Diamonds need not be a girl’s only BFF: A list of Extraordinary Gems

I recently had the pleasure of reading ‘Stoned’ by Aja Raden - this book has been on my reading list forever, and I’m so glad I finally got to it. It was very thought-provoking to say the least, I absolutely recommend the book to all gem and jewelry enthusiasts (that is if you haven’t already got to it!).

The book’s general discussion revolves around history of human luxury and the psychology behind ‘perceived value’. Perceived value is the price the public is willing to pay for a good or service, this is not necessarily the intrinsic value of said good. Perceived value exists only in the mind of the consumer. Raden then delved in to the perceived value of diamonds - this was my favorite part of the book.

Diamonds are undeniably dazzling and worthy of awe - but are diamonds generally more expensive than other gems because they’re rare and hard?

The truth is, diamonds are not particularly rare. In fact, compared to other gemstones, diamond is one of the most common precious stones found as they are mined in large scale. Also, although diamonds are commonly known as the hardest material in the world, there are actually six materials that are harder. Diamonds are still one of the hardest naturally occurring and abundant materials on Earth, but diamonds are not indestructible contrary to popular belief. Diamonds do wear down with time, and can fracture or cleave due to pressure and force.

I knew diamonds are not as valuable as they’re made out to be, and much of the value placed on diamonds today is credited to the ingenious marketing of De Beers over the years, but the most mind blowing piece of information I learned from Raden's book was that the world’s mined diamond reserves are currently in excess of billions of carats!!!!

This is not to say that high quality diamonds are not rare or valuable - a large diamond of D color, IF clarity will always remain rare and highly valuable. But simply speaking, what this means is diamonds will be around for many years to come, but there are rarer gemstones that may not. And so, below is a list of a few rare and extraordinary gems.

Alexandrite

Named after Czar Alexander II, Alexandrite was first found in Russia’s Ural Mountains in 1830, Alexandrite was first thought to be an emerald due its remarkable and rare color-changing properties - alexandrite appears green to bluish-green in daylight, and under artificial light, it appears red to purplish-red tone. Alexandrite is sometimes described as “emerald by day and ruby at night.”

Coveted by collectors all over the world, high quality Alexandrite is exceedingly rare and it was nearly mined out when the original deposits in Russia were exhausted. The Russian mines are limited in production today, but deposits have also been found in Sri Lanka, Brazil, and East Africa.

Due to its rarity, Alexandrite is one of the world’s most expensive stones. Most examples, however, are less than one carat, making larger stones exceptionally valuable. If you see an Alexandrite being sold for very little money, like I have recently, chances are it's a synthetic, i.e. lab grown Alexandrite. Be aware, and always ask questions about your jewelry before you purchase them to ensure you know exactly what it is that you are purchasing.

Image belongs to Sotheby's: Cushion-shaped alexandrite of Sri Lankan origin weighing 7.76 carats, decorated with brilliant-cut diamonds, mounted in platinum, Auction estimate 35,675 - 57,335USD.

Angel Skin Coral

One of my favorite gems is Angel Skin Coral. This is the trade name given to the flesh pink colored rare albino variety of coral that lives 150-300m deep waters in Japan and Taiwan where it is also known as Boké or Magai. I also read somewhere that Angel Skin Corals are found in the Philippines, but I am unable to confirm this.

High quality Angel skin coral of uniform color and luster is regarded the most precious of all coral due to extreme rarity. Angel skin coral is visually similar to other pink precious corals as the pink body color is not limited to angel skin coral, this color occurs in other variety of corals as well. Advanced testing i.e. DNA fingerprinting may be required for proper identification of Angel skin coral.

While there’re many factors involved in determining the pricing of this material, it’s safe to say that high quality Angel Skin Coral of Japanese origin can cost more than $300 per gram.

If you are interested in learning more about Angel Skin Coral, I recommend below lecture (free to watch on Youtube) hosted by renowned Gemologist Rui Galopim de Carvalho featuring Coral expert Vincenzo Liverino, President of the Coral Commission of CIBJ.

Black Opal

Black Opal is a variety of precious opal with dark gray, dark blue, dark green, and gray-black background color and play-of-color (rainbow color flashes seen in Precious Opals). Deep black background is an exception and extremely rare.

Australia’s unique geology produces almost 95% of the world’s opals, and some types can be found only on the continent. Its dazzling black opals are the most famous and prized of all. These most famous, prized opals are found only in three small towns—the most famous being Lightning Ridge in New South Wales.

Natural Queen Conch Pearl

Like any natural pearl, the conch pearl comes from a mollusk, but it’s not formed by nacre (mother of pearl). Some mollusks produce calcareous concretions that look like pearls but are scientifically not considered "pearls" by gemologists because they do not contain nacre - Conch pearl is one of these ‘Non-Nacreous’ pearls.

Non-nacreous conch pearls from Strombus gigas (Queen Conch - a type of Sea Snail) are highly valued for their very attractive pink color and distinctive shimmering appeal due to the characteristic flame structures on their surfaces. Flame structure consists of faint, wavy lines that look like a flickering fire, it’s quite mesmerizing.

For a very long time, Conch pearls couldn’t be cultured, so they remained exceedingly rare, and even today, a Natural Queen Conch Pearl ranks among the most expensive gem specimens. Natural Queen Conch pearls are found only in the Caribbean. Although conch is abundant in the region, it is very rare to find a pearl inside a conch, and of those found, very little is considered ‘gem quality’. Conch pearls come in shades of white, pink, red, and brown, but a deep-pink or rose color is generally the most desirable.

