gemstone availability

[MariaZ]

Hello forum,

it's good to find a forum devoted to jewelry history!

do you jewelry appraisers see a decline in large colored gemstones over time? I mean, are there more large colored stones in older pieces then in contemporary pieces? I'm under the impression that large, fine colored stones are getting rarer and rarer. It seems to be all treated goods that are available nowadays.

Maria Zeller
bench jeweler

[Suzanne]

Hi Maria,

Welcome to AJU and thank you for your good question. Fine large gemstones have always been rare. There is always just a small percentage of any mining endeavor that will produce viable jewelry quality gems and an even smaller amount that are extremely fine and large (for the gem type). Historically these gems found there way into the treasuries of countries via crowns and jewels of state and many are documented. There are some gem sources that are exhausted and some new gems discoveries of never before seen gems. Alexandrites from the Ural mountains of Russia haven't been mined in a century and were only mined for 75 or so years. Kashmir sapphires were only discovered in 1882 and the original mines were exhausted by the 1930's. Cuprian tourmaline from Mozambique are spectacular, found in large gorgeous aqua blues, violet and sea foam green stones and are relatively new on the market however the deposits are being quickly depleted. It is fun to research the history of different gemstones to see their peak of production and their demise. It is also important to note that we are still finding new sources of beautiful gems. Check out the Antique Jewelry University timeline ( http://www.langantiques.com/university/ ... p/Timeline ) for lots of interesting facts including gemstones. We also are propagating our gemstone history and lore section. have fun on the site.

[MariaZ]

Thanks for the welcome and the answer Suzanne!

So you are saying deposits come and go and large stones are always rare. Looking at history we see an accumulation of good finds rather than an abundance, I see what you mean. I checked out the timeline, nice resource!

[Suzanne]

Hi Maria,

Hopefully our Administrator Tim can weigh in on this as well. He is our gemstone expert and he is responsible for adding and illustrating Christie Romero and Barbara Talbot's timeline. There are many examples of great gem finds to explore. Enjoy our forum.

Suzanne

[Tim]

Suzanne, that's way too much credit.



Hi Maria,

welcome indeed!

Colored stone deposits are never without an end. And it is certainly true that localities can be stripped faster nowadays then in the past. Modern machinery speeds up the process immensely. That said, a lot of places where colored stones are found lie deep in the bush and aren't easily reached. Getting heavy equipment in often leads to an increasing cost sheet which isn't justified due to the irregular output of a certain mine. Colored gemstone mining isn't as industrialized as diamond mining. (thank god!). In many places it is individual miners who dig the earth in search of their salvation. This way a longer and slower trickle of gemstones onto the market is ensured.

Sure it's true that when a new deposit is found the hottest spots get dug up fast. History shows us a certain tendency: a spot is discovered, dug by handminers for a while until they get pushed aside by the big bucks who mine the cream of the deposit and then leave to be replaced by hand miners again. Localities can be active for many years: the south of Sri Lanka has seen continuous mining for over 2000-3000 years! Suzanne said it all in her post actually: large crystals are always rare. Comparing the availability of gemstones of today to the collective of the past is wrong. You are comparing a short amount of time with a large amount of time; that will cause the idea that gemstones are getting rarer indeed. This is only true for a few gem species at certain localities. The rise and fall of new deposits is a reality that will continue into the future... but it isn't endless...