In this post I will cover some questions you can use to weed through your local jewelers.

Any jeweler who knows his or her stock will be able to answer these questions.  If you frequent a chain store, you can use them to find the sales person who knows his or her stuff.  My questions target the most consistently treated stones on the market.

1. Are the blue sapphires heated?  90% or more of sapphires are heated to improve color, clarity, or both.  Easily 50% of blue sapphire would not be on the market without heat treatment.  Heat dissolves rutile needles commonly present within sapphire crystals.  Not only does this improve the transparency, it also releases titanium into the crystal improving the blue color.  Heat can also reduce the greenish color present in iron-bearing sapphire.  Without heat treatment marketable sapphires would be scarce, more expensive, and less attractive.
2. Are the emeralds oiled?  Emerald is often internally fractured.  The apparent clarity can be improved by filling these fractures with oil or other similar substances.  Except in the finest qualities, assume all emeralds are oiled. Your jeweler should instruct you on how best to care for your emeralds.
3. Are the white pearls bleached?  Just about every white pearl is subject to a mild hydrogen peroxide bleaching process.  This helps reduce the appearance of spots.  Most of what you see on the market are cultured pearls.  Your salesperson should refer to them, at least once, as cultured.  Natural pearls, fresh and salt-water, are extremely rare.

It’s important to be all-inclusive when asking these questions.  On occasion you will encounter an untreated specimen.  Your jeweler will probably be able to point out the differences to you and do a side by side comparison.  Fine quality goods will probably have documentation from GIA or AGS.

The answers you are looking for are:

• Yes.  This person either knows or assumes these stones have been treated in some way.  This is the safest answer for the jeweler.  It’s better to tell you something is treated and find out that it is not than the other way around.  To find out more, read the excerpts from the FTC Guide that I posted.  Find the tab at the top of the page.
• Probably.  Indicates that the person is aware of the prevalence of treatments.
• I don’t know.    This indicates that the person probably won’t make stuff up.  They may or may not be aware of the treatments and do not want to intentionally misinform you.  This should usually be followed by an offer to find the answer

Check the walls for diplomas.  Two of the biggest schools in the United States are the American Gem Society and the Gemological Institute of America.  Make a note of the school and google it when you get home to find out more about it, if you like.  Some schools even keep a searchable record of alumni.  GIA has one and, if you have a look, I’m on the list.  Wheee!  Some schools offer correspondence courses as well as in-house education.  A gemology degree earned in residence does carry more weight.  For example, I identified about 3000 gemstones while attending GIA with constant access to instructors, top notch equipment, reference materials, and a magnificent gem and mineral collection.  A distance student will see significantly fewer specimens.

Trust your instincts.  You may not know a lot about gems and jewelry, but you probably know a thing or two about people.  If you don’t like the answers or the feeling you get at one location, move on to the next.  Hopefully, you will end up with a short list of jewelers who answer acceptably and have otherwise made you feel welcome and at ease.

You are, as always, invited to ask me any questions you have about gems and jewelry.