|
|
 |
|
| Gems & Jewelry |
All That Glitters
Jill Newman
02/02/2004
|
It is hard to resist the lure of regal red rubies, tempting green emeralds or dreamy blue sapphires. Known as the big three in the jewelry trade, these gemstones, with their riotous hues, have been captivating collectors for thousands of years. Ancient cultures cherished them as talismans against the evil eye and wore them as amulets to enhance fertility and preserve wealth and love. Ancient Persians imagined the entire Earth rested on a giant sapphire that colored the sky with its reflection. In medieval Europe, gems were even consumed in medicinal potions. The dying Pope Clement VII drank a powdered gem potion worth more than 40,000 ducats in 1534 in a futile attempt to save his life.
 As far back as 1560, Florentine sculptor and goldsmith Benvenuto Cellini wrote that the price of a ruby was eight times that of a diamond. To some extent, that holds true today. Natural rubies, emeralds and sapphires of exceptional quality are among the most sought-after and valuable gems. But a truly natural specimen is a rare treasure indeed. More than 90 percent of rubies, emeralds and sapphires are treated to improve their color and clarity, according to the Gemological Institute of America.
The practice of treating colored gems goes back just about as far as society’s infatuation with them. The early Romans and Greeks oiled them, dyed them or heated them to enhance their natural beauty and fetch high prices from unsuspecting buyers. Among the earliest chronologies of gem treatments was Pliny the Elder’s (A.D. 23-79) Historia Naturalis, a compilation of revelations about the virtues of gems, treatments and even gem imitations. Advanced technology, such as sophisticated heat and laser techniques, has only made the treatment of gemstones easier to accomplish and more difficult to detect.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
