Practical Gem Identification Lesson #1

Week One
Section 1 Introduction
Welcome to Practical Gem Identification Class: Lesson 1. This first week we are going to
spend some time learning what colored gemstones are, how they form, why they have
color, and some study of crystallography. The purpose this week is to form a foundation
of understanding that will help us apply practical methods of gem identification later on
in the course. Because to be able to apply practical identification methods, you must have
an understanding of gemstones beyond the gemological equipment and how to take a
reading. You have to understand gemstone formation and why gemstones have color.
And you also have to have to be able to take a different view of gem identification
beyond what is taught in most gemology schools.

For instance, look at the photograph at left. What do you see? Stop
for a minute and think of the possibilities of what kind of gemstone
this might be. Ruby? Spinel? Tourmaline? Red Beryl? All are
possible, right? But what does that kind of evaluation make for
you? A lot of questions with few answers.

Now look at the picture again. What can you see that it is not? Well, its not a peridot. Its
not a sapphire. Its not a lot of things. Now you are getting somewhere. Because the
concept of practical gem identification is not trying to determine what something is....its
determining what something is not. When you start thinking about gem identification as a
process of elimination...you will be on the right road.

Now, let's go back to our examination of this stone. Let's assume that we have only a few
pieces of gemological equipment. Say a 10x loupe, a diffraction grating spectroscope, a
Chelsea filter, a dichroscope, and a hand torch or pen light. Let's assume you are at a
booth in the Days Inn Hotel in Tucson and you have no refractometer or polariscope, no
electricity, but you have been told this stone is a rare form of beryl called bixbite...or
sometimes a red emerald. (I always like that one). What will you do. All too many
trained gemologists are lost without their refractometer and polariscope. Mainly due to an
over reliance on equipment and a lack of knowledge of gemstones.

In this case, your 10x loupe would tell you it cannot be any of the garnets or a spinel
because it is double refractive which you can see with your loupe or dichroscope, your
spectroscope tells you that it is not a ruby or pink tourmaline because there is no
chromium lines and any ruby or tourmaline this dark red would show characteristic rail-
road absorption lines for chromium, it could not be transparent rhodochrosite because (a)
the double refraction is not strong enough and (b) no one in the right mind is going to try
to sell transparent rhodochrosite at red emerald prices. You know its not a red cubic
zirconia because it is double refractive and the facet junctions are far too sharp...which
has pretty well narrowed down the field that it must indeed be red beryl or red emerald or
bixbite or whatever you want to call it. And you come to this conclusion because all of
the above went off in your head in about 2 minutes, and the rest was pure logic and
looking at the stone.

What you have done is to use a practical approach to gem identification. Taking just a
little time and thinking of what it could not be, and then eliminating everything else until
you have only one choice. Does this happen all the time? No. Sometimes you are going to
get a stone that has a couple of possibilities and you will need additional tests. But
again...you use a practical approach. You agree to yourself that you cannot be sure of the
identification because there are other possibilities and you need more testing. You either
make arrangements for further testing....or you don't buy the stone simply on someone
else's identification that you do not have a chance to verify. That is a practical approach.
But the more you study about gemstones and their properties, the more reliable this
practical approach will be for you...and the less equipment you will rely on when you are
in the field. But don't get me wrong...its great to have a refractometer and polariscope to
confirm your findings. But the key is to be able to make identifications without having to
carry all of the equipment and reference books.

Before we continue, lets review your HOME WORK assignment for Week 1. The home
work assignments are to memorize the basic properties for a certain list of gemstones.
You will never be able to apply the principles of practical gem identification unless you
can memorize certain facts and properties about certain gemstones that you normally see.
So while the list is nothing like the 10 properties for 60 gemstones I had to learn for the
FGA (that's 600 properties you have to know when you go into the exam) I am asking
each of you to learn the refractive index, double or single refractive nature, most often
seen colors, and the spectrum of gemstones that I present to you each week. If you will
memorize these few properties, I guarantee you that you will be able to make practical
gem identifications for most of the gemstones you will see. Here is HomeWork for Week
One:

 Home Work for Week :

Memorize the Refractive Index, Refractive Nature (double or single), Most often seen colors, and
spectrum (if any) for these stones:

Alexandrite...Amethyst...Andalusite...Amber...Aquamarine...Chrysoberyl...Cubic Zirconia
The easiest way to do this is to make yourself a "flash card" like we used to use in school. Where you
write the name of the stone on one side and all of the properties above on the other and learn them by
sight. You can find the spectrum of any gemstones listed in the Spectroscope section here on
YourGemologist.com. Down load the image and print out...or just review on screen until you recognize
them proper spectrum. Believe me....its the one part of this class that you will hate the most...and the one
that will stay with you and serve you better then everything else. So take a little time this week and learn
these properties by memory.
Now, let's talk about what makes a gemstone. Let's talk first about what attributes go in
to allow a material to be accepted as a gemstone...

Section 2 What qualifications make a gemstone

Here are the important attributes for a

gemstone....

Let's first remember that a gem material does not have to be a stone. Many other
materials are also gems, such as amber, coral, pearls, and others. But regardless of the
source, all gem materials must possess three properties to be classified as gems. First they
must have beauty. Let's face it, if its not pretty no one will want to buy it. So the material
must have beauty. Second, it must be durable. If it does not wear well and breaks easily
it just won't make it as a gem because it will not last. Think of some stones like kunzite
that are very nice gemstones and were once very popular, but they are very fragile. So the
popularity level greatly decreased in just a few years. They were pretty but not very
durable so they have not done very well as gemstones. And finally, a material must be
available. There must be enough of it available to create and sustain a market. A
beautiful gemstone that has a lot durability is great, but who is going to go to the trouble
to create a demand for the stone if there is not enough available to sustain the demand by
consumers. Such as was the case with Paraiba tourmaline. The genuine material was
mined for only about two years. And although there is still material being mined that is
close, none has truly duplicated the finest Paraiba tourmaline that was mined from Brazil.
A large market was started for the stone, but there was just not enough to meet demand,
and the marketability of the stone crashed. Today it sells for very high prices, but is just
not a major player in gemstone markets because there is not enough to go around. So for
a gem material to be truly a gem it must be beautiful enough to make someone want to
buy it, be durable enough to withstand a lot of wear and tear, and be available enough to
supply a large market of demand.
Section 3 What is a gemstone?
Now here is a question that many people ask. And the answer is not what you have read
above. Because the question is not what makes a gemstone. The question is: What goes in
to creating a gemstone. What physically is a gemstone made of? Ask any gemologist:
What is a colorless sapphire? And you will probably get the answer: A colorless sapphire
is a corundum without coloring elements? But that is not the answer. The answer is: A
colorless sapphire is pure aluminum oxide in crystalline form. In other words, a sapphire
is a crystalline form of aluminum, like the foil on your sandwich today, and oxygen, as in
the air that you breath. In fact and indeed, that is what a colorless sapphire is really made
from Air and Aluminum Foil. Let's see how this works.

Here is a basic sapphire

molecule...

You get one atom of aluminum and two atoms of oxygen and you get an aluminum oxide
as shown in the photograph above. Now...for all of you science majors I know that this is
something of a simplification of this concept, but remember...this is practical gem ID, not
science of gemstones so please indulge me for some of my drawings.

At any rate, above you see what starts a sapphire growing. And growing I mean that one
when the crystal forms it literally grows. As one molecule joins to another..to another...to
another..until you get something that starts looking like this:
aluminum oxide molecules joining up to form crystal

Before too long the group starts getting bigger until it is visible and an aluminum oxide
crystal forms that we call colorless corundum.

Building layer, upon layer, upon

layer...
..upon layer...upon layer...

I think you get the point. This is how crystals grow and how many of the most popular
gemstones form. And the crystal shapes that you see at the end of this assignment are the
same formations of the very first tiny atoms that started the gemstone crystal growing.
Now, you can look at the pages of YourGemologist.com and see the chemical structure of
most gemstones. Such as opal which is SiO2 or silicon oxide. Just like the silicon in your
silicon glue and the oxygen you breath. And an amethyst is the same as the opal. Silicon
oxide...but more on that later. For now, let's go learn how the gemstones form in nature
on a much larger scale.
 Section 4 How Gemstones Form
We are going to cover the basic formation processes in this section. Mainly for you to
understand how gemstones form in the earth, but not as far as some gemology courses
will take you. Because the study of gemstone formation is a very long and interesting
topic that I hope you will continue to study...but we will not have time to deal with here
beyond a basic understanding.

Gemstones, for the most part, form as crystals inside various formations in the earth. In
some cases, such as diamonds, they form deep within the earth and then are brought to
the surface by volcanic action. This volcanic rock comes to the surface of the earth in a
type of rock known as igneous. And is formed by molten lava pushing its way to the
surface and providing a source of gem bearing rock. Below is an example of where
igneous rock has pushed its way to the surface in this formation of Texas Pink Granite
found in Mason, County Texas,

Igneous rock formation

A type of formation that also occurs as a result of this magma intrusion that creates these
igneous rocks is the pegmatite dike. This is a place where the magma, or sometimes a hot
water solution caused by the magma, have pushed into a pre-existing rock and caused the
contact area where the two meet to melt. In this contact zone where the pegmatite dike
intrusion and the host rock melt and cool is where many gemstone crystals are formed. In
fact, most of the gemstone formations of Brazil are due to pegmatite dikes intruding into
the host rock. Some of the pegmatite dikes there can be many kilometers long and many
meters wide. This is where gemstones like amethyst, citrine, tourmaline and topaz form,
and why Brazil is such a rich source of gemstones. Here is a view of a very small
pegmatite dike from Mason County Texas that produces topaz. You can see it live on my
video, Gemology in Motion. The picture below is YourGemologist's Jeep at one of the
sites of a pegmatite dike. Notice the long slender intrusion into the rock. This is where
very, very hot water under extremely high pressure forced its way into cracks in the rock
and melted some of the host rock material. The contact zone of the pegmatite intrusion
and the host rock is where most gemstones are found. Because of high silicon content
most pegmatite dikes create large veins of solid white quartz when they cool. With the
gemstones forming out of the liquid solution before total cooling takes place.

View of pegmatite dike intrusion as white lines

Close up showing quartz interior of vein

Very close up view of quartz pegmatite

 Tourmaline crystal in pegmatite quartz from
Brazil

Sometimes the intrusion of the pegmatite dike causes the host rock to be so heated and so
compressed that it becomes a metamorphic rock, meaning that it changes its form. This
is due to the rock becoming re-melted and recrystallizing based on what elements are
present. Below you will see a place, also from Mason County, Texas, where a pegmatite
dike has pushed into the rock and changed it to black schist. There are many gemstones
formed when this occurs as crystals are allowed to form when the rock is remelted. Some
gemstones that occur in metamorphic rocks include ruby, sapphire, chrysoberyl, and
emerald.

View of pegmatite intrusion with black schist

forming around it

And finally, there is the sedimentary rock. As shown below this is a rock that is formed
from igneous and metamorphic rock being eroded and washed into the sea floor. After
many millions of years the layers become so deep and so heavy that heat and pressure
causes the sandy sediments to form a rock called limestone which is mostly a calcium
carbonate. Sometimes sea creatures can be found in this type of rock which come out as
fossils. And occasionally an ancient sea sponge will be found in the form of a flint
nodule from which the American Indians made arrow heads and cutting tools. These flint
nodules form where a sea sponge was covered up. And since the sea sponge body was
almost pure silicon, its remains form this nodule of flint. So whenever you see a flint
arrow head, you are actually seeing the fossilized remains of a very ancient sea creature.