Natural Fancy Colored Diamonds

While colorless diamonds are quite abundant as discussed above, naturally occurring fancy colored diamonds are extremely rare and valuable. These rare specimens come in every color of the spectrum, including, most importantly, blue, green, pink, and red. The value of Fancy color diamonds generally increases with the strength and purity of the color. Large, vivid fancy color diamonds the rarest.

Red, green, purple, and orange are generally the most rare, followed by pink and blue. Yellows and browns are the most common fancy colors, and are generally considered less valuable than the rarer colors.

The extreme level of rarity makes red diamonds the most expensive fancy colored diamonds in the world. Pure red diamonds are so highly-priced, especially red diamonds from over one carat. The Brazilian Hancock Red diamond in one of the most famous Fancy color diamonds weighing in at 0.95 carats. At the time of its sale in 1987 it was the most expensive per-carat gemstone ever sold at auction. The hammer came down at $880,000—a remarkable $926,315 per carat, eight times its pre-sale estimate.

Padparadscha Sapphire

The rarest of all fancy-colored sapphires, is the Padparadscha sapphire. It has a distinctive pinkish-orange hue and takes its name from the Sinhalese word for lotus flower, which has a similar color. It is the rare balance of this pink and orange color reminiscent of a tropical sunset that sets this stone a part from a pink, or an orange Sapphire.

Sapphires with a similar look have been found in other parts of the world, but many jewelers and collectors believe a true Padparadscha sapphire can come only from Sri Lanka. The limited supply makes the finest stones quite expensive.

Paraiba Tourmaline

Tourmaline occurs in all the colors of the rainbow, but only special and unique hues are used in the jewelry trade. Paraiba Tourmaline is a variety of Elbaite tourmaline renowned for its electric blue body color sometimes referred to as ‘swimming pool’ blue in the trade, discovered in the Paraíba region of Brazil, in the 1980s. Copper deposits in the region give the gem a turquoise tone that is truly electric in the finest stones. A few deposits have been found in Mozambique and Nigeria, but there’s less copper in the soil there, so the color sometimes isn’t as intense.

Many purists consider only Paraíba tourmalines from the original mines to be true Paraíbas, so Brazilian stones command higher prices. Those first mines have closed, limiting the South American supply today making the true Paraiba Tourmalines very rare.

Image belongs to Kat Florence's Atelier. Sarah Jessica Parker wearing one of Kat Florence's largest creations to date, a 98.50 carat Paraiba tourmaline necklace that was was auctioned at Tiancheng International in Hong Kong.

Tanzanite

Intense, violet-bluish variety of the mineral Zoisite is found in only one place on Earth: Tanzania near the foot hills of Mount Kilimanjaro. The presence of a rare chemical element, vanadium, gives the crystals their remarkable color. In the late 1960s, American jeweler Tiffany & Co. named this mineral Tanzanite and introduced it to the world in a spectacular jewelry collection.

What makes Tanzanite rare is the unusual conditions behind its formation. Experts believe Tanzanite won’t naturally form anywhere else in the world, and in approximately 30 years, the current supply could be completely depleted, making it a true collector’s stone.

Tanzanite may look like a Sapphire to untrained eyes, however its deep blue-violet color and pleochroism (tendency to show different hues depending on the viewing direction), separates it from Sapphire and other blue stones. It’s also interesting to note that most Tanzanites on the market are heat treated to improve their body color.

While Tanzanite has never been successfully synthesized (lab created), there are many simulants (imitations) in the market resembling Tanzanite.

Resources:

Gemstones Rarer Than Diamonds. (2020, April 20). The Yale Tribune. https://campuspress.yale.edu/tribune/gemstones-rarer-than-diamonds/

Goodley, A. (2019, May 24). 10 Rarest Gems in the World. Rarest.Org. https://rarest.org/stuff/gems

Kat Florence Atelier. (n.d.). Sarah Jessica Parker Wearing Kat Florence [Photograph]. Https://Twitter.Com/Gianews/Status/1325909823096053766?Lang=en. https://twitter.com/gianews/status/1325909823096053766?lang=en

Miseviciute, K. (2018, May 14). 10 Most Valuable Gemstones in the World. TPS Blog. https://www.thepearlsource.com/blog/most-valuable-gemstones/

Shirley, K. (2020, September 17). Nine-collectible-gems-that-are-not-diamonds-rubies-or-emeralds. Bloomberg.Com. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2020-09-17/nine-collectible-gems-that-are-not-diamonds-rubies-or-emeralds

Siegel, E. (2019, June 18). There Are 6 “Strongest Materials” On Earth That Are Harder Than Diamonds. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/startswithabang/2019/06/18/there-are-6-strongest-materials-on-earth-that-are-harder-than-diamonds/?sh=704b83f73412

Sotheby’s. (n.d.). Alexandrite Ring [Photograph]. Https://Www.Sothebys.Com. https://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2018/magnificent-jewels-and-jadeite-hk0790/lot.1546.html

What Is Tanzanite Gemstone | Tanzanite Stone – GIA. (n.d.). GIA.Edu. Retrieved January 10, 2021, from https://www.gia.edu/tanzanite