affecting proper gemstone purchasing
COLOR:
Color is the most important factor in determining the quality and value of Precious Gems. Mother Nature does not provide us with 100% pure color in gems. Two gems of equal weight, cut and clarity might vary more than 1000% in price as a result of a difference in color. The most minor variations in color can make the largest difference in a stone’s appearance. The purity of the reds, blues and greens is important, as are the colors which modify them and their interaction in each individual gemstone.
TONE:
Tone refers to the density of color. When a gem is too dark or too light it loses both beauty and desirability, thus reducing the value. The slight differences in darkness of lightness make a large difference in the richness of a gemstone’s color. Two stones can have the same basic color quality and differ only in tone. This tonal difference can make a stone appear a very desirable deep rich color; the less desirable soft pastel color; or the least dark murky gray or black color.
CLARITY:
Clarity is based on the freedom from internal inclusions and surface blemishes. Type and amount of inclusions vary dramatically with the species and variety of gems. Minor inclusions and surface characteristics may be present in the finest gems. In precious gems, sapphires are the cleanest, least included, followed by rubies, and then by emeralds. Flawless rubies, sapphires, and emeralds are virtually nonexistent.
CUT:
How a stone is cut or “made” has a very large effect on how it will face up in the final piece of jewelry. The far eastern cutters who handle most rubies and sapphires, traditionally try to retain as much weight as possible by cutting as close to the shape of the “rough” or uncut gem. To them, symmetry and good proportions are secondary to weight retention.
BRILLIANCY:
Brilliancy is the quality and quantity of the light returned to the eye. It is measured by the amount of light reflected to the eye when the gem is viewed from the table. Due to the physical characteristics of rubies, sapphires and emeralds and the methods of cutting, we rarely see gems with 100% brilliancy. Brilliancy is not necessarily equally distributed throughout the stone; many times we see a gem that leaks light on one side and returns all the light on the other.
DICHROISM:
All rubies, sapphires and emeralds are dichroic, which means they appear to have two discernibly different colors. In some cases, the two colors are visible even to the untrained eye. The less obvious the second color, the more attractive and desirable the gemstome.
TEXTURE:
Texture refers to minute, finely disbursed inclusions or their equivalent which interfere with the passage of light and gives the stone a dull, sleepy appearance. Gems with no texture or low texture are more desirable.
COLOR ZONING:
This is seen as uneven patches or bands of color with varying degrees of intensity. It is common in sapphires.
The subtle quality differences that determine large value differences in precious gemstones are obtained through experience only.
We at Precious Gem Resources, Inc., make our experiences available to all jewelers. We are ready to share our knowledge to help you learn more about evaluating precious gems. A knowledgeable jeweler is our best asset. The more you know, the more successful you will be.
Precious Gem Resources wants to be your gem source and invites you to visit or call us.
PRECIOUS GEM RESOURCES, INC.,
579 FIFTH AVE., SUITE 1600
NEW YORK, NY 10017
