Gems – Lorini Gioielli

Diamons

By far the most utilised and requested gem for a jewel, it owes its name to the ancient Greek word “Adámas”, meaning invincible, indomitable, indestructible. The origin of its name reflects the extraordinary hardness of this material (the hardest on the face of the earth), which can only be scratched by another diamond. Precisely for this characteristic, the diamond has always been associated with the concept of eternity, and for this reason it is used to mark life’s most important occasions such as births, engagements, weddings, and anniversaries.

In 1953, the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) developed the first globally accepted standard to classify diamonds by evaluating four characteristics: COLOUR, CLARITY, CUT, and CARAT WEIGHT.

Today, the 4Cs of diamonds are the universal language for evaluating the quality of any diamond anywhere in the world.

COLOUR

Clarity

Cut

Carat

COLOUR

Clarity

Cut

Carat

Coloured stones

FANCY COLOUR DIAMONDS

Dazzling brilliance. Singular colour. Fancy colour diamonds are the rarest and most expensive of all gems. They can be yellow, blue, green, pink, purple, grey, orange, and red. Some of these colours in diamonds are considered more unique than rare and are "collectibles". Red diamonds are the rarest of all gems, and fewer than 40 have been found on the planet.

RUBY

The ruby is certainly worthy of its ancient Sanskrit name "Ratnaraj", or "king of gems". It is the most valuable variety of the corundum species, which also includes sapphire. After diamonds, rubies are probably the stones with the highest price per carat, which classifies them among the most important gems in the colored stone market.

SAPPHIRE

The term sapphire most likely derives from the Hebrew word "Saffir", which means "beautiful" or "perfect". In the international context, the term sapphire can be applied to any corundum that is not a ruby, while in Italy this term has been limited by the UNI standard 10245 of 2013 to indicate only the blue variety. Because of this standard, in Italy the correct nomenclature of the other colours is “corundum” accompanied by the colour specification. In addition to ruby and sapphire, the corundum species comes in many other colours including yellow, pink, purple, orange, green, and shades in-between. The rarest and most expensive variety of corundum is Padparadscha, a name derived from the Sinhalese word meaning "Lotus Flower", and is characterised by a unique pink-orange colour.

EMERALD

This is the most popular variety of the beryl species and is characterised by a bluish-green (emerald green) or intense green colour. Emeralds typically contain inclusions visible to the naked eye, which traders like to call "jardin" or "garden effect". For this reason, operators and consumers understand and accept the presence of inclusions in emeralds. Emeralds that have no inclusions visible to the naked eye are extremely rare and expensive.

TANZANITE

Tanzanite owes its name to the only place on the planet where it has been found; in fact, Tiffany & Co named this blue-violet variety of zoisite in honour of Tanzania, where it was first unearthed in 1967. Since there is only one place where it is extracted, tanzanite is a rare gem, and in its most saturated deep blue-violet colour can climb to very high prices. Light shades are more commonly found and are more affordable.

SPINEL

In antiquity, this stone was often confused with rubies and sapphires, which is why many of the most famous jewels of royal families (once considered to be rubies) are actually spinels. The most famous is certainly the Black Prince’s Ruby, situated on the British imperial crown. For centuries, this stone was believed to be a ruby, when in reality it is a spinel. It is only since 1783 that spinel has been recognised as a separate mineral, and it’s rumoured that this very distinction between spinel and ruby gave birth to gemmology as a science. In recent years, the growing demand for alternatives to rubies has rekindled appreciation for the rich red colour of this gem. The most popular colours are bright red, cobalt blue, and vivid pink.

