Gems are natural materials that can be used as ornaments. Ideally, it should be beautiful, durable, and rare. Although beauty is not a scientific category, most beholders consider beautiful gems to be transparent and either colorless or vividly colored. As a gemstone is moved, some gems, such as opals and diamonds, flash with bright colors. Asterism and chatoyancy are two phenomena that require or allow reduced transparency. Different light sources change the color of some gems, such as alexandrite. The intensity of color in some opaque gems, such as lapis lazuli, more than compensates for their lack of transparency. When a gem is durable, it is resistant to scratching and impact.
As a result, they are hard to break but easy to carve. A gem's rarity can work against it commercially. It is difficult for people to appreciate rare gems because they aren't familiar with them. More widely available gem materials will inevitably exhibit greater variations in color, clarity, size, and color qualities, allowing buyers to choose from a wider selection. There will, however, be some colors, clarities, and sizes that are rare than others.
It is natural for gem materials to be the least expensive, but fine workmanship can transform an inexpensive rough into something valuable and desirable. There is no gem that is impervious to all conditions. Some gemstones, such as emeralds, are brittle, while others, such as tanzanite, are prone to breaking or cleaving. Pearls are extremely soft, and the oils in your skin can even damage them. Beauty is by far the most important factor when it comes to gemstones, as evidenced by the popularity of these more fragile gems. Whether a gem is used daily in a ring, brought out only for special occasions, or kept as part of a collection will depend on its durability.
Language of gemstones
Gems are classified and identified according to various characteristics, which are listed in the following directory. Mineralogists use these properties and categories to classify gemstones. Gems are classified according to their chemical composition and structure. The "backbone" of a crystal structure consists of some groups of atoms. Carbon-oxygen groups (carbonates), phosphorus-oxygen groups (phosphates), and several silicon-oxygen groups (such as chain silicates and cyclosilicates) are examples.
The atomic symmetry of a mineral determines how it grows. Seven crystal systems exist: isometric (or cubic), tetragonal, hexagonal, trigonal, orthorhombic, monoclinic, and triclinic. Amorphous materials, such as natural glass, are disorganized at the atomic level. For example, opals, shells, and pearls do not have a nuclear order, but they are organized on a larger scale.
Composition:
The mineral composition is usually described by a mineral formula that lists the atoms that define the mineral and their relative proportions.
Refractive index:
A crystal's atoms slow downlighting compared to