Layering of sediments to form rock

While there are not a lot of gemstones found in sedimentary rock, it should be noted that
a type of limestone that has been subjected to tremendous heat and pressure occasionally
forms a rock we know as marble which is used for tile floors. This is limestone that has
been subjected to heat and pressure, usually by an intrusion of magma that causes the
change. Now that we know what a gemstone is and how it forms...let's find out how it
gets its colors...

Section 5 Why do gemstones

have color?
Remember the graphic below about the colorless sapphire? Well, the next important
study is how do we get from this colorless corundum we call white or colorless sapphire
into a red corundum we call ruby. (Note: To avoid confusion I should point out that all
other colors of corundum are called sapphire while the red color is called ruby) This will
be our study example for what gemstones have color. But the concept will apply pretty
far across the gemstone list...with a few exceptions that we will discuss later. For now,
let's consider that most gemstones in their purest state will be colorless. Such
as...colorless quartz, colorless beryl, colorless tourmaline, colorless topaz, colorless
corundum, and on down the list. Mainly because in their original state of formation there
is nothing to provide any color. For instance the colorless sapphire below. The pure state
of being of these stones, being one atom of aluminum and two atoms of oxygen, have
nothing to offer in the way of color. So what we need is an impurity to get into the
structure. Which is how most gemstones get their color...due to impurities in their
crystal structure.

Let's first take a look back at our colorless sapphire crystal. That being a colorless crystal
of corundum. You remember that it has two oxygen atoms and one aluminum atom
making up the corundum molecule.

Colorless sapphire or
corundum

Now, let's imagine that in the hot mixture from which the corundum is starting to cool
and crystallize there is an ever so tiny amount of chromium running around in the mix
which attaches itself to the aluminum oxide crystal and suddenly we have a mixture of
aluminum, oxygen and chromium like this:

Add chromium to the mix

and it becomes a ruby

But how does the chromium cause color in a corundum that makes it red? Well, we are
not going into the physics of how it takes 2.5eV of...well, I said we weren't going into
that didn't I. Suffice it to say that the presents of chromium causes a red color to be given
off. How, because the chromium absorbs most of the other visible wavelengths of white
light and transmits a red color that is sent to your eye. But more on that when we talk
about the spectroscope in a couple of weeks. For now, let's just look at the graphic below.
And keep in mind the graphic of the colorless sapphire crystal and compare it to the ruby
crystal. As you will note the ruby crystal is the same chemical make-up as the colorless
sapphire except that it contains this impurity of chromium attached to the moleculte. And
this atom of chromium causes the molecule to transmit a red color. The molecule might
look something like this:

The corundum molecule with the

chromium impurity

The crystal grows with

the chromium
 Soon the
crystal gets large enough to see...

And finally..large enough to cut

and facet a ruby...
Compare to the same colorless sapphire crystal and the ruby crystal...the only difference
is the presents of chromium to add color

While this may be a very simple demonstration of how a gemstone gets color, it is still a
very good example of how a colorless gemstone gains color. Now, if we were to do the
same demonstration above and use a double impurity of iron and titanium...we would
get a blue sapphire.

The same type of demonstration could be done with beryllium aluminum silicate. With
no impurity it is colorless beryl. But add this same chromium as above with ruby and,
viola', you get a fine green emerald (more on how chromium can cause both green
emeralds and red rubies later). But put some uranium in that beryllium aluminum
silicate and you get golden beryl of heliodor. But some iron in it and you get an
aquamarine. Change out the silicon from the beryllium aluminum and add oxide (O2),
throw in some chromium and you get alexandrite.

I'm getting you off into the deep end of the chemical end of gemology, but I think you all
get the point. Most gemstones are colorless in their pure state. It is the presence of
impurities that give most gemstones their individual colors.
Now, you may be asking yourself, "what is the importance of studying the impurities of
gemstones that cause color? Well, for one thing, these same impurities that cause color
also cause inclusions in gemstones by which we are able to identify many of them. And
perhaps more important to our purposes, these chemical impurities will often have a
characteristic absorption spectrum that let's us know that they are present when we use a
spectroscope. In fact, if you notice the two railroad lines in the absorption spectra below
(at the red end of the spectrum) you will see the result of the presence of chromium in a
ruby. These two lines tell us that we have a crystal like the diagram shown above.

Impurities tell us alot about a gemstones

identification

I wanted you to see how the presence of an impurity in the crystal tells us a lot about the
stone, but we will go more into the use of the spectroscope next week. For now, it is
important for you to know that the impurities in most gemstones are the major causes of
color. Impurities are the major causes of inclusions. And impurities are one of the best
sources of identification properties of colored gemstones.

Sectio
n 6. The Seven Crystal Systems
Most gemstones grow in shapes we call crystals. A crystal is a large formation of the
orderly arrangement of atoms that could be taken down to the most basic size and still
maintain its shape that we see in the larger version. Certain gemstones will grow in
certain crystal systems. The crystal systems are separated by their various type of
symmetry. Which can be also states as the crystal systems having their own specific
shapes. Sometimes crystals can grow quite large. Most likely with stones that grow in
pegmatite dikes. Those being in particular quartz and topaz. Many topaz crystals grow to
weigh several tons or thousands of kilos. Below you see a single quartz crystal showing
the classic quartz crystal system structure of a trigonal shape.
 Single quartz crystal of about 2 meters in height
photographed by YourGemologist in Tucson

Obviously, you could cut a lot of quartz gemstones from this crystal. Which means the
price of the gemstones would be very low since there would be a very large number
available. Sometimes gemstones only grow in very small crystals, as in the case of the
rare green form of garnet known as tsavorite, or the previously mentioned red beryls that
I like to call red emeralds. These stones are rare and only small faceted examples are
available. Meaning that anything of a larger size of 1.00 carat or more will be quite rare
and expensive. So knowing what kind of crystals that a gemstone produces will help you
better understand some of the price aspects of the gemstones.

Sometimes you will have one crystal growing inside of another crystal. This is an
important way in which many inclusions get into gemstones. When one crystal is
growing in the same proximity of another crystal...but the first is either growing faster, or
most likely the other crystal has already stopped growing and is engulfed by the first.
Here is an example of how a ruby crystal can become an inclusion in a diamond:

Two small crystals, one diamond and one ruby, with the diamond
crystal still growing..
 As the diamond crystal grows it starts to engulf the ruby
crystal

Eventually the ruby is taken over and inside the

diamond..

The ruby is now an included crystal in

the diamond

Here is another example of one crystal growing inside of another. In this case one quartz
crystal growing inside of another. And the cutter was good enough to be able to facet the
end of the finished gemstone to coincide with the natural crystal termination of the
included crystal. In this case it is referred to as a phantom crystal.

This photograph and other examples on the

Quartz section on YourGemologist.com

Let's just briefly look at some of the more interesting crystal shapes. You can see them all
in The Seven Crystal Systems section here on YourGemologist.com. Which is why I did
not reprint them here. But I urge you to study all of them as the directional properties of
the crystals will be important as we go along with this class.

Diamond octahedron of the cubic crystal

system,
 A 2 kilo single garnet crystal with 12 sides or
a dodecahedron, also cubic system

Classic tetragonal zircon crystal

Topaz showing termination, a orthorhombic crystal

Classic view of a topaz crystal through the

"C" or long axis.

What?....you may be asking yourself, "do crystals have to do with practical gem
identification? Well quite a lot. In fact, enough to cause you to mis-identify a gemstone if
you are not aware of its crystal system. And before you go on, let me tell you that I have
enough time to teach you just the basics about crystallography. But at least if you see the
importance of the next section it will teach you to do one thing....one very important
thing, that will save you from misidentifying a gemstone. See the topaz crystals shown
above...let's use them as examples. Crystals have what I will simply call crystal axis. This
has to do with the directional property of the light traveling through the gemstone. We
will get into the importance of these next week, but for now I want you to know that
these axis are the directions that light is traveling through the stone. Here is the example
of topaz:

Here are the topaz crystals from above

showing their crystal axis.

The very important points you need to remember: You need to know that gemstones
have more than one axis that provide a direction of light travel. And therefore, gemstones
have more than one direction for you to test with your gemological equipment. To put it
another way.....always rotate your stone you are testing to make sure you are seeing all
of the possible light reactions. It is very important that you know that gemstones can
give you different reactions to gem testing equipment based on what direction you are
looking at them from. Want a real life example? Here is a great one from the pages of
YourGemologist.com. (and you gem cutters already know this one)

Notice in the first photograph that the light is entering this tourmaline from the sides, or
the "A" or "B" axis, and is showing a nice green color of the gemstone:

Green color showing when light enters through side or,

"A" or "B" axis
Now, look at this very same tourmaline when the light is transmitted through the end or
the "C" axis...

Stone remains dark except for very end...

This shows you the directional properties of tourmalines based on which direction you
are seeing it. Two important things here: If you were testing this tourmaline with a
dichroscope and looked at it through the end what would you see? Darkness. If you were
testing this stone with a dichroscope and looked at it with the light transmitted into it
from the side? Green. This is exactly the point of why you need to be aware of crystal
structure of gemstones, and why you need to be sure and rotate any gemstone you are
testing to be sure you are seeing the whole story. And finally, if you were faceting this
tourmaline where would you place the table? Parallel to the "C" axis or perpendicular to
the "C" axis. Guesses? The table would have to be parallel to the "C" axis to allow the
green color to be transmitted. If it were perpendicular to the "C" axis the stone would
look dark, dark green almost black. Have you every seen these dark green/almost black
tourmalines and wondered what happened to them? Now you know. I urge you to study
The Seven Crystal Systems section here on YourGemologist.com to learn more.

Section 7 You need to memorize this chart

As we go along this course you are going to need to know basic properties of a basic set
of gemstones by memory. That is the foundation and the key to practical gem
identification. No one is going to make full use of this class if you do not take a little
effort and memorize just the basics. Remember, the FGA exam required that we
memorize 600 properties...so no one can complain. Right? Right!. The purpose of this
chart is to give you a structure in which to separate gemstones by their refractive
character and optic sign. Why do you need to know this? Because during the course of
this class you will learn things such as how to separate tanzanite from all of its imitators
with nothing more than a dichroscope and a Chelsea filter. But you need to know why
you can make that separation. And it does not require a lot of theory. Only that you know
that tanzanite is orthorhombic in crystal system. And then you will know that only
gemstones on the orthorhombic system can be trichroic...which tanzanite is and all but
one of its imitators is not. So memorize this simple chart and I promise you it will keep
you from having to carry a lot of reference books and "A" charts when you travel. Until
then, good luck on your Week One Exam. I will look forward to se how you are doing.
Let me know if you have any questions. Best, Robert James FGA, GG PS...If anyone
wants to actually see the crystal systems and many of the other aspects of Practical Gem
ID, you should get the video, Gemology in Motion. Not a commercial, just that the
information is available on video if you want to see it. rj
And finally, for those of you who read all of this first assignment and are thinking...Geez,
I thought it was a practical course and not so much theory? Let me say this: The best
practical applications must have a foundation of theory. So we have two weeks of this
and then on to the fun stuff. So hang in there. When you actually start seeing these
concepts applied to Practical Gem Identification...you are going to say to yourself...Oh,
Now I get it! Here's the chart you need to memorize.

