The Hobby Of Loose Gemstone Collecting
By Lee MacRae
Why collect loose gemstones you ask? For many people it's because they are very beautiful items. And like their more familiar cousin, natural diamonds, their value increases over time. Many hobbyists love to collect and work with each and every one of the 150 varieties available. This article will discuss the hobby of loose gemstone collecting.
At the very beginning you need to learn all you can on the wide variety of stones available. This will help you to know what exactly you're looking for so you buy the right items. This will help you make informed decisions.
First on the list to evaluate is gemstone color. It is a fact that gemstones are the most intensely colored natural material available on earth. Gems have become so synonomous with color, they have even lent their names to specific colors. Without a doubt you will recognize sapphire blue, ruby red, jade green, aquamarine, emerald green or turquoise. Gemstones become higher in value when they are equal in color to the spectral colors of violet, blue, green,, orange and red. They are valued much less the farther they are from the spectral color.
Stone cut is the second most important factor to consider before a purchase. The precision of cut will determine how much light is reflected by the gemstone. It will fully factor highly in the brilliance of the stone and its final value.
The clarity of a gemstone is our next factor. Gemstone clarity relates to the amount of inclusions (trace elements or large particles of other elements or minerals) that a gem has. A perfect gemstone is obviously worth more. To examine flaws not seen with the naked eye you need a gem microscope or 10X gemstone clarity magnifier. Many hobbyists will get an inexpensive 10X gemstone or jewelers loup for viewing their coins, beads, stamps or in our case gemstones.
Next to consider are weight and size. Except for corals and pearls, all gemstones are priced by the carat. A carat is equal to 0.2 grams. However you should know weight and size are not the same in gemstones. The density and specific gravity can differ in stones. Take a diamond that is 1.00 carats in weight and you will find that a Sapphire or ruby of the same size would weigh 1.20 carats.
Getting involved in collecting gemstones can be very enjoyable and also rewarding in the long run. You don't need to spend a lot of money and yet you can build a very exquisite collection. Many people love to take vacations to go hunting gemstones. Just in the United States in Virginia you can find Amethyst, Garnet, Beryl and Moonstone. And if you like to travel farther you can find opal at Lightning Ridge in NSW, Austalia, topaz in Beechworth, Victoria or check out the Moonstone regions in Moonstone Hill, Queensland, Australia.
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More Information On tanzanite loose gemstones
Elizabeth Taylor has a well known jewelry collection, including the 33.19 carat
Krupp diamond and the 69.42-carat pear shaped Taylor-Burton Diamond which now
hangs from a diamond necklace after Liz decided it was just a little too large
for a ring. Richard Burton also gave her a heart-shaped yellow diamond which was
originally a gift from Shah Jahan in 1621 to his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal,
who also inspired the Taj Mahal.
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Tourmaline is one of October's birthstones and comes in many colors - but
primarily in pink and green. It is beautiful in rings, necklaces, and pendants.
Chemically tourmaline is an extremely complicated group of stones. They are
silicate minerals which contain silicon and oxygen and then it is mixed with
aluminum and boron. It is also may contain sodium, calcium, iron, magnesium,
lithium and a host of other elements that may be found in its structure. The
most common variety of tourmaline is schorl and may account for 95% or more of
all tourmaline in nature. Schorl is black tourmaline.
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The diamond is the only gemstone to rank 10 on the Mohs Scale of Hardness. It is the birthstone for the month of April.
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tanzanite loose gemstones News From Around The World
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