By John S Stewart
When you buy Emerald Jewellery there are several factors to consider if it is to be such as Emerald Rings, Emerald Earrings and Emerald Pendants,- these are the 4 C's - colour, clarity, carat weight and cut.
Emerald Colour
Emeralds occur in a variety of green shades. Some Emeralds have yellowish to bluish overtones. The stone loses colour when strongly heated.
The colour of an Emerald is its most important determiner of value. The best colour of an Emerald is "Emerald Green" or "grass" green. There is nothing else in the world that quite has this colour. It is not too yellow and not too blue; it is not pale or dark, but intense and bright. A quality Emerald looks like it's glowing. Typically, the finest coloured Emeralds come from Columbia.
Once again, the most universally accepted and most documented system for grading is the GIA system, but there are also numerous other trade based systems in use.
Emerald Clarity
Unlike most gemstones, clarity is not large enough to determine the value of emeralds on its own. It's definitely not as important as colour. This is because the imperfections are so common in natural emeralds and it is thought not to interfere with its beauty.
Good clarity is recommended to the extent that light may be able to play within a stone, and it is transparent. While not absolutely necessary for clarity to affect Emerald value, completely opaque emerald is not worth much: in fact, even the best emerald, if it is completely opaque, is not valuable. Clarity is the second most important 4 C's, when it comes to quality.
The clarity of Emerald, as with all other gemstones, is officially classified as ranging from the best VVS (very, very, slightly included), to VS (very, slightly included), SI-S2 (slightly included), and down to I1,I2,13 (included).
Emerald Weight
Very large Emeralds (over 10 cts) of good quality are extremely rare. Most of them are in museums, crown jewels or the jewellery boxes of the elite. Emeralds over 3 cts are even rare, available to average people for thousands of pounds. An Emerald of good quality of any size is valuable, though the price will go down significantly when the stone is less than 1/2 carat.
Emerald Cut
A well cut Emerald is an Emerald that sparkles and glows to its maximum ability. Perfect cut is not quite as important for Emerald as it is for most gemstones, because as mentioned previously, Emerald is valued for its depth of colour mostly, and is often too included to sparkle anyway. The shape "emerald cut" which is popular now for diamonds as well as other gemstones was in fact originally created for Emerald. This cut was used for cutting Emerald because it emphasises colour instead of sparkle. However, it is still important to know the difference between a good and a bad cut, so that when presented with a choice of Emeralds, you can choose a well-cut one. When judging the cut of an Emerald, you should look for:
"Fish eye": if the bottom Emerald is not cut at the proper angles, you will be able to see through the Emerald rather than seeing light reflected back to you.
Uneven Facets: in particular they show up more in cuts types emerald, step, baguette and princess cuts, which are common in emeralds. These cuts have a long straight side rather than triangles and diamonds. A poorly emerald cut of this style is smaller at one end to the other end, giving an uneven length.
Polish: The emeralds can be difficult to polish due to the natural structure of the crystal, so spin the emerald around, to see that each facet reflects light like a mirror without dull or rough areas. Also, Emerald is subject to internal cracks and fissures which can also be applied to the surface. If you see fine lines on the facets of emerald surfaces, there is an error in the cut and you must avoid when you can make your vulnerable to cracking. In large emerald gem trade, emeralds are sold at a price per carat basis. Therefore, it makes sense that 3-carat emerald will cost more than a 1 carat emerald, when all else is equal. But an additional factor is that it is rare to find a 3 carat emerald to that of a 1 carat emerald. Therefore, not only is the total price higher, but the price per carat is higher because of the extra factor of scarcity.
Emerald Treatments
Almost every Emerald available on the market has been treated to improve its clarity. Because Emeralds are naturally full of cracks and fissures which make it more opaque and less attractive, it has become an industry standard to fill the cracks in Emerald, thereby improving its clarity. Traditional fillers are natural oils such as cedar oil. Over many decades, these oils may fade or "sweat." Although they are accepted and do not make an Emerald worth less, there is discussion regarding the permanence of the treatment. For a gemstone treatment to not diminish a gemstone's value, it must be "permanent." Other methods of filling cracks in Emerald are being explored such as waxes, resins and even glass. A substance is considered good for filling cracks in Emeralds when it reflects light in a way very similar to Emerald, thus making the fillings less noticeable.
Although sealing cracks, which is acceptable in order to improve clarity, it is sometimes also used to improve colour. For example when green oil is used. This is generally regarded as misleading and you do not really want to buy these "coloured" emeralds. This can be seen under 10x magnification.
Please note: Emerald gems may lose the oils or fillers after a few years of wear. This is quite normal. The Emerald Gemstones in this condition become quite brittle and are more prone to cracking and breaking. Most local Jewellers are well informed to do the treatment required for Emeralds and you can avail of their services. This is a special care that should be done by a professional Jeweller and cannot be attempted at home.
Emerald fakes and imitations
In recent years, synthetic Emeralds have become very available on the market. They go by labels such as "created", "lab", "synthetic", "Chatham" (a large producer of Synthetic Emeralds). They are "real" Emeralds in the sense that they are the same mineral, the difference is they were made in a laboratory instead of in the earth. Synthetic Emeralds are usually much clearer than natural Emeralds: fewer inclusions. It is also possible to find deep attractive colours in synthetic Emeralds. Created Emeralds are more or less about 1/10 the price of natural Emeralds with the same characteristics.
The use of Emerald jewellery
Do not perform heavy work when wearing your Emerald Jewellery. Protect the Jewellery from blows and impacts. Also never place your Emeralds near heated environments, this could damage the fillers and oils in your treated Emeralds. When looking after your Emerald Gemstone Jewellery you need to keep in mind the enhancements done on the Emerald Gemstone.
Caring for your jewellery Emerald
Emeralds should never be cleaned with very hot water, steam or any other solution that contains petroleum distillates or solvents. jewellery cleaning solutions are sold as such in the market are not compatible with the oil treatment of emeralds. All jewellery containing emeralds should not be placed in ultrasonic cleaning equipment.
To clean the emerald green emerald jewellery use a soft toothbrush or a cloth dampened in warm water. Avoid soaking in hot water and emerald hot or too cold. Water can enter through cracks and treated fillers to dilute or dissolve. Exposure to heat may cause cracks to expand and make Emeralds very fragile.
Remove your emerald jewellery when not needed and store it in a safe place, away from heat or moisture. The idea is to keep your emeralds in good condition, avoiding the need to clean the jewellery frequently.
My Last Word..,
I have always strongly recommended that one should buy Emerald jewellery carefully. Expect to pay more for larger gems and remember at the end of the day, "beauty is in the eye of the beholder." Then choose the stone you want, not what you're led to believe you want! Whatever the emerald, size or shape you choose, be sure to wear it and enjoy it!
Thank you for reading my article - I sincerely hope it helps in some way.
