gem indentification

Tanzanite’s bluish purple color is close to the color of a blue sapphire but its intense violet blue hue is a color all its own. Cutting Tanzanite Cutting plays an important part in the display of its color and financial considerations are given to the cutting of the tanzanite rough.  When cutting tanzanite to show off its bluish purple color, rough is not wasted.  That is why bluish purple tanzanite...

Tanzania is the only source for tanzanite.  It has two distinct markets: one for the gem quality tanzanite and another for the smaller pale colored stones.  Gem quality tanzanite is only found in the Merelani area in Tanzania. Tanzanite was first found in 1967 and over time there have been sharp fluctuations in the market place.  When tanzanite is plentiful, the price goes down and the wholesalers promote it to...

When selecting an emerald ring or other emerald jewelry, certain things must be taken into consideration - hue, tone and saturation, all of which determine value.  Emerald rings can make stunning gifts. Emerald Color Look for emeralds that are bluish green to green with strong saturation and medium to medium dark tone.  The most valuable emeralds are transparent with little or no inclusions to the naked eye.   As a relative...

An imitation emerald is any colored stone material that looks like a natural emerald and is used for that purpose.  A synthetic emerald is lab grown and has the same chemical composition, crystal structure and components as the natural stone. Imitation Emeralds Colored glass is most often used as imitation emerald.  The signs to look for that show they might be glass are “gas bubbles, concave surfaces and rounded junctions”,...