Idar Advantage
If there’s one thing this year’s 29th Annual Intergem in Idar-Oberstein, Germany maintains, it is the region’s standing as a superior stone cutting and carving center and source for the finest gems in the world…
Featured ArticlesDownstream! Update on Mining Activities in the Mogok, Burma Area Figure
Burma has been, and still is, the most famous ruby and sapphire source. There are three mining areas for ruby and sapphire: Mogok, Nanyaseik, and Mong Hsu. Mogok has a long history of having foreigners…
Featured ArticlesA Matter of Opinion— the Science and Guesswork of Origin Reports
Origin reports are in high demand but the science behind the reports has changed over the years. Are reports now given too much prominence overshadowing the important quality of beauty? Geology knows no borders and…
Featured ArticlesDiamond Market
Vegas was all about fancy color diamonds. Demand for melee and single stones in color is strong. Colorless diamond prices are stable despite rising cost of rough. Manufacturers are angry at mining companies for the…
Diamond MarketAmethyst and the Four Peaks Mine
While this is an article about a recent visit to the Four Peaks amethyst mine in Arizona, it is also about amethyst in general. The February birthstone is one of few purple gems that consumers…
Featured ArticlesEleventh Annual Sinkankas Symposium Ruby
Dr. George Harlow, curator of minerals and gems at the American Museum of Natural History, New York explained the mineralogy and the geochemistry of the Mogok metamorphic belt. Mogok has been the source of fine…
Featured ArticlesThe Black Gem Challenge
Black stones have been in vogue for some time even sold as loose stones on the TV or Internet. See figure 1. While originally these may have been black diamonds set in expensive jewelry, we…
Featured ArticlesBlack Opal from Lightning Ridge, Australia
The best known localities for precious opal have long been Australia, although, among others, Mexico, several states in the west of the USA and Slovakia have yielded precious opal over the years. Only recently a…
Featured ArticlesIn The Land of Zultanite
The Milenyum Diaspore mine is the world’s only known deposit of gem quality Diaspore. The mineral diaspore is mined in many locations around the world, but no other are currently known that produce this beautiful…
Featured ArticlesGIT 3rd International Gem and Jewelry Conference
Thailand has been known as the center of colored stone trading for decades. Gem trading not only has a prominent role in Thailand’s economy but also influences the world gem and jewelry market. The Gem and…
Featured Articles