Embark on a comprehensive journey through the fascinating world of gemstones. From fundamental crystallography to advanced appraisal techniques, this extensive curriculum builds your expertise systematically, establishing you as a trusted…
Fluorite: The Collector's Rainbow Fluorite is the rainbow mineral -- available in virtually every colour of the spectrum, often in multicolour banded specimens of extraordinary beauty, and the origin of…
Chalcedony and Agate: The Complete Guide Chalcedony is one of the most versatile and historically significant gem materials in the world. Its fine-grained, microcrystalline quartz structure is found in virtually…
Onyx: The Complete Guide Black onyx is one of the most commercially important opaque gems in fine jewellery. Its rich, deep black -- whether in the form of signet rings,…
Turquoise: The Complete Guide Turquoise has been treasured continuously for longer than almost any other gem material. Egyptian pharaohs wore turquoise. Persian emperors used it to dome their palaces. Tibetan…
Carnelian: The Complete Guide Carnelian is one of the oldest gem materials in continuous use. Orange-red chalcedony beads have been found in Neolithic burial sites, Egyptian pharaohs wore carnelian in…
Pearl: The Complete Guide Pearl is the only gemstone created by a living organism entirely without human intervention in its fundamental formation. A grain of irritant enters a mollusc, the…
Prehnite: The Complete Guide Prehnite occupies a unique position in the gem world: it was the first mineral to be named after a person (Colonel Hendrik von Prehn, who brought…
Coral: The Complete Guide Coral is one of the most ancient gem materials in human use, yet it occupies one of the most ethically complex positions in the modern jewellery…
Kyanite: The Complete Guide Kyanite has one of the most unusual physical properties of any mineral: its hardness varies significantly depending on direction. Along the crystal's length, kyanite has a…