Week Two
Section 1 Introduction
Welcome to Practical Gem Identification Class: Week 2. I have made some modifications
from the original course syllabus for the next two weeks. Mainly because when I started
to organize the idea of Gemstone Properties and Gemological Equipment, it was going to
take a lot of going back and forth on your part to put the equipment with the property if I
did not post the information together. And since these two weeks are the main foundation
for the next 5 weeks of actual gem ID, I thought I should try to keep it as simple as
possible. So rather than add confusion, I decided to combine the study of Gemstone
Properties with the proper Gemological Equipment used to test and verify those
properties. This way, you will learn the property and the equipment used to test it at the
same time. Plus, most of this information is already available on YourGemologist.com so
I did not think it necessary to restate what has already been stated. But there is additional
information not on the regular website that I believe you will find of use. I hope this is of
service.

Let's first talk about properties. In fact, let's list the most important. Here they are in no
particular order...

Dichroism
Absorption of light or Spectra
Optical Character and Optic Sign
Refractive Index
Specific Gravity
Ultra Violet Light Reaction or Fluorescence
Misc (ie...Chelsea filter reactions, etc...)
Before we get into the study lets just briefly go over each and what it means.
Dichroism
This is a term that has to do with a gemstones ability to split a beam of light into two or
more beams. Gemstones in the cubic system (from your chart from last week) will not
have any dichroism since they only produce one color. These are sometimes referred to
as being isotropic which is a term used for gemstones in the cubic system that transmit
only one color. Gemstones that are anisotropic will include all the rest, that being
gemstones in the uniaxial and biaxial group from your chart, which may transmit more
than one color. Now, there are two categories of anisotropic gemstones: Uniaxial and
Biaxial. Uniaxial gemstones will be members of the dichroic group (producing two
colors), while biaxial gemstones will be trichroic (producing three color).
Please remember this: Not all biaxial gemstones produce three colors, but all gemstones
that produce three colors are biaxial. Examples include andalusite and tanzanite, both of
which we will see in the coming weeks. But suffice it to say that dichroism is the
splitting of light into individual beams and the ability of a gem instrument to identify
those beams.
Absorption or Spectra
This is, of course the spectral colors that are transmitted by a gemstone that can be seen
with a spectroscope.
Optical Character and Sign
The optical character will be the positioning of the gemstone within our chart as far as
being uniaxial, biaxial or cubic (isotropic). The sign will be the minus(-) or plus (+) that
we will not be going into with this course. It is not that necessary to know this and we
will have limited time as it is. We discussed this some in the last discussion room but if
anyone has more questions please let me know.
Refractive Index
The ability of a gemstone to slow the speed of light as it passes through the gem material.
The slowing of light causes its path to bend, which is tested with a refractometer.
Specific Gravity
The difference of the weight of a gemstone as compared to an equal volume of water.
The specific gravity of water is one (1). A topaz specific gravity is 3.53. Therefore topaz
is 3.52 times denser than an equal size of water taking the same space.
Ultra Violet Reaction
This is the ability for a gemstone to slow down light traveling at a very high or ultra
violet speed and making it visible to our eyes. Different stones will react differently to
different types of UV light.
Misc.
We will look at the various types of extra equipment that is used to identify gemstones
based on unusual characteristics.
Before we go on let's look at the HomeWork for Week 2
 Home Work for Week 2:

Memorize the Refractive Index, Refractive Nature (double or single), Most often seen colors, and
spectrum (if any) for these stones:

Diamond....Emerald....Iolite....Jadeite....Nephrite....Topaz....Peridot
The easiest way to do this is to make yourself a "flash card" like we used to use in school. Where you
write the name of the stone on one side and all of the properties above on the other and learn them by
sight. You can find the spectrum of any gemstones listed in the Spectroscope section here on
YourGemologist.com. Down load the image and print out...or just review on screen until you recognize
them proper spectrum. Believe me....its the one part of this class that you will hate the most...and the one
that will stay with you and serve you better then everything else. So take a little time this week and learn
these properties by memory.

Dichroscope / Dichroism
Now that we have seen a quick overview of the major properties, lets look at the
properties and the equipment used to identify the properties.We will start with dichroism
which requires a dichroscope to identify and observe the property. Let's start with the red
ruby that we built last week out of aluminum, oxygen and chromium. If you remember
we used these elements to create a corundum with chromium impurities called a ruby. If
we look at this ruby with a dichroscope we will see that the red color is actually made of
a darker red and a lighter pink color. This is because the ruby is in the hexagonal crystal
system, meaning that it is dichroic and will offer two colors. In this case, dark red and
light pink. Below is an example of how the ruby produces these colors. It does do by
absorbing almost all...but not quite all..of the other colors than red...and transmitting the
red color to your eye. Look at the graphic below to get an idea of how this works:
And of course, we can use a dichroscope to be able to separate these colors and see them
individually. But why do we have to separate them to see them? Because the colors of
light pink to dark red are so close on the spectrum that our eyes cannot separate them, but
instead combine them in our brains to be one color....a combination of both. However,
with a tanzanite the colors are so far apart that are being transmitted (blue/purple) that
our brains can actually see them at the same time. Which is why a tanzanite can look
blue/purple at the same time but a ruby will just look red. It is directly affected by how
close to each other on the spectrum the colors are.
The graphic below shows how the dichroscope works. A more intense study of the
dichroscope follows this section.

Now, how does the dichroscope allow us to see the separate colors of a dichroic
gemstones. Below is an overview of the use of the dichroscope from
YourGemologist.com that is very important for you to read and understand....
What is it?: This is a simple but highly important gemological tool that allows the
gemologist to view the separate colors that a gemstone produces, as it selectively absorbs
certain wavelengths of light, while allowing others to pass through to the viewer. Many
gemstones, such as garnet, spinel, and diamond, are single refractive and therefore offer
only one color to the viewer. But most other gemstones are double refractive, meaning
that they produce two or more colors of transmitted light...most of which the human eye
cannot separate because they are so close in wavelength or color, that they cannot be
separated by our eyes and seen as individual colors. The exceptions being tanzanite and
andalusite, to name two, that offer colors that are so different that our eyes can actually
see the two or more colors without the need of any gemological equipment. But for the
most part, gemstones offer two or more colors that our eyes put together to make the final
visible gemstone color that we see. For instance, a medium red ruby is made of a dark red
and a light pink color. Put the two together and you get medium red. But look at it
through a dichroscope and you can separate and see the dark red and lighter pink. Which
is an important tool in separating ruby from red spinel, for instance. Since red spinel is
single refractive and only offers one color of red, while a ruby will offer the two colors.
This is the importance of the dichroscope and why no gemologist should be without one.
Why it works:
Light travels in waves...just like the waves on an ocean. And the shorter the wave the
more blue the color, the longer the wave the more red the color. The dichroscope works
on the concept of plane polarized light. This is light that has been separated out from the
ordinary ambient light into its specific wavelength and specific direction of travel. With,
for instance, one wave traveling up and down, and with another traveling side to side. By
separating these beams into their specific plane of travel, we are able to view the
individual colors being generated by the specific wavelengths. As shown below:

Tanzanite in regular transmitted light and through a London dichroscope

below:
(please note that colors vary due to internet transmission)
The dichroscope allows us to easily view these individual directions that light is traveling
and, therefore, see the individual colors. Here is the information on the two types of
dichroscope:

London Dichroscope
This handy tool is made of two polarizing filters that operate under the same principle as
the polarizing sun glasses you may wear. Each filter allows light to only light waves
traveling in one direction to pass through. Therefore only allowing only the color of that
light wave to pass through. With two polarizing filters set as shown below, the London
dichroscope is able to present the various colors being transmitted in a lightweight and
affordable gemological tool.
 

Calcite Dichroscope
More expensive than the London dichroscope, the calcite dichroscope utilizes two calcite
crystals set in a tube holder at 90 degree angles to one another. Since calcite strongly
divides light passing through it (see the Divided Highway in Teachers Demonstrations),
the calcite crystals allow us to view the light waves in the various direction based on how
the calcite crystals are turned. Therefore, the calcite dichroscope acts in the same manner
as the London dichroscope but using calcite crystals as the polarizing filters. The calcite
dichroscope will show more dramatic color changes and give a stronger reaction than the
London dichroscope, but is also more expensive and a requires a bit more care during
travel. Here is how the calcite dichrosope works:
Here are a few examples of how the dichroscope can help in gemology. Below is the
same andalusite pendant. Notice that you eye can see, even in this digital photograph, the
green adn brown colors in andalusite. But there is a third color you cannot see...which is
colorless. Notice that these three photographs are of the same pendant and viewed first in
plain light, and second and third through a London dichroscope. If we turned the stone
another direction we would see the green color also.

Andalusite in regular daylight or ambient light showing green and

brown colors.
 Andalusite through one side of a London dichroscope
showing brown color only.

Same view of the same stone showing that andalusite is

trichroic, meaning it has three colors. And what we are seeing here is the third
color...which is colorless...of the same green and red andalusite shown above in the
photograph at the top. This is a dramatic vision of how a dichroscope can give you a
diagnostic reaction to a gemstone by viewing from various angles. In this case a trichroic
andalusite or green, brown, and colorless colors.
No proper gemological lab will be without a dichroscope. And no proper gemological test
is complete without viewing the stone is several directions with the dichroscope. Because
while some gemstones can give you the same basic reaction in a refractometer and
therefore be difficult to separate, the follow up test with the dichroscope will often serve
as the determining factor. And they are great to carry on the road.

Spectroscope / Absorption of Light

Now, let's move on to the spectrum of light that a gemstone produces. When ambient
light, that is just regular light available in your room or office, enters a gemstone it
contains all the visible wavelengths of light. The color is generated by the gemstone by
selective absorption. That being that the gemstone will selectively absorb certain
wavelengths of light and allow others to pass through to your eye. When the colors
absorbed are almost all but the red, and the red is transmitted to your eye, the gemstone
will look red. However, it is very important to know that not all the wavelengths except
red were absorbed. With any colored gemstone there is a variety of light waves or colors
being allowed through. And these make a pattern or spectrum of light that we can see
with a spectroscope. In doing so, we are not only able to see the light being transmitted
by the stones, we can see the light that is not transmitted because the stone has absorbed
it. This absorption is due to certain elements that we will talk about shortly.
Look at the graphic below. It shows the same view as above of our ruby transmitting red
light. However, there is more here than meets the eye.