TOURMALINE

This name derives from Sinhalese and literally means "of every colour". In fact, tourmaline occurs in nature in every colour, and multiple colours can even be found within the same gem. Very popular are blue (indicolite), red (rubellite), green (chrome), and two-tone colours, which fade from red-pink to green. However, the rarest and most expensive of all is the Paraiba tourmaline, which has a truly unique colour that ranges between electric blue-turquoise to neon blue. Paraiba is one of the latest gems to be discovered (1989) and takes its name from the Brazilian location where it was first found. Although it has recently appeared on the market, it has quickly been considered the highest variety of tourmaline due to its unique colour and rarity, making it the most in-demand and by far the most expensive tourmaline variety.

GARNET

This group of minerals includes almost every colour. Red garnets have a long history, but modern gem buyers and enthusiasts can choose from a wide range of colours including pink, red, green, orange, and purple. Green garnets, such as tsavorite and demantoid, are rare and very expensive, while more affordable are the vivid red, orange (mandarin garnet), purple, and all red-brownish shades.

ZIRCON

Zircon is a natural gem with high refraction and fire that is unfairly confused with cubic zirconia (CZ), an artificial material not present in nature. The optical properties make it luminous and brilliant, and in its blue (starlite variety) and colourless shades it achieves a dispersion (fire) comparable to that of diamond. It also shows up in warm autumn yellows and reddish browns, as well as deep reds, greens, and blues.

AMETHYST

Up until the 18th century, amethyst (a purple variety of quartz) was very rare and considered immensely valuable, which made it sought-after and as expensive as rubies, sapphires, emeralds, and diamonds. Following the discovery of larger deposits in Brazil and in other locations around the world, amethysts have become available to a wider audience of gemstone lovers and jewellery enthusiasts.

TOPAZ

Topaz is a lustrous, brilliant gemstone with an exceptionally wide range of colours ranging from honey yellow, fiery orange, and cyclamen pink to ice blue and even green. Blue topaz results from treating colourless gems that are very present in nature, and therefore has a low cost – while beautiful pink-red, purple, or orange gems are considered unique pieces. The most popular colours range from red-orange to red. This particular colour is commonly referred to as "Imperial Topaz" and is only extracted from Mina Gerais in Brazil.

AQUAMARINE

The name of this gem derives from the Latin word which precisely means “sea water”, thanks to its clear colour. It is the blue, blue-green variety of the beryl species and is characterised by a high brightness and transparency. Deep, intense colours of blue are rare and very expensive.

OPAL

Entire galaxies in the palm of your hand: that’s what it feels like to observe certain opals. This effect is called harlequin and is characteristic of noble opal. Since the opal contains the colours of every other gem, the ancient Romans considered it the most precious of all stones. The play of opal’s kaleidoscopic colours is truly unique compared to any other gem: this is due to microscopic silica spheres (0.2 micron) that diffract light in a riot of flashing and changing colours depending on the direction of observation. There are many varieties of opals, but among the rarest and most requested are the noble opal (both white and black) and the fire opal. The latter is so called for its orange colour and does not have harlequin properties.

CITRINE

Citrine is the pale yellow to brownish-orange variety of quartz. Its attractive colour, plus moderate price tag, makes it the best-selling yellow-to-orange gem. In the contemporary market, the most popular shade of citrine is a deep brownish or reddish orange.

PEARL

Perhaps the most beloved gems of all time, pearls are both natural and cultured, and they appear in a wide variety of colours. The most familiar colours are white and cream, but the pearl palette expands to encompass every shade. Natural pearls are formed as a result of a mollusk's self-defence mechanism when a foreign body manages to penetrate their shell, whereas cultured pearls are the result of man's deliberate insertion of a foreign body into the mollusk. The process by which the mollusk covers the intruder is exactly the same in both instances, and there are no physical-chemical or aesthetic differences between a natural pearl and a cultivated pearl. When talking about pearls, the term NATURAL means that the genesis of the pearl is natural, without human intervention. CULTIVATED pearls are not imitations but rather natural products, even if they were produced as a result of human stimulation. To date, more than 90% of the pearls on the market are derived from cultivation. Pearls of natural origin are extremely rare and are "reserved" for the collectors' market.

Diamons