Evening star., 1935-01-13

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really means. In the cheaper grades you'll
notice innumerabe little imperfections. whose
presence you might not otherwise have sus-
pected For instance, you'll discover the chief
reason why good emerald is 50 high priced
An emerald without flaw Is one of the very
rarest of jewels.
FOLLOW this same general procedure in your
study of all gems. To avoid confusion, con-
centrate on only one variety at one time
spend, say couple Of days on the emerald,
and like period on the ruby, diamond and
so on through the entire list Of the royal
family" However, don't spend so much time
In any one jewelry store as to annoy the pro-
pr1etor. If you live in or near q sizable city
there should be three or four shops you can
visit. Divide your time sensibly among the
group.
when appraisine a ruby color a. IN ~.
case OF the emerald, Is the major consideration.
Bear in mind, too, that you're far more liable
TO see favless ruby than q 1awless emerald
The very finest rubies are known as pigeon
blood" which shade is a clear, dark red with
no brown specks. PinkS and salmons are also
in popular demand.
It's an interesting fact that the ruby and
the sapphire are one and the same mineral,
corundum. However, in nature only q tiny pro-
portion OF corlndum is clear enough brilliant
enough and colorful enough TO be of true gem
quality. Similarly. rubies are more valuable
usually, than sapphires, for one major reason.
namely, their comparative rarity. The lovely
range OF color IN the gem varieties Of cor,lndum
Is bound up in some mysterious way with the
very minute amount Of chromium and titanium
in the metal
Color, brliance, cut and general perfection
OF stone are all tn be considered in judging the
value of diamond. OF two stones both flawless
and Of equal weight, one may be worth twice
the other. Of-colcr or defective diamonds may
sell at carat prices regardless Of size while the
value OF an ordinary good water stone advances
to an increasing ratio with its weight up to
about 20 carats, beyond which no rule holds
good Perfect stones have no fixed value the
price depending upon the rarity and brilliance
and, OF course, on market conditions.
There are a couple of widespread fallacies
about colors of diamonds that should be cleared
up. Although commonly considered as white
or colorless stones, diamonds are found in nearly
all shades Of the rainbow. AS matter Of fact,
more than three-fourths OF these stones show
at least some faint tinge Of color, and not one
fourth are coloreSs or blue-white.
Many people have the notion that a yellow
diamond is necessarily an inferior one. This is
far from the truth. Decided yellow stones are
rare, although the straw yellow is always con-
sidered second rate. Despite the fact that other
yellows like canary yellow and greenish yellow,
are classed as fancy stones and are therefore
much in demand by your true connoisseur, the
public usually insists on white diamonds. Reds
and green's in pure hues and deep blues occur
in nature, but probably not one in many mil
Lions. Therefore they command top prices, as
high, occasionally as rubies. Indeed, the press
reported q couple OF years ago that a rose
diamond Of Ill carats, mined in Brazil was
valued at about $780,
CTRICTLY speaking, the pearl, unlike all other
members Of the big six," is not mineral,
but an animal substance, consisting Of regularly
layered shells Of organic matter and carbonate
OF lime. But since it Is used so much for per-
soual adornment it is included among precious
stones. -Four factors determine the value Of q
pearl-color, luster, shape and size While
many kinds Of oysters make pearls, the kind in
demand are few only made by mollusks pos
sesstnS special type Of shell with an inner
lining Of mother of -pearl-that is, lining with
fine iridescence This same iridescence Is
impaired to the pearl, giving it the rare beauty
desired in gems.
While pearl colors are largely matter Of
individual TASTE most people seem to prefer the
white stones. But to the true expert the pink
Golden yellows and greenish blacks are also
highly prized by connoisseurs. The technical
term for the characteristic pearly luster is
orient" This exists in various intermediate
stages between dull and bright. If pearl has
the finest orient-that is, an unusually brilliant
one-it might be worth many times the value Of
the sanae-sized pearl with inferior luster Large
sized pearls Of exceptional quality are exceed
ngly rare. Generally speaking, the most desir-
able shape Is perfectly spherical pearl. When