When we look at the red ruby through a spectroscope we find that there are a number of
other colors being transmitted that our eyes cannot see. In the case of this ruby there are
greens, blues, yellows, and others. How can this ruby be red with all these other colors
getting through? Because the red is a dominant color that over shadows the other colors.
And you eye will see the red and miss the others. But the spectroscope will not miss
them. Look at the example below and see how the ruby is generating the various
colors...then look at the actual spectrum of ruby in the photograph below and see how the
actual colors being generated through the spectroscope match those in the graphic:
Now, let's take a more indepth study of the spectroscope and gemstone spectrums and
learn more about this important gemological tool:
What is it?: This handy piece of equipment is perhaps the most important tool in
gemology, although GIA students generally get a limited exposure to its use. The
spectroscope breaks up the light being transmitted from a gemstone into its spectral
colors, which allows the gemologist to see the various wavelengths that are being
absorbed by the gemstone. Thereby allowing the gemologist to know what elements are
contained in the gemstone that are causing the absorption. Making this one of the most
important tools in identifying gemstones.
How does it work?: Elements within a gemstone will absorb certain levels of energy.
And light is energy. Therefore certain elements in a gemstone will absorb certain colors
of light based on what energy level they are absorbing. The spectroscope allows us to see
which color of light, or energy, is being absorbed, thereby allowing us to know what
elements are in a gemstone. This, in turn, allows us to know more about the gemstone,
ie...identification, where it came from, what causes it to have color, etc....
When you look through a spectroscope you will see lines or bands missing from the
colors. This is where elements within the stone have absorbed that level of energy or
light, letting us know that the element exists within the stone. Here is an example of the
absorption spectrum of zircon:

Here is an absorption spectrum of almandine garnet:

The wavelengths of light are measured in nanometers. Abbreviated nm. These number
are applied to the scale of the spectrum as a guide to show what wavelengths are being
absorbed. It should be noted that gemologists should learn to use the spectroscope
without having these numbers necessary. Since most hand held spectroscopes will not
have these scales visible through the unit. So know where the numbers are, but learn to
use your spectroscope without the need to have them visible.
You can see that the elements contained are very different. You can also see why you can
identify many gemstones with nothing more than a spectroscope based on the elements
contained in them.
What is the story behind the spectroscope?: There are two types of spectroscope. The
prism and the diffraction grating. The prism spectroscope is composed of three optical
grade glass prisms in optical contact with each other as shown below, and the diffraction
grating spectroscope uses a diffraction plate to break up the light beam. Here is how the
two types work:

Prism Spectroscope

The prism spectroscope will squeeze the red end of the spectrum making it difficult to see
some of the absorption lines in that end. However, the prism models will usually have a
focus slide control and a light slit control that allows for adjustments in the amount of
light entering the unit.

Diffraction Grating Spectroscope

The diffraction grating unit will show a uniform spectra across the enter band. Making
the red end of the spectrum far easier to read than the prism.
 Remember: In the United States spectroscopes are used with
the red end to the right, in other parts of the world the spectroscope is
used with the red end to the left. This is important to remember when
looking at any gemstone and comparing with reference material.
There are many models of the spectroscope available. From the hand held version as
shown at the top of this page which is a hand held diffraction grating model. To the large
table top models with lighted scales that you can see through the view hole. Most
gemologists should learn with a hand held model without the scale...so you will be able to
use it in the field without the need for the big expensive model that you cannot carry.

Using the spectroscope with a microscope

light base
For those of you who own a gemological microscope there is a reason why your overhead
fluorescent light has that bendable arm. The reason is to be able to use it for your
spectroscope light base. It amazingly easy and costs far less than having to spend
thousands of dollars on an expensive lighted based from a gemological institute. Here's
how it works:
Using the spectroscope with a homemade
light base.
The use of the spectroscope is dependent on the light source that you are using. Simply
trying to look through a gemstone while holding a hand torch...while holding a
spectroscope....well any of you who have tried know its more than a little tricky. So I
spent some time today and created a home-made light base using nothing more than a
pair of scissors, a empty toilet paper tube, a few black circles created with my computer
printer, and a hand torch. I hope this helps you out in your studies:
Now....what are you seeing??????
That's the question everyone is asking....what am I supposed to be seeing? The spectrum
reference list is great if you have a multi-thousand dollar laboratory spectroscope, but
what about those of us with the basic models? Well, below are some examples of what
you should be seeing to give you some idea of what you should really be looking for.
And for the record, these are actual photographs I took today through my Sony Mavica
and an OPL Diffraction Grating Spectroscope. So don't anyone think this is just what the
experts are seeing. If I can photograph these by simply putting the digital camera up to
the eye piece, I guarantee that you can see the same thing and better with your eyes. (And
I hope that if I am remembered for nothing else, its the fact that I was able to get some
good photographs using the most basic and inexpensive equipment out on the market.....)
Here are some examples:
Here is a list of absorption spectrums for many gemstones....As a test, specifically
compare the lines and bands in the photograph above for synthetic ruby with the one
shown below for ruby, This will give you a good comparison of how the examples below
will look for you in real life.

Absorption Spectra (with

diffraction grating)
Yellow Diamond

Ruby

Red Spinel

Emerald

Notice the "railroad lines" (660nm) from chromium in ruby, spinel,

emerald above,
and in the alexandrite below.
Alexandrite (chrysoberyl)

Yellow Chrysoberyl

Enstatite

Almandine Garnet

Demantoid Garnet

Yellow Apatite

Natural Blue Sapphire

Natural Blue Spinel

Synthetic Blue Spinel (with 3 band cobalt lines)

Peridot

Blue and Green Tourmaline

Pink Tourmaline

Zircon

Polariscope / Optic Character and Sign

The polariscope takes some practice to use to its fullest extent. Rotating the stone to see if
it is double refractive or single refractive is fairly simple. However, getting good at
being able to spot and see the interference figure is more difficult. This figure will give
you the optic character, and will tell you if the stone is uniaxial or biaxial. So the
polariscope is very important for many identifications but takes some practice to use to its
fullest extent. Let's take a look at the use of the polariscope:
What is it?: A polariscope is a gemological instrument that tests for a gemstone being
double or single refractive, and will allow us to find the various crystal axis of the stone.
Which is where is got its name: Polar-scope..the a scope to see the poles or axis of the
stone. Now, if you remember the section on the dichroscope, the use of plane polarized
light allows us to see the different colors of light being transmitted by a gemstone. The
polariscope, however, allows us to actually see the path that those beams are taking
through the stone. By knowing that the stone is double refractive, we can use the optic
interference figure to actually find the various optical directions that the light is traveling
through the stone, and thereby make identifications based on this information.
Let's clarify this concept. As we found with the dichroscope, single refractive gemstones
do not break the light beam up into various colors. Meaning that one beam in and one
beam out. There are relatively few gemstones that are single refractive, and identification
of those stones is fairly easy owing to their rarity. There are a lot of double refractive
gemstones though. Some break up a beam of light into two beams...like ruby, sapphire
and emerald...while others break up a beam of light into three separate beams...like
tanzanite and andalusite. What the polariscope does is allow us to see the different
directions that the light is traveling through the stone. How? By allowing us to see the
optic interference figure that the light beam creates as it travels through the stone.
It is truly a defining moment in the life of any gemologist when they first are able to find
and identify their first optic interference figure. The first time you actually see a quartz
bulls-eye you will (if you are like me) sit back in your chair for a minute and contemplate
the wonder of not only seeing this figure, but realizing that what you are seeing is the
path of a beam of light through a gemstone. This is a truly wonderful event...even if some
of the old timer's are too far removed from their own event to remember. I
remember...and it was 28 years ago that I found my first uniaxial interference figure.
Admittedly, it did not rival seeing my son take his first breath....but it was an astounding
event nonetheless.
There is a lot of technical gemology that we do not have room to cover here regarding the
polariscope and what it is actually telling you. But if you will take a few minutes and
learn what it is saying, perhaps later we can spend more time and understand the why it is
saying it. But for now, learn the what of the polariscope, it will allow you to make
gemstone identifications from a very early time in your study. And we will take up the
why in another section and at another time. First, you should learn the parts of the
polariscope:

Why it works: As stated above, the polariscope works by transmitting plane polarized
light into a gemstone. When you turn both of the polaroid plates to the dark position as
shown below, a single refractive gemstone will not change the path of that light, and the
stone will remain dark in all positions. With double refractive stones, however, the stone
will actually change the path of the light, thereby changing the direction of the wave of
light, and create a plane of light that is no longer polarized. It is this beam of light that
has had its direction of travel changed that makes the stone turn light to dark as you rotate
it between the polaroid plates. This is how the polariscope works. But wait...it does more.
With the use of a conoscope you can actually see that beam of light travel through the
stone in what we referred to above as an optic interference figure. The conoscope is a
simple glass sphere that has no internal strain to give false strain readings as shown with
the amber below. With the conoscope, and some people can do the same thing with a 10x
loupe, you can actually see the optic interference figure, which will tell you whether a
stone is uniaxial or biaxial. More on that later. Here are some test results you will see for
single and double refractive gemstones, and an interesting aspect regarding the
polariscope's ability to identify strain in a gemstone.
The quick test results: DR or SR and Internal Strain:
A polariscope will tell you certain things about a gemstone without much time or effort.
By simply holding the stone between the polaroid plates you can identify the stone as
being double refractive (DR) or single refractive (SR), and whether a gem material has
internal strain that could cause damage to a stone easily. Here are examples of both....

 Note: Single refractive gemstones will r

But as always...there are exceptions. Som
refraction. However, for an experienced
reaction is considerably different from a
demonstrate anomalous double refractio
   
Even rough stones and crystals will show double refraction with a polariscope as shown
by this view of the same quartz crystal in the light and dark position between the polaroid
plates.
 
 
 
 
Determining internal stress and strain in a gemstone
with a polariscope....
Many gemstones have internal stress and strain (don't we all) that can cause the gem to be
more susceptible to breakage. By viewing the stone through the polaroid plates you can
see the internal strain by way of a rainbow of colors, called interference colors. The
presence of these colors allow the goldsmith to detect these problems before doing any
repair work on a gemstone. Here is what internal strain via interference colors looks like
in a gem material often used to demonstrate this phenomena....

Testing for Optical Character with a polariscope:

Determining the optic character of a gemstone is a very important test that can be done
with the polariscope through actual observation of the optical interference figure. The
refractometer can also identify this characteristic by taking the various readings and
determining the stones optic character. However, it is easier and faster to do this with a
polariscope, if you know what you are looking for. Gemstones will have three basic
possibilities with the polariscope: Single Refractive, Double Refractive-Uniaxial, and
Double Refractive-Biaxial. It is a matter of advanced study to fully understand the
differences in these types, but being able to identify the optic character will greatly help
you identify a stone. And we can perhaps go more into the why of this at a later time.
However, to see the optic interference figure you should view the gem material between
the polaroid plates and look for a rainbow effect showing through the stone. This will be
different from strain colors which you will see as you get more experience. Once you see
the rainbow effect ,use a conoscope, which is a small glass sphere on a handle, that will
allow you to focus on the interference figure and be able to better see it. Here is an
example of finding an optic interference figure in danburite:

Single Refractive Gemstones: will have no optic character. They are single refractive
and will offer you no optic character to see.
Double Refractive Gemstones: Will offer you a cross hair looking optical character, a
bulls-eye, or a double arrow figure. To see these characters you will place your gemstone
between the two polarizing filters as look for the optic character using the conoscope. If
the gemstones is single refractive, no optic character will be seen. However, if the stone
is double refractive, you should be able to find one of the following figures. But you may
have to take some time and look at the stone from all directions to be able to find it.
Which may make stones set in jewelry difficult to test. But if you look properly, and
practice enough to become experienced in what you are looking for, you will start finding
the optic interference figure fairly easily. Here they are:
This is a basic overview of the purpose and use of a polariscope. There is a lot of
technical gemology behind this information that is not covered. I urge you to use this
page as a basic reference for your polariscope study, and continue with some of the
excellent gemology books and courses available in the industry. But the above should get
you started. If you have questions or problems, let me know.
And for those of you who see your first optic interference figure and it strikes you as
wonderful as it did me, let me know. I always love hearing about others who have that
experience.
Next week...the rest of the gemological instruments and then on to actual gem
identification.
Lesson Three
Section 1 Introduction
Welcome to Practical Gem Identification Class: Week 3. This will be the final week we
deal with specific gemological equipment before moving on to the actual practical
applications of gemstone identification. This week we are going to be discussing three
more gem properties. These are refractive index, specific gravity and fluorescence. Along
with a few other others that will be important to know.

