Natural Gemstones
Naturally, I find the “story” of a gemstone interesting. With my dad in “the business,” with my degree in geology with the emphasis on mineralogy and the fact that I mined for aquamarine Zambia, what would you expect? Many people have no clue as to how gemstones become the beautiful creations of nature we prize. I hope you won’t mind if I share a little.
The majority of gemstones are minerals. Some “gems” are organic in origin – pearls, ivory, coral and amber fall into this category. Diamond is carbon, sapphire and ruby are oxides, emerald and aquamarine are silicates, etc. What a specific gem is is a study unto itself and we don’t have the time to go into that here.
Please be aware that not every gem is found everywhere in the world. Mother Nature was in control of that and she determined whether a gem was found in pegmatite deposit or contact metamorphic deposits or ???
When it comes to precious and semi-precious gems, the optical properties are a very important factor in determining the desirability of a gemstone. The optical properties include color and brilliance or how a stone diffracts, absorbs or reflects light waves. Uncut, unpolished gemstones usually don’t display the optical qualities on their own and a skilled lapidary brings it out by cutting and polishing the gemstone.
For example, rough diamonds just look like dirty pebbles before they are put in the hands of a skilled lapidary. Check out the raw pink tourmaline crystal (shown above left) before it was cut and polished to become a pink tourmaline gemstone suitable for setting in precious metals. Or check out the tsavorite rough (shown right) that is transformed into a beauty that reflects light waves and allow the gemstone to sparkle. So we owe many thinks to the very talented skilled artisans who are lapidaries. For many, many centuries, man has been fascinated with gemstones and those artisans have made it possible.
Gemstone Jewelry and Loose Faceted Gemstones
All AfricaGems.com gemstones are cut and polished to the highest of standards in order to bring out the best in each gemstone. Click here to start your search for your perfect gemstone or gemstone jewelry.
Naturally, I find the “story” of a gemstone interesting. With my dad in “the business,” with my degree in geology with the emphasis on mineralogy and the fact that I mined for aquamarine Zambia, what would you expect? Many people have no clue as to how gemstones become the beautiful creations of nature we prize. I hope you won’t mind if I share a little.
The majority of gemstones are minerals. Some “gems” are organic in origin – pearls, ivory, coral and amber fall into this category. Diamond is carbon, sapphire and ruby are oxides, emerald and aquamarine are silicates, etc. What a specific gem is is a study unto itself and we don’t have the time to go into that here. Please be aware that not every gem is found everywhere in the world. Mother Nature was in control of that and she determined whether a gem was found in pegmatite deposit or contact metamorphic deposits or ???
When it comes to precious and semi-precious gems, the optical properties are a very important factor in determining the desirability of a gemstone. The optical properties include color and brilliance or how a stone diffracts, absorbs or reflects light waves. Uncut, unpolished gemstones usually don’t display the optical qualities on their own and a skilled lapidary brings it out by cutting and polishing the gemstone.
For example, rough diamonds just look like dirty pebbles before they are put in the hands of a skilled lapidary. Check out the raw pink tourmaline crystal (shown above left) before it was cut and polished to become a pink tourmaline gemstone suitable for setting in precious metals. Or check out the tsavorite rough (shown right) that is transformed into a beauty that reflects light waves and allow the gemstone to sparkle. So we owe many thinks to the very talented skilled artisans who are lapidaries. For many, many centuries, man has been fascinated with gemstones and those artisans have made it possible.Gemstone Jewelry and Loose Faceted Gemstones
All AfricaGems.com gemstones are cut and polished to the highest of standards in order to bring out the best in each gemstone. Click here to start your search for your perfect gemstone or gemstone jewelry.
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