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Tanzanite – Born from Lightning

Born From LightningDidier Brodbeck & Hayley A. Henning Hardcover, 195 pages Dazzling Books, 2016 ISBN: 978-2-940506-11-8 $79.95 Some books are rich in text, others are rich in beauty. When you pick up this book and flip to just about any…

Blue Zircon

Unusual gems have been gaining popularity recently amongst consumers. Zircon, known for its attractive properties, is one of them. Brightly colored varieties with diamond-like dispersion have long been the cause of dealers’ fascination with zircon…

Secrets of the Gem Trade

Richard W. Wise, GG Hardcover, 385 pages 2nd Edition Brunswick House Press, 2016 ISBN: 9780972822329 $99.95 Most gem professionals are familiar with the first edition of this large volume by Richard Wise. It has been sold…

Cuprian Tourmaline

Discovery of vivid blue, green, and purple-to-violet tourmalines, a.k.a., “Paraíba” in Batalha, Brazil in 1982 changed the way the gem market perceived tourmalines. The unquestionably vivid colors were due to copper and this color agent…

Hackmanite

Introduction Hackmanite, Na8Al6Si6O24(Cl2,S), is the rare variety of the mineral species sodalite. Sodalite is a translucent to opaque, dark blue to violet-blue material that is used for jewelry purposes, typically fashioned as cabochons or beads, while…