Before we go forward let's identify the three main properties of this week:

Refractive Index refers to the numerical reading on a refractometer that measures the
ability of a gemstone to slow down or bend a beam of light.

Specific gravity refers to the comparison of the volume of a gemstone to the volume of
an equal amount of water.

Fluorescence is the ability of a gemstone to produce optically visible light after acting on
light that is not visible due to it being at a higher wavelength than visible light.

Let's start with refractive index.

Section 2 Refractometer / refractive index

Light travels at approximately 186,000 miles per second traveling through space. But
then light encounters a medium such as water, it is slowed down slightly and its path is
slightly altered or bent. The amount of bending of the path of the light is measured in a
numbering sequence called a refractive index. That is the method of describing the angle
of bending that the a medium is able to do to the light.

Before we go to far into that topic let's stop for a minute and talk about the nature of light
and why it can bend.

Light travels in energy packets called photons. These travel like waves through space.
When they encounter something like a gemstone they will enter and be slowed down
slightly, which causes the waves to be bent and therefore change its direction of travel as
you see in this graphic below...
The degree of bending is related to the density of the material that is being encountered.
Therefore it is possible to determine the amount of bending and therefore determine the
density of the material that the light is traveling in. Here is an example of light traveling
in water.....

But let's go a bit further and see if we can actually change the speed of light and be able
to show how that change reflects in the bending of the light beam...

Below you will see a demonstration from YourGemologist.com regarding the Study of
Refraction. You should visit that page to see the entire demonstration. But what you are
seeing here shows the speed of light in air as demonstrated by (1) the view of the pencil
in air, (2) the view of the pencil on water, and (3) the view of the pencil in water made
more dense by adding sugar to the water. Thereby making the water more dense and
thereby causing the light to slow down just a bit more..and bend just a bit more...

This same thing happens with a gemstone. Some gemstones act like the pencil in water
while some act like the pencil on sugar water. Meaning that each gemstone will have its
own refractive index as it changes the speed of light to a degree individual to that stone.
This is what we call the refractive index. And the amount of bending can be measured by
an instrument called a refractometer.

The refractometer works by sending a beam of light through a glass hemicylinder that is a
controlled density, giving the beam of light a controlled speed. By measuring the change
of this speed after the beam of light interacts with the gemstone, we are able to record on
a visible scale the refractive index of the stone.

Below is a view of the YourGemologist Refractometer, along with a view of the various
parts. You should learn these parts for future reference when discussing refractometers
with other gemologists:

YourGemologist Refractometer
Inside the refractometer the light travels a controlled path to provide the gemologist with
a proper view of the refractive index. Here is a graphic to show how this is done. And
below is an excerpt from YourGemologist.com on the Study of the Refractometer which
you should refer to in your study this week.
How does it work?: The refractometer works by the use of a glass
hemicylinder inside that has a flat surface extending into the body of the
refractometer as shown above. When light is introduced into the back of the
unit, it travel through the glass hemicylinder and up to the gemstone, where the
stone is in optical contact with the glass by use of a refractive index liquid. This
liquid keeps air from between the stone and the glass hemicylinder and allows
light to travel at the same speed through the glass, gets refracted by the
gemstone, and then back through the glass hemicylinder to the viewing lens.
The amount of slowing down or bending of the light that the gemstone does to
the light beam, causes a light and dark area joined by a thin green line as shown
below. This green line is the refractive index reading of the gemstone.

How do I use it to get a refractive index? You must use caution when placing
a gemstone on the glass hemicylinder because the glass is very soft and will
scratch easily. Once scratched it is very difficult to get it repaired. Here is the
method you should use:

 Warning!: The refractive index liquid used in a

refractometer is highly toxic and should not be used in a closed
room. The liquid should be washed off immediately if you get it
on your skin.
Gemstones that are anisotropic will have two readings while isotropic gemstones will
only have one. To view the anisotropic gemstone RI reading you will need to use the
polarizing filter that comes with your refractometer. This will allow you to separate the
two readings (much like a dichroscope allows you to separate the colors) and be able to
read the two numbers to verify your refractive index. Here is an explanation:
Spot Method of Testing Cabochon Cut Gemstones
You will invariably come across gemstones without nice tables to test on your
refractometer, but will instead have a rounded top cabochon. For this you can
use your refractometer also. Just place the tiniest spot of RI liquid on your
metal base plate and gently slide the cabochon over the liquid and onto your
glass hemicylinder. Then, move your head away from the viewing lens and
slide your head up and down to be able to see the small dot of a reading you
will have on your scale. It will not be a nice, even dark to light and very distinct
line like faceted stones. But will rather be a small spot showing up on your
reading scale. You need to move your head up and down to see the dot turn
from dark to light and back, and then find a place where the spot is half light
and half dark. This will be your approximate refractive index reading for the
gemstone. This is called the spot reading method for testing. Here are some
examples:
That is a general overview of the refractive index of gemstones and the use of the
refractometer to obtain the RI readings. There is much more study that is available
regarding advanced use of the refractometer but this is a practical application view that
should serve you for almost all required gemstones you may see.

Section 3 Specific Gravity

Specific gravity is the term used to describe the relationship of a volume of water to the
volume of a gem material. Meaning a relationship to a certain volume of water to an
equal volume of a gemstone. Confused? Think of it this way. Think of this letter: O as
being full of water. Now think of this letter: O as being full of iron. Which would weigh
more? The red one.

Now, think of the black "O" as having a weight that we will call simply: 1. And the red
one has a weight of 3 times the black one so we call the weight of the red one: 3. Then
the specific gravity of the red one is 3 and the specific gravity of the black one is 1.

This is how it works. Water has a specific gravity of 1 because it has a constant density
(science graduates....lay off of me on that one please). So if we take the density of water
as 1 and compare the density of gemstones to the density of water...then the density of the
gemstone is described based on the weight of an equal amount of water.
The measurement of the specific gravity of a gemstone can be done in two ways: SG
Liquids and Hydrostatic Weighing

To obtain a specific gravity in a liquid requires that several liquids of known specific
gravity be available to drop the gemstone into to see the reaction. These liquids are
created by using some very nasty chemicals and great care should be used when working
with them. But a gemstone will sink in a liquid of lesser density, suspend in a liquid of
equal density, and float in a liquid of greater density. Here is a graphic to help you get
this idea in your mind:

Below is the example from the Study of Specific Gravity here on YourGemologist.com,
showing the piece of amber that sinks in plain water, but as we add salt and increase the
density of the water...the amber first becomes suspended and then finally floats. Proving
that the density of the liquid can determine the density of the gemstone. Which...by the
way...is one of the practical methods of identifying amber we will study later on. Here is
the example:
Amber in water........add some salt and it suspends.....a little more and it floats as the
water density changes
Now you can buy sets of SG liquids as shown in the box below. These are usually five
bottles with the specific gravity of each shown on the front, along with a test stone inside
to let you know they are properly adjusted for the right specific gravity. However..there
are several down sides to using SG liquids:

#1 They are expensive. Sometimes several hundred dollars for a complete set as shown
below from the GIA.

#2 They don't last very long. Just about the time you really need them you realize they
have been sitting on your shelf for so long that they no longer read properly...as seen
because the test stone inside is not doing what it is supposed to. This is because the SG
liquids are mixes of various chemicals that evaporate at different rates. And in spite of the
bottle being tightly sealed, some of it evaporates anyway. Leaving you with an
uncalibrated set of SG liquids just as you need it.

#3. They are dangerous. Some of this stuff can kill you..or your kids...or your pets. So
why have it around?

This is why I prefer the hydrostatic method of SG determination. This is the actual
weighing of the gemstone in air and in water to be able to do a little math and get a
proper and accurate specific gravity every time. And for that I am going to send you now
to the recent study I did using a portable carat scale to be able to get a hydrostatic specific
gravity. This is not to make you page through everywhere...but to get you used to using
YourGemologist.com as a reference source when you have these questions come up in
the future. So for now, go to that page and learn more about getting a hydrostatic specific
gravity. Then come back and we will talk about ultraviolet and fluorescence.
Section 4 Fluorescence

Unlike diamonds.....fluorescence in colored gemstones is often a good thing. Because it

can give you a good indication of what kind of gemstone you have. But let's first look at
what creates fluorescence.

As you know, energy in wavelengths creates visible light. But the scale of wavelengths
continues beyond our visible scale and goes down into the infrared and up into the
ultraviolet. These ultraviolet light waves are so small that we cannot see them, even
though they can be very bright. And the key here is that some gemstones can take that
invisible, but very bright, ultraviolet light and slow it down enough to make it visible to
our eyes. This is called fluorescence and can be a very important test. Let's look at where
the ultraviolet or UV light range exists:

Now let's look at a practical demonstration of how this works. Below is a graphic of a
white gemstone being hit by UV light and it turns that light into red light. The gemstone
might not be that visible in a dark room lit only by invisible UV light. But it shows up
very bright red in the UV light because it is taking this invisible UV light and making it
visible.

Now let's look at the actual example of calcite below. Notice that the white calcite in this
rock is turning bright red in the UV light and the brown rock is turning green. This is an
example of two minerals that can take invisible UV light and turn it into visible light of
various colors or wavelengths. There are two examples of this below...
I should note to you that there are two type of UV light used in gemology...a long wave
and short wave. Due to the practical nature of this course I am not going to go beyond
that explanation right now. Because if you understand the concept, and know that some
gemstones will react differently to long and short wave UV, that is enough to do practical
identifications. The wavelengths and why the short wave and long wave will react
differently will take more time than we have here. But suffice it to say that most UV
lights will give you a short wave and a long wave source, and gemstones will usually be
listed with their potential reactions for each in gem reference books.

Let's take a quick look at one of the reactions that UV testing can give you. That being
separation of synthetic ruby from natural. For reasons that we will not go into here
natural rubies will tend to be very subdued in UV light. Basically because natural rubies
have a lot of iron in them which keeps the UV reaction from happening. However,
synthetic rubies do not have this natural iron and they very often will blow up huge RED
in color under a UV light. This is just one example of how UV testing can give you a
direction as far as gemstone identification. However, be aware that UV testing will
seldom, if ever, be diagnostic for a gemstone identification. And also that the UV light is
very bad for your eyes and should only be used with protective goggles. Which is why I
never travel with a UV light unless I take along my UV protected sunglasses. This is very
important as the short wave UV particularly is very bright and dangerous to your
eyes...even though you cannot really see it. So be very careful about using a UV light
without proper protection.

