Other Gemstones

Man’s fascination and attraction to gemstones can be traced back since the earliest beginnings of civilization and have been an integral part in many folklores of most cultures. In the olden days, rings with colored stones have been regarded as valued symbols of power and so the most influential ones were seen wearing large rings in all of their fingers that easily commanded respect and prestige. In some pagan cultures, other gemstones were believed to possess some natural magical powers and were said to endow its wearer certain special capacities not inherent in human beings. Even some legend has it that emeralds were thought to be generally good for the eyes, yellow gemstones contain healing properties and cure jaundice, and the red ones have the ability to stop the flow of blood. Whether true or make believe, gemstones still holds a certain charming appeal to humans up until the modern times.

Determining The Value

Gemstones, in general are minerals that comes in almost all imaginable hues of the rainbow and has the ability to show off a fine sparkle that have captured the whimsical imaginations of man all throughout the years. However, contrary to what you might have been lead to believe, other gemstones are not all rocks and all that tough and durable. In fact, the single crystal rhodochrosite is considered to be too fragile and soft to be used in jewelries and are usually just used as an exhibit piece in museums. According to the top connoisseurs of the trade, the specific value of the gemstones is usually based on the beauty and rarity of the certain stone. However, there are also other factors that come into play in dictating the prizes of gemstones such as the market supply, the rarity of the gem, the popularity and demand for the stone and other complex market mechanisms.

Of course, the diamonds are among the most in demand gems in the consumer market today, and accordingly known to fetch a significantly higher price than other gemstones. Being known to be a highly coveted luxury item, it’s naturally been labeled to be “every girl’s best friend” and largely exalted for its ability to reflect light with fire and that stunning multi-faceted sparkle. Other physical attributes that are also considered are the stone’s color and clarity, the cut, the rare optical phenomena such as the star effects and the color zoning.

Traditionally, the most common types of gemstone are classified into two distinct categories: the precious stones and the semi-precious ones. Among the long list of colorful stones in the market today, there are but five major gemstones that belong to the precious stones grouping: the diamonds, sapphire, amethyst, ruby, and emerald. Since gems are generally known to display erratic value fluctuations in the market, it is generally best to invest in the aforementioned five precious stones, all of which appear to be more stable than all other gemstone jewelry items you can find.

Cut And Polish

While there are some people who prefer to purchase other unset gemstones or the ones that are found in their most natural forms - rugged and quite unrefined, most people opt to choose those are already cut and polished to a high sheen. There are two known classification of stone cuts, the first one using a dome-shaped stone called a cabochons and the other one is with the use of a facet that often results to more planned angles. Usually, the transparent gems make use of the facet cutting method since it is been proven to show of the stone’s optical properties to the best advantage in comparison to the use of cabochons.

The above-mentioned components are among the important factors to consider in choosing premium quality gemstones. So the next time you are itching for another colorful piece to add to your jewelry collection, you can easily browse with a more discerning and critical eye.