Information On Gemstones

Gemological Article Of The Month

How To Collect Gemstones

By Lee MacRae

The term gemology refers to the profession, science, and even art of evaluating and identifying rocks known as natural diamonds or loose gemstones. Many people take up gemology as a hobby. They become interested in collecting loose diamonds or loose gemstones. A number of these hobbyists start to visit different areas nearby to look for rough gemstones. Some hobbyists will learn to cut or tumble the gemstones they find. If this hobby interest you then read along as this article discusses the things you should know to start this hobby.

Right at the beginning, what you need is to get yourself some books on gemstones. You want to understand as much as possible about your new hobby. The more you understand about each kind of gemstone the less likely you are to make a mistake. You will know exactly what you are looking at.

Number one to look at is the color of the gem. Top grade gemstones have colors that are close to the purest spectral colors of orange, green, yellow, Violet or blue. Muted gemstone colors or are too dark lowers the value per carat.

How a gemstone is cut is the next factor to consider before a purchase. The preciseness of the cut is the factor which determines how much light the stone will reflect. It will fully determine the brilliance of the stone and how much it will be valued.

Gemstone clarity is an important consideration. When we talk of clarity it relates to a stones relative freedom from inclusions or blemishes. A gemstones that is normally found to be clean is obviously valued highly. To examine flaws not seen with the naked eye you need a gemstone loupe (gemstone clarity magnifier) or gem microscope. Serious hobbyists will use an inexpensive 10X gemstone or jewelers loup for viewing their coins, beads, stamps or in our case gemstones.

Next thing to look at is the duo of size and weight. Due to their nature gemstones vary and specific gravity or density. Weight and size are not necessarily equal across the board. Take the example of a diamond that weighs 1.00 carats and an equal sized Sapphire would weigh more than 1.20 carats. An equal sized Emerald would be 0.95 carats while an Alexandrite gem stone would came in at 1.23 carats.

Although gems are frequently used in jewelry, they are perfectly good collectibles in their own right. In fact, there are many attractive and interesting gems that are just too big or fragile to be used for jewelry. Take each loose gemstone and think of it as a piece of art, a miniature sculpture to be treasured for its beautiful colors and the finish you apply to it. And in this hobby you don't have to always lay out cash because you can use vacation time to actually hunt for raw gemstones in stead of buying. In the US in New Hampshire you can rock hunt for Beryl, Rock Crystal and Garnet. And in Canada you can find nephrite jade in Dease Lake, British Columbia or amethyst near Thunder Bay, Ontario as well as Ammolite, a rare gemstone found only in southern Alberta. Think of collecting gemstones as a great hobby and pastime.

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Gemstones For Sale

Hints About loose gemstones

Fire agate has distinctive iridescent colors caused by layers of iron oxide
within the quartz. Because agate is porous, it is often dyed to darken or change
its natural color. Commonly treated agate is sold as Black Onyx. Petrified wood
is fossilized wood that has had its organic matter replaced by agate.
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Turquoise is often fracture sealed. This doesen't mean that it has fractures, it
means that it was seal ed with an acrylic resin to enhance it's color, texture,
and hardness. Turquoise is somewhat soft so avoid scratches and sharp blows. To
be certain and coatings are not removed also avoid hot water and household
chemicals.
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loose gemstones Galore

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