The Various Color of Gemstones!
When we are very young, one of the first things we learn about is the rainbow with all its colors. It is not surprising, then, how attracted we are to the color of gemstones...
Gems come in every color of the spectrum. Although it is the blue sapphires, the red of rubies and the green of emeralds that may first come to mind when thinking about colored gems, there are a multitude of other beautiful colored gemstones to consider. And even among gems normally associated with one color, they come in a varity of shades and gradations.
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A sapphire, for example, comes in many different hues of blue, depending on where it's from. But because of certain "impurities," in its mineral make-up, sapphires can also come in pink, yellow and green.
Generally speaking, the deeper and richer the hue of a gemstone's color, the more highly valued it is. While sapphires can range from pale blue to near-black, the most valuable are a rich, deep blue that we desire the most.
The same can be said about rubies. They, too, range in color from pale red to very dark and murky. Still the most highly prized color for a ruby is called pigeon's blood. This is a a deep blood-red color and is associated with rubies that come from mines in what was once known as Burma (now Myanmar).
The most expensive emeralds are a deep green. Again emeralds, themselves, come in a broad spectrum of hues, from yellow-green to blue-green. Note that all colored gems, and clear gems, for that matter, depend on skillful cutting and polishing to showcase the colors in all their subtleties and brilliance. An expert can take a valuable stone and make it almost priceless...
Of other colored stones, probably amethysts is among the best well known. The best stones have a dark, royal purple color. A lighter-colored amethyst simply isn't as valuable and is almost too common.
Of course, many people prefer these lighter or darker gradations in color. And since they tend to be more affordable, a slightly lighter-colored amethyst is much easier to obtain than the "ideal" color. I have several specimans of amethyst that are not of the most highly sought after color, but I find each one a beautiful gemstone and a personal treasure.
In a contrary way, diamonds are rated by the absense of color. The more colorless the diamond, the higher its grade. Unless, of course, it's a defined color such as a pink diamond or a canary yellow diamond. These, depending upon the richness of hue are almost as highly prized as a near-colorless diamond.
One of the first places I discovered beautiful and colorful gemstones was in the pages of a Disney comic book about Scrooge McDuck. Scrooge along with his nephew, Donald Duck, often went treasure hunting and found many multi-faceted gemstones of great size, color and sparkling beauty. These gemstones were drawn by an artist by the name of Carl Barks.
If you, too, were enchanted by the comic books created by this wonderful artist, you can find his works for sale at my sister website, www.pin-up-artists.com. Check out this link for Carl Barks.
About the Author: Scott Harker is the publisher of several websites including: Sherlock Holmes Pastiches, Harvest The Sun | Renewable Energy, Dragonfly Collectibles, Home businesses | Financial freedom, and Organic Dark Chocolate.
News About Color and Gemstones
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Money-saving advice before you go Valentine's Day jewelry shopping WDIV Detroit When shopping for gemstones be open to a variety of options in the same color "A lot of gemstones have a multitude of colors, so rather than telling your jeweler you want a yellow or pink diamond or a blue sapphire instead be open to buying different ... |
From the Heart MarketWatch (press release) Natural gemstones are found in nature. With the exception of the pearl, they are created and mined from the earth. Sometimes natural gemstones are treated in some way to improve their color and/or clarity. Treatments and/or enhancements should always ... |
Charles & Colvard Launches Enhanced FOREVER BRILLIANT(TM) Moissanite Gemstones ... MarketWatch (press release) The process developed by Serenity Technologies is the only color alteration process that is included under Charles & Colvard's Limited Lifetime Warranty. Any other third-party alterations or treatments made to moissanite created gemstones are not ... |
Jewelry Television hosts global gem conference Knoxville News Sentinel JTV currently sells about 260 varieties of gemstones including some stones that offer color shifting enhanced by various treatments that can block or shift light. These treatments, some of which are applied through advanced processes such as chemical ... |
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