Gemlink

Evaluation of coloured gemstone is based on four categories.

They are Commercial (lower-middle-upper), good, fine and extra fine. Three factors determine quality. They are Colour, Clarity and Cut. Each of the three components is given a rating from 1 for the lowest grade to 10 for the highest grade. The prices are according to the category.

• Commercial
• Good 4 to 6
• Fine 6 to 8
• Extra Fine 8 to 10

We carry the following precious and semi-precious gemstones: Aquamarine, Emerald, Ruby (also star ruby), Sapphire (blue, yellow, green and star sapphire), Garnet (red and green), Peridot (comes in light green to dark slightly yellow-green), Amethyst (violet to red purple), Red Spinel, Topaz (blue, golden/yellow, imperial, pink), Tourmaline (blue, chrome, green, golden, red), Tanzanite (blue-violet. Strong blue for top prices), Opal, Jade, Iolite, Pearls.

EMERALD comes in emerald green, light green, yellow green, dark green. Ancients dedicated to the Goddess Venus. Birthstone for the month of May. A symbol of immortality and faith. It is said to be beneficial to eyes.

RUBY "Lord of Gems". It is said to preserve the mental and bodily health of the wearer, for it removed evil thoughts, and, controls amorous desires. Comes in varying red. Birth for the month of July.

SAPPHIRE Birthstone for the month of September. The ancients thought it had power to influence spirits, to be a charm against unchastity and capable of making peace between foes and protecting its owner against captivity.

BIRTHSTONES

JAN- Garnet
FEB- Amethyst
MAR- Aquamarine
APR- Diamond
MAY- Emerald
JUN- Cameo or pearl
JUL- Ruby
AUG- Peridot or sardonys or green toumaline
SEP- Sapphire
OCT- Opal
NOV- Topaz
DEC- Turquoise or onyx or zircon

PRICING

The prices are calculated on the basis of quality and weight of the gemstones. Example a gem in fine quality would weigh 1.25 carat at $150.00 per carat in U. S. funds. Therefore to calculate the price of the gem you would do the following:

1.25 carat x $150.00 = $225.00 plus applicable taxes plus postage.

We also specialize in high quality gems to investors or collectors. We market Colombian Emeralds from $2000.00 to $12,000.00 per carat. Ceylon sapphires $500.00 to $4000.00 per carat. Burma sapphires add 50%. For Kashmir the prices are doubled. Thai rubies from $350.00 to $6000.00 per carat. Burma rubies from $500.00 to $20,000.00 per carat.

Other gems such as Amethyst, Garnet, Citrine, blue Topaz and Iolite under fine quality could range from $10 and up per carat. Garnets range from $5.00 and up. Rhodolite garnet from Africa could range from $15.00 to $50.00 per carat. There are rubies, sapphires, emeralds and other precious gems at lower prices too, which could range from range from $250.00 per carat and up.

Each gem will come with an appraisal certificate, certified by a qualified Gemmologist.

DIAMONDS

We also specialize in diamonds. The diamonds are graded by G.I.A. standards. There are four C's that gives the value to a diamond. They are as following:

• CUT: Diamonds are purchased and esteemed because of their beauty, which in turn depends on their brilliancy and fire. A stone may be perfect in clarity and absolutely devoid of body colour, yet be lacking in brilliancy and fire. In order to achieve brilliancy and fire, the proportion and the finish of a diamond must be good and its angles in relation to the plane of the girdle are reasonably close to ideal figures. It is the work of the master cutter that allows the diamond to be cut in such a way as to permit the maximum amount of light to be reflected and refracted through the diamond.

• COLOUR:The best colour for a diamond is colourless (i.e. devoid of any body colour) Colour usually is graded either in north daylight, in a room as free from colour reflections as possible, or in an instrument called Diamondlite which furnishes a light that is corrected to the equivalent of north daylight without ultraviolet light. The colour grading scale is from colourless to light yellow. The differences between one grade and another are very subtle, as can be seen by the number of grades within any one category. The yellow colour in the diamond is due to nitrogen. There are also deeper yellow colour called "champagne" and "Canary". Other colours ranges from pink through red, blue, green and brown even black diamonds. The rarest colour occurring in natural diamond is red followed by green, blue purple and brown. Traces of aluminum induces the blue colour, pink due to manganese.

• CLARITY: A diamond that is free of inclusions and surface blemishes is of highest quality. The clarity of a diamond is determined by the size and number of inclusions. The degree to which it is free from inclusions and surface blemishes is rated on a scale of flawless to imperfect. To determine a diamond's clarity, it is viewed under 10-power magnification by a trained eye. Minute inclusions neither mar its beauty nor endanger its durability. The clarity starts from:- FL (flawless) - IF (internally flawless) - VVS-1 and VVS-2 (very very slight inclusions) - VS-1/VS-2 (very slight inclusions) - SI-1/SI-2 (slight inclusions) - I-1/I-2/I-3 (imperfect-eye-visible inclusions).

• CARAT: The word carat comes from the carob seed , the seeds of carob tree fruit were remarkably uniform in size and weight, in olden days the merchants used carob seeds to measure weight of the gems. Carat is the measure in weight of the diamond or any gems. One carat is equal to 100 "points", so that a diamond of 75 points weighs 0.75 carat, if it is 50 points then it is 0.50 carat. Weight is the most obvious factor in determining the value of a diamond. But two diamonds of equal weight can have very unequal values, depending on their cut, colour and clarity.