Here is the graphic about the natural -v- synthetic ruby. As the course goes along I will
let you know when we have a stone whose identification might be assisted by UV light.
Section 5 Chelsea Filter

Finally this week, is my favorite...the Chelsea filter. Designed I believe in the 1930's, this
filter was first developed to separate natural emerald from green beryl. Mainly because at
the time only emeralds colored by chromium were considered to be emeralds. The
vanadium colored stones from Brazil, Africa and India were considered green beryl. So
this filter was designed to only allow light in the colors of green and red to pass. And
since the chromium colored emeralds have a hidden red color...you could separate the
true emeralds from the green beryl which would look green through the Chelsea. Here is
what the Chelsea filter looks like:

Below you see two photographs from YourGemologist.com showing a synthetic emerald
in regular light and shown through a Chelsea filter. This bright red reaction can help in
identifying natural emeralds from synthetic emeralds due to the over reaction of the
synthetics.

In 1963 the GIA graded an emerald from Brazil with vanadium coloring as being a
natural emerald. And for many years thereafter the Chelsea filter was thought to be an
unnecessary gem tool since it was not longer needed to separate emeralds from red beryl.
But a few enterprising gemologists (I would like to think I was one of them since I started
using this for other gemstones in 1989) realized that there were many other gemstones
that would react to a Chelsea filter. And in spite of the GIA virtually eliminating them
from their catalog...there has been a resurgence in the use as more gemologists realize
that the Chelsea filter can provide a world of information.

One example is the synthetic blue spinel shown below. For many years you had to have a
refractometer and be accurate enough to make a reading between the 1.71 natural and
1.72 synthetic spinel. And the problem was that these stones would have a variance in the
RI that would make the RI reading float. Meaning that unless you were very good you
might have a problem with the separation of synthetic and natural blue spinel.

Well, the Chelsea filter changed all of that. Now, all you have to do is simply look at the
blue spinel as shown below to make the identification. Natural blue spinel will not react
in a Chelsea filter while the synthetic will blow up bright red. And this is a diagnostic
test...meaning that you do not have to do anything else with this reaction. There are
numerous other stones we will study over the coming weeks that can be either identified
or verified with other tests using the Chelsea filter.
 Lesson Four
Section 1 Introduction

Welcome to Practical Gem Identification Class: Week 4. This week we start the study of
the individual gemstones and some practical approaches to their identification. This will
be a significantly different format since I am going to rely on information already on
YourGemologist.com for the basics, and provide you with some tricks of the trade for
identification on this page. So you will find yourself going back and forth a lot. But I
have provided links to the pages, and then you can hit your Back button on your browser
to come back to this page. I'm really not getting lazy its just that there is too much
information to try to get on to this one page for all of these gemstones.

Before we start I want to talk about a very, very important lesson that you should know as
a gemologist. That lesson is....how to say: "I don't know."
I think from time to time you have all heard me say either "I don't know" or "I'm not sure
I will have to do some research and get back to you" or something akin to this. The
reason is because as gemologists, there seems to be this unwritten rule that any Graduate
Gemologist , FGA, CGA, etc....is supposed to know everything. Otherwise we could not
have received the title or designation. But that is just not true. The other side of the coin
is that there seems to be a belief with some gemologists that they either must know it all,
or that they should know it all, and rather than appear to not know something, they give
some bull poop answer so they will sound like they know it all. This is....unfortunate.
Because when consumers realize that they have been given a bull poop answer and not
the truth, they lose all confidence in the gemologist for any further work. However, I
have never met a consumer yet who reacted badly when I told them "Hey, I have no clue
but I will find out for you." Because everyone, no matter what profession they are in,
once in a while doesn't know and has to either go ask someone or else go look it up. In
fact, I feel better when my doctor goes and does some research before making a
diagnosis. Makes me think he is checking up on himself...which is fine by me.

Here is a couple of real life stories that prove the above points. And they are seriously
true stories....

I was once diagnosed with a terminal illness. I was told I had less then 6 months to live.
Something called hemochromotosis. Which is a rare illness where your body stores too
much iron and you literally rust to death. And it cannot be cured. Well...I was basically
told to get my life in order for the Grand Wazoo finish in about 6 months. Then, I did
some research of my own and found this was hereditary. And the problem was...not only
was there no record of it in my family, but all of my relatives live to be 95+ years old.
Some as old as 103. Something was wrong. I went and got another doctor to do some
tests and they came out the same. But this doctor asked the critical questions about my
family history and said, "There is something we are missing. I don't know exactly what it
is but something is being missed." Turns out (if you're ready for this) I was taking a
multi-vitamin..and eating two bowls of TOTAL cereal everyday. I was simply taking in
more iron than my body needed and it was showing up on this test. All I had to do was
cut out the iron intake and the whole thing cleared up. Now, what did I think of the first
doctor???? He made his diagnosis without looking at the all the possibilities and without
being willing to assume that there might be something involved that he was missing.
Rather than be able to say "I don't know...what is wrong with you" he instead said, "Your
dying." Which was a far cry from the truth. And led me to hold one very big party in spite
of my anger.

Example #2

This was from Mayor's Jewelers in Miami and a gentleman named...well, I'll forget that
part, but let's just say this was a GIA Graduate Gemologist who was an appraiser for
Mayors. In this case the appraiser misidentified a piece of black coral, calling it black
enamel. The ring was sent to my office for verification as a $1,800.00 refund was in the
balance. I looked at the ring and it showed the classic polyp surface features that coral
has and enamel doesn't. I send a letter to Mayors asking them to please look again. They
ignored me. I send a letter to the president of the company respectfully asking that they
look again, that another jeweler was going to lose a sale based on an incorrect
identification by his appraiser. He ignored me. Finally, after four attempts Mayors agreed
that they had made a mistake...and it took three more calls to get them to issue a correct
appraisal document. The point is, it was Mayors Jewelers who came out looking bad in
this case. Not because they made a mistake in identification....which honestly anyone
who does not see a lot of black coral could have made. The problem was not being
willing to simply take another look when another professional asked them to. The feeling
was that they were, after all, Mayors Jewelers and their people must be right. And this
little guy in Naples, Florida named Robert James could not be more accurate than Mayors
Jewelers appraisers.

Problem was...I dealt with kilos of black coral every week with the Caribbean jewelers
with whom I worked. And I could spot black coral from across the room.

The point is...never refuse to take a second look. Never assume you have the only correct
answer. And don't be afraid to say, "I don't know."

And of course, if you are the one asking for someone else to take a second look, don't get
cocky about it. If you know you have found a mistake from someone else keep it
professional. No one reacts well to someone catching a mistake if they rub their noses in
it. And the other part of that fact is....What Goes Round....Comes Round. The mistake
you find from someone else today will be the mistake someone finds from you tomorrow.
So keep it sweet. It will taste better when it comes back your way.

OK, that is the first lesson I usually put my students through but I thought now might be a
good time to insert it here. And yes, you can expect to hear me say in the future, "I don't
know" because I would rather look like I need to do a bit of research, than look like I
need to and don't know it.
Now, lets go to the gemstones....

What I have done is list the gemstones from A - E. What I am going to do from here is
simply place some practical identification methods below the gemstone to give you an
idea of what you should be looking for to ID these stones. Then, I want you to go to that
page in The Gemstones section and read all of the information posted. See if you can tell
why I have posted the specific recommendations for doing a practical identification of
that gemstone, and then we will see how well you understood on this weeks quiz. The
easiest way would be to simply print this page and then go to The Gemstones section.
You should be able to go right down the list of gemstones without having to go back and
forth. When you are done, come back to the Week 4 Exam link below.

One important note: We will not be dealing with the separation of synthetic -v- natural.
This is a study all its own and we will cover these identifications in the class on
synthetics.

Now, take some time to read and study, and let's have some fun...

Amazonite

Nothing exciting here. This green variety of feldspar is rarely confused with green jadeite
but is really not that close in color. And properties are so far apart that you should have
no problem.

Amethyst

Bull's eye interference figure is diagnostic. You cannot go just on a refractometer because
purple scapolite will have the same RI as amethyst and is in the same crystal system. So
look for the bull's eye quartz interference figure. Also, you can look for the red flashes
when you rotate the stone in a strong incadescent light. The better qualities will have this
effect.

Amber

#1. The salt water test. Amber is the only gem material that will sink in plain water and
float in salt water. You have seen this test in the Study of Specific Gravity here on
YourGemologist.com. There is one important note....You may have heard the term
"Copal Amber". This is a contradiction. Copal resin is the same tree sap as amber..just
not near as old. And there is a lot of the copal resin material coming up out of South
America that is being sold on the market either as Bolivian amber, copal amber, or names
like it. This much younger copal resin will react quickly if you stick a hot straight pin into
it. It is just not old and hard like real amber and a hot point applied to it will cause an
acrid odor and the pin will go into the material. It will not do so with real amber so be
careful when you are shopping for amber...or identifying it.

Ammolite
Once again, nothing much on the market to emulate ammolite. You should read the
information on the Ammolite page carefully to see the photographs. Once you have seen
ammolite you will always know it. And right now, there is nothing else like it on the
market. But times will surely change.

Andalusite

Put everything but your dichroscope away...you don't need it with andalusite. No other
stone is going to give you the trichroic colors of brown, green and colorless quite as
strong. Be carefull though, check out the example I had to work with on my FGA exam
that is discussed on this web page. Very important for you to know that there are
variables.

Apatite

A gemologist's dream in the yellow colors. Very classic and diagnostic absorption
pattern. The neon green/blue colors are also unlike anthing else out there but you might
want to double check the RI. Nothing else is going to give you this color in this RI range.

Aquamarine

Nothing special to report here other than nothing else will offer this blue color at this RI
range. The fact that you have a blue stone that is double refractive will eliminate spinel.
Which is about the only other stone you will see in the US with this light of a color.
European and Far East gemologists may well see the darker, finer colors since that is
where most of the darker aquamarine is shipped. But again, nothing else in this RI range
to confuse it with. The natural aquamarine will have a bit of a green tint, which is the
natural color of aquamaring in a greenish/Blue. US jewelers rarely see this color.

Axinite

Occasionally confused with smokey quartz but rarely is seen at all. A smokey brown
stone well above the RI of quartz...its fairly easy to identify.

Azurite

A sister stone to malachite this is a copper ore and will have test results similar. Nothing
really like it on the market other than possibly lapis lazuli but a Chelsea filter and surface
features of lapis lazuli should make the distinction easy. Also, azurite often occurs in
conjunction with malachite which makes the ID even easier.

Benitoite

You will rarely see this stone but if you do, FL is the key. This stone blows up HUGE
blue to short wave UV. Unlike anything else you will see. Other properties make this an
easy ID if you start with a FL light in short wave.
Caymanite

Again, once you have seen it there is nothing else like it. Read about this stone and learn.
You may go years and never see it.

Chalcedony Family

Refractive index is the key here. There are so many members of this family that you can
almost assume its a chaldedony if its opaque. Of course that is not really true but when
you see an opaque stone you should first do an RI before you do anything else. If you get
a reading in the 1.54 - 1.56 range you are on pretty solid groud.

Charoite

Again, nothing else on the market looks like charoite. Sight identification is pretty
reliable as long as you check for a plastic imitation...which I have never seen.

Chrysoberyl

No tricks to tell you about here. Chrysoberyl as a transparent gemstone is yellow/brown

and fairly easy for an ID as nothing else is going to be in the range of the RI with this
color. Alexandrite's color change is a give away but you can use your Chelsea filter to
confirm the chromium content, or better yet, use your spectroscope to confirm the rail-
road lines of chromium to confirm. But this will not make the ID separation for the
synthetic. More on that in the upcoming class on synthetics.

Chrysoprase

Part of the chalcedony family but this one is colored by nickel. It will give you a low
quartz reading since it is a cryptocrystalline member of that family. RI and color should
give you what you need.

Cinnabar

No clue why they carve these into beads. This is mercury in crystal form. You can (and I
probably should not tell you this since it can kill you) cook cinnabar in your household
oven at 400 degree F and the mercury will turn to vapor. Fill your house. And kill
everyone in it. So its dangerous. But it is still made intobeads. The chalky red color is a
dead giveaway for cinnabar...no pun intended.

Citrine

A member of the quartz group...look for the bull's eye. And there is nothing of this color
that will be close to citrine other than a yellow topaz. But the SG, RI, optic
character...well, everything is different. You should not have a problem making that
distinction.

Conch Pearl

The flame structure you looked at is diagnostic. Nothing else will compare and nothing
else will offer that pattern.

Cultured Pearl

The two important keys to evaluation with cultured pearls is (1) look down the drill hole
and see if you can see the outer layer of nacre covering the bead. If you don't see this you
may have freshwater pearls. You can use the old "tooth" test where you rub the pearl on
your teeth. If they seem gritty they are most likely real cultured pearls.

Danburite

You will probably never see this as gemstones. If you do the biaxial interference figure
will be all you need.

Diamond

Internal inclusions will be your best bet to look for first. Next, synthetic moissanite is
double refractive so if you look at the crown at about a 45 degree angle to the table you
should see the facet junctions doubling. And CZ is so much softer that the facet junctions
almost always look glassy. RI will easily separate it from white sapphire.

Diopside

The four rayed star is diagnostic for separation from star sapphire....for which it is most
always offered as a substitute. The green diopside will be colored with chromium so your
spectroscope will solve that question. Plus, the RI is significantly above emerals and
below tsavorite garnet so nothing else is going to give you that green color in that RI
except diopside.

Emerald

Once again....spectroscope and RI will give you all you need for Colombian stones. You
can also look for three phase inclusions which I have ready to post but do not have a good
photograph up yet. But these will be inclusions of liquid, gas and a small crystal of salt.
Which is a left over inclusion from the shallow salt sea in which the Colombian emeralds
formed. But if you can get an RI there is nothing in that range that will look like an
emerald....other than an emerald.

Enstatite
A beautiful absorption band at 500nm will separate enstatite from just about everything
else. Plust the color is a brown that few other gemstones will offer, and none with this
spectrum through the spectroscope.

Lesson Five
Section 1 Introduction

Welcome to Practical Gem Identification Class: Lesson 5. This is usually the week where
many people start getting a bit frustrated if they are learning to use their gemological
equipment. For as we discussed in our On-Line Discussion group, not every gemstone is
going to give you a text book reading every time. Why? Because the crystallization
process of gemstone formation is based on whatever chemicals are present at the time, as
we discussed on our original Week 1 course notes. And as these chemical elements
change slightly from a little more of this to a little more of that, the specific gravity and
optical properties can change along with them.

Another problem is that of twinning. Twinning is the intergrowth of two or more crystals
within the same space. This causes the twinned crystals of pyrite you see on the Pyrite
page in The Minerals. The problem is that instead of having one "C" axis in the crystal,
you now have two. And rather than one direction of being able to see a nice optic
interference character, you now have two or more that compete, and possibly cancel each
out. Making it impossible to find a clear optic character.

The key here is experience. One, experience to know which stones will most likely give
you a good reaction, and two, knowing how long to look before giving up on finding one
before you get frustrated.

It is usually about this time that students start declaring that their gemological equipment
must be faulty. Because after learning what the reactions should be, they have a tendency
to expect every stone to test properly. And rather than assuming that either (1) they may
not be looking in the right place, or (2) the stone may simply not give you what you are
looking for, the normal reaction is simply that: the equipment must not be working right.
This is perfectly natural. But I hope you will understand it when you call me with these
frustrations that I prompt you to go back and try again with some new ideas of how to do
your tests. Or I may well recommend that you leave that particular stone along and go
test something else.

If you want to avoid the frustration of knowing whether or not your equipment is
working, you should keep a set of test stones, sometimes called control stones, that you
can use to test your equipment and make sure it is working properly. This will help you
confirm that the equipment is indeed working properly, and help you practice by going
back to these control stones to sharpen up on your test abilities.

And one more word of note....RI liquid will have a tendency to form small sulfur crystals
when it is allowed to set up for a period of time. This is normal. Just shake the bottle up
and the crystals should dissolve back to the solution. And do not get this RI liquid on you
or breath it in a closed space. It is toxic and dangerous.

Time to move onto the gemstones for this week, We are going to be covering groups F
through L. Which is a smaller group than last week, which is also a good thing since we
were delayed with the course notes. So here is your gemstones for Week 5, the quiz is
linked to the bottom with an e-mail link for your answers.

I look forward to "seeing" all of you in the On-Line Discussion Room on Thursday.

Fire Agate

This is one of those stones that speaks for itself. A member of the quartz family, fire
agate will look like nothing else you will see. There is nothing out there that competes
with it as far as imitations and synthetics. So look carefully at the photographs. This is all
you should need to know to identify fire agate...at least until someone comes up with a
treated or synthetic to emulate it.

Garnet Family

The single refractive nature of garnet, along with their generally high refractive index
will usually make identification of garnets fairly easy. As many of you know rhodolite
garnet will have a beautiful spectrum through your spectroscope that is diagnostic. But
you should study each garnet for RI and color as this will help you differentiate the
different types. I can tell you that the study of garnets could take up two whole weeks of
our time here. So I am going to recommend that you get a good reference book (which
you need to start your library anyway) to be able to learn the story about garnets. You
will notice that the Garnet page here on YourGemologist.com says "To be continued"
which it will be. But for now I would most likely recommend Gemstones of the World as
a good resource for garnet identification and information. And I will be expanding the
Garnet section here on YourGemologist.com in the very near future with the excellent
help of Rick Martin, I hope.
Heliodor (Yellow Beryl)

This yellow member of the beryl family is colored by uranium, although you will seldom,
ir ever, find it to be radioactive. It is a fairly easy ID as it is right down the road as far as
RI, SG, etc...for the beryl family. And nothing else short of a citrine will emulate it, but
refractive index should make the separation fairly easy.

Idocrase

Strong dichroism will make this gemstone fairly easy to identify.....if you keep it in mind.
Far too many students, particularly those from the GIA, have a tendency to only think in
terms of the "A" Chart of gemstones when doing gemstone identification. But with an RI
range in the 1.70 to 1.72, and the strong dichroism shown in the dichroscope and on the
refractometer, identification of idocrase should be fairly easy.

Iolite

Anytime you see a dark blue stone you should turn it several directions before you do
anything else, and get out your dichroscope. That will be all you need if you have an
iolite. The very strong dichroism that goes from colorless to dark blue is a quick
giveaway for iolite. Inspect the stone from all directions with your dichroscope first. If
you have an iolite it will show itself very quickly. Mainly because of the colors of
dichroism. Blue sapphire will show blue and slight blue/green, tanzanite will be
blue/purple. If you cannot see these colors in specific, move on to the next test.

Kornerupine

Another "B" Chart stone, this gemstone is rarely seen now days. Mainly because of its
green/brown color which is not very pretty, and the lack of sufficient supplys to create a
market. Be aware of it because it can look a bit like peridot for your testing if you are not
careful.

Kunzite

Sometimes called the "midnight stone" because it has a tendency to fade in strong
sunlight. Kunzite is very brittle and the color is usually a fairly light pink, although some
dark stones are will be found. With an RI in the 1.66 to 1.67 range there won't be much to
confuse it with.

Kyanite

You should start looking out for this gemstone on the market very soon. The massive
form of kyanite has been around for years. But recently a large find was made in Nepal
and our good friends Bear and Cara Williams who deal with a lot of the material were
kind enough to provide us with some samples and photographs. There is nothing in the RI
range of 1.71 - 1.73 that is this beautiful blue color and is double refractive to this extent.
So if you keep this stone in mind when you run across a blue stone that looks like a
sapphire but has an RI in the 1.71 range, you should do alright. And don't worry about
blue spinel. Remember the Chelsea filter will solve the problem for the synthetics. And
the DR optic character of kyanite should make the separation from natural blue spinel an
easy task.

Labradorite

Nothing else will give you labradorescence. Most material on the market will give you
the blue rainbow effect as shown on the page here on YourGemologist.com. This is a
stone that once you see it you should be able to spot it without the need for equipment..

Lapis Lazuli

There are a number of things to watch for with Lapis Lazuli. First, you should get
yourself a piece of known, natural, untreated lapis lazuli to practice with your Chelsea
filter. It will give a dull red glow that treated and imitations will not give. If you think
you might have a piece of dyed lapis lazuli, simply get some fingernail polish remover
and a Q-Tip and swap the stone in the back or somewhere out of the main viewing
portion. If it comes off with a blue color you have a dyed stone. There are other
treatments of lapis lazuli such as reconstituting in the same manner that is done for
turquoise and other stones. But we will cover that material in the Synthetic, Imitation and
Treated Gemstones section.

Larimar

Found in the Dominican Republic there is not much that will look like natural larimar
once you have seen enough of it to identify it. As I write this I realize the properties for
larimar have not been entered on the page. I will add this in the near future to help with
any testing. But short of a plastic imitation, nothing is going to emulate larimar.

Lesson Six
Section 1 Introduction

Welcome to Practical Gem Identification Class: Lesson 6.

Well...we are getting down to the wire. Three more weeks. And from here on in I am
going to let you all start doing some of your own research work, as many of you have
been doing. Mainly because as you continue with your lifelong study of gemology you
will need to bring about a balance of your own gemological knowledge with the
understanding that there is too much out there to ever put it all completely under one hat,
as they say. So either from the Recommended Reading List here or your own internet
search, you should start doing some of your own research to add to the knowledge gained
here.

This week you are going to experience some stones that will take you a bit out of the
ordinary. Because this week we have some stones that, 10 years ago, were never thought
to offer some varieties that we are now seeing. But they are popping up. And this goes to
the point that you should always keep yourself in touch with the latest in gemological
news and events, to insure that you are not missing some important find or new variety of
a gemstone that could affect your ability to offer a proper identification.

For instance, eight years ago during a gem identification class I was teaching on the
island of St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands, I was handed a transparent, faceted stone
by one of my students and asked to identify the stone.

The problem was, it did not meet any criteria for any stone possible. It was transparent
red, Strongly double refractive with refractive index readings of 1.59 and 1.81. And was
uniaxial. The only possible gem material this could be was rhodochrosite, but everyone
knew (at the time) that rhodochrosite only occurred in massive, banded red/white colors
of opaque gem material. So nothing could have matched those numbers.

Fortunately, I told the student (who happened to be a very successful gemstone dealer on
St., Thomas) that the only thing this could be was crystalline rhodochrosite, but that I had
never heard of such a thing.

Well, as you all know, that was about the time that the very first transparent
rhodochrosite of commercial quality and quantity became available on the market. And
this dealer just happened to have some of the first production. And in this case the teacher
got an "A" from the student since I called it correctly...even though my answer was more
of a question than a real answer.

But the point is: Keep an open mind. There are no set rules.

Here is one more quick example. When I posted the first pictures of the transparent
turquoise here on YourGemologist.com I received a rather irate e-mail from a GIA
student wanting to take me to task for giving out false information. I tried to explain to
him that this information was correct. And he informed me that the GIA had only taught
that turquoise is opaque and massive form of copper ore, and that my information must
be skewed. Once I directed this young man to some support information he sent back a
very kind e-mail of apology to me, and expressed a bit of outrage that the GIA had not
been totally forthcoming. I had to tell him that this form of turquoise was so rare that he
would never see it anywhere, and that the GIA would not cover something this rare since
there was so many other, more important topics to cover. But....that he should understand
that no one knows everything about gemstones. And that he should keep himself open to
new versions of the old gemstones. Because you never know when something new will
be found.

The biggest mistake we can make as gemologists is to make assumptions that what we
have been taught is the final answer. And that new information must be wrong because it
does not meet with the old. After all, as you will all remember, before 1963 all Brazilian
and African emeralds could not be called emeralds. Today that has changed. What would
it have been like to be an appraiser of emeralds in 1963 if you did not know about this
change, and were not open to changes being made.

So remember that gemology is an ongoing study that has no final authorities, no final
rules, and no final sets of information. Keep learning from everyone you can, because no
matter where you go or whom you meet in this industry, the next person you meet has
information that you do not know, and will be important to you at some time in your
career.

OK, that's the sermon for this week :-) now let's go on to this week's gemstones. Go to
each page of these gemstones on YourGemologist.com and read the information, as well
as some additional tips shown below. And as always, if you know of some updated
information for any of these please let me know. These pages are always subject to
updates. Also, please keep sending your typos that you are finding. I am compiling them
for update all at once.

I look forward to "seeing" all of you in the On-Line Discussion Room on Thursday.

Malachite

This oxidized ore of copper is fairly easy to ID by sight and has no real convincing
imitations. You should familiarize yourself with the various properties of malachite
because depending on how it is cut, it can offer some very different looks, mainly due to
the types, sizes, directions, and widths of the banding.

Maw Sit Sit

Once you see this material you will always know it. It is a composition of jadeite and
other minerals that is not completely known. If anyone obtains more information about
maw sit sit during your research and study please let me know. I would like to updage
this information if possible.
Morganite

Once again, a pink variety of beryl that will have all of the beryl gemstone properties.
Should not be a problem for identification. Color is due to manganese so you will not
find a spectrum that will identify it, but that should not be a problem.

Moldavite

A high silica gem material whose origina is out of this world...literally. These green glass
pieces are referred to as tektites and are the result of meteor activity in the Czech
Republic. These can be difficult to separate from regular glass (as in the Heineken bottle
broken and faceted) and other natural glass like obsidian. Most identifications can be
done with visual inspection as natural moldavite will have a brownish tinted green that
few other glasses will offer.

Nephrite Jade

The best determining factor to separate nephrite from jadeite is the color, in addition to
their different refractive index numbers. But nephrite will have a darker green color with
mottled brown to black colors running through it due to iron content. While jadeite will
occur in most of your pastel colors. And even the jadeite green will vary from nephrite.
Plus, a Chelse filter reaction of red will usually mean natural jadeite dur to the chromium
content which nephrite will not offer.

Opal

There are a lot of synthetic opals on the market that we will not go into during this class.
This will be the topic of a future class due to the complexity of the subject. But remember
that there are a lot of different types of opal. Many of these are should on Gemology in
Motion...the Video, as well as many others. I would urge you to make an internet search
for opals and see how much additional information you can get. As you know we have an
Aussie friend, NANKS, who visits here periodically who is a wonderful source of
knowledge. And I am sure that Annie is also an excellent source of opal information.
Opals are a study all their own due to the wide variety of colors, shapes, forms and sizes.
So study the information here, and make it a point to continue your study of opal from
every source you can find.

Peridot

Perhaps the easiest identification of peridot is through spectroscope (yeah, Robert, that's
easy for you to say!) and magnification. Peridot will offer a very classic and diagnostic
three band absorption spectrum that makes identification fairly simple...but it is not
always readily visible. Then you might go to the loupe where you will find the lily-pad
looking inclusions that, unfortunately, I have not been able to photograph for
YourGemologist.com. I wish I could just scan in the photographs from all of the
reference books I have but that would be illegal. But they are on my list of "Things to Do
in 2002" for this site. But if you have practiced with your spectroscope the three band
absorption should be fairly easy to see and diagnostic.

Prehnite

Noting else on the market that looks like this material right now. And as I read this
material for posting I realize I added this gemstone to YourGemologist.com and never
made the link.... I will add this for you this week.

Rhodochrosite

Nothing...and I mean nothing, in the gemstone world will emulate the birefringence of
rhodochrosite. Should be what I call a "throw down" identification for transparent
gemstones, and nothing else will give you the same look for the banded red/white
material.

Rhodonite

This gemstone should never be confused with rhodochrosite because it has pink and
black banding. But will give you the same look as far as an opaque banded gemstone.

Ruby

The spectroscope will again be diagnostic for ruby...but not for synthetic or natural. Also,
there is just not much in the way of a uniaxial gemstone in the 1.76 RI range with dark
red and light red dichroic colors. Should be an easy ID for the gemstones...not so easy for
synthetic -v- natural which we will discuss in a future class.

Week Seven
Section 1 Introduction

Well, we're going down to the wire. Last week of gemstones and then on to the final
week of phenomenal gemstones.
Let's talk about anomalous double refraction....ADR. Sounds like a learning problem
doesn't it? Well, this is one of those things you are going to start running up against that
we have not had time to cover properly. But it is something I wanted you to know about.

ADR is where a gemstone that is normally singly refractive will give a false or
anomalous reading. Making you think that you are getting a DR when you are not. And
totally throwing you off in your gem identification protocol.

The worst offender here is garnet. Garnets are widely known for giving ADR and try as I
might this week, I could not get a good image to show you. So I have provided the image
at left that I realize needs some explanation....

ADR will usually look like a fuzzy "X" in the stone that
turns the stone basically dark, but not completely. And
this fuzzy "X" will seem to rotate around as you turn the
stone. The graphic at left is without a doubt the worst
that I have done since we started this class, but this
ADR thing is very difficult to draw on paper. Its one of
those things you will have to see for yourself. And its
also one of those things that once you see it, you will
always know it when you see it again.

For those of you who have recevied the piece of rough

rhodolite that I send with the spectroscopes you might
be able to use this with a polariscope and see this ADR
figure. If not, you will one day.

The other point I want to discuss with you this week is

the use of the refractometer.

The refractometer takes practice. I try to tell people that they can spend the US$600.00
for the GIA refractometer with the huge viewing lens that makes everything easy to read,
or you can spend much less and get a refractometer that is not as easy to use at first, but
once you learn how to use it and get a lot of practice you will be much more able to take
it with you on trips. This does not have to be one of YourGemologist Refractometers, it
can be from anywhere. But I wanted you all to know that getting good on any and all
gemological equipment takes practice...just like the spectroscope.

Now with all of that said let's move on to the gemstones for Week Seven. This week we
are going to be winding up the list of the stones that we are going to have time to cover.
But as you all know there are a vast number of stones out there that you will need to
learn. In fact, you will be learning them for the rest of yorur life as new stones are found
and old stones get new treatments. So never think you have finally reached the end of the
road for learning to identify gemstones. There will always be another one coming over
the horizon.
Most important though is to keep practicing on your equipment.

And let me know if I can help. the volume of e-mails is getting bit staggering, but I make
every effort to get back to you within as short a period of time as possible.

Now...let's go to the gemstones:

Sapphire Group

One of the largest gemstone groups on earth. This is a group of gemstones for which I
cannot provide a quick and practical identification method. But you should always be
able to make the ID as a stone being corundum, because there is just not much else out
there in the uniaxial system with an RI in the 1.76 range with a SG of 4.00. So what type
of sapphire and the coloring element may be a question, but the ID of the stone as a
corundum should be fairly easy.

Scapolite

The yellow variety you have seen on the spectroscope page and it should be a breeze to
ID. The purple version should be easy to separate from amethyst once you are up to
speed on your refractometer. I will tell you that I urge you to make your candle sodiumD
light for this kind of identification. A lot of people thought I was nuts (and still do
probably) about that candle light gemology stuff, but it works. And the sodiumD light
will make your separation line much sharper. But be careful.

Serpentine

Should not be a problem. A significantly different texture from nephrite jade and nothing
else really that will come close.

Sphene

Sphene should be an eyesight ID for everyone. Nothing else will offer the color and
dispersion of sphene. Once you see it, you will always know it.

Sinhalite

See your spectroscope page again for sinhilite. Nothing will look like that in a
spectroscope. You will seldom see this stone, however. But if you do see a brown stone
that you are not sure of, you can verify or delete it from being sinhalite with a
spectroscope.

Spinel
Again, its the only SR stone you will have in the 1.71 RI range. The only question you
will have is natural or synthetic. The course notes on the Spinel page pretty well tells the
story here.

Sugilite

Again, and eyesight ID usually, once you have seen it. Nothing, comes close to the color
of this material. And since it is becoming fairly rare, you will not see if very often.

Sunstone

Be careful here. Sunstone and goldstone are sold a lot and one is natural and the other is
synthetic. A 10x loupe will quickly separate them since goldstone will have tiny flecks of
foil inside that look just like....tiny flecks of foil. Its a dead giveaway once you see it.

Tanzanite

Chelsea filter and dichroscope. For all of you that have a copy of Gemology in Motion
you have seen these demonstrated on all of the tanzanite imitations. And since there is no
synthetic tanzanite, you have all of the information you need. If you don't have the video,
read the tanzanite section per this course in The Gemstones. It says all you need to know.
Easy ID from all imitations with the Chelsea filter and dichroscope.

Topaz

Another huge gemstone group that can be quite expensive. Of importance here is that
pink topaz will test in the RI range of pink tourmaline. And more than one gemologist
has been left with mud on their face from incorrectly identifying pink topaz as a pink
tourmaline because all they did was use the refractometer. Remember that the SG is far
apart. And topaz is biaxial while tourmaline is uniaxial. Blue topaz and the other colors
should be no problem. But remember that only in the US is the peach color the only one
referred to as Imperial Topaz. The other colors like salmon, cherry red,
champagne,etc..will be called Imperial in many other parts of the world.

Tourmaline Family

There is a tourmaline for every color of the rainbow. But they should not be a problem.
Other than being aware of the topaz problem the tourmalines should be fairly easy.
Mainly because there is not much else with a 3.06 SG in the 1.62 RI range that is
uniaxial. But keep a very open mind about colors. There are tourmaline colors out there
that you have never seen....I guarantee it.

Turquoise

You should not have a problem with identifying turquoise...but the treatments and
reconstituted and everything else that goes with it will be a nightmare. I would not make
any expensive decisions on turquoise unless you deal with it a lot and are well
experienced in the treatments. I can tell you that this is one stone that I personally shy
away from due to lack of experience with the current treatments. Its one of the stones that
to this day I quickly say: I don't know, when asked about it. You will need to have
someone who deals in a lot of the material and who is up on all the latest events to make
a good evaluation. Be very careful with turquoise.

Zircon

Nothing is going to be over the RI limit of the refractometer and give you such wide
double refraction. The facet doubleing for zircon is a dead giveaway for anyone who
handles much of it. With that you should not need any other test unless you just want to
practice seeing a RI above the limits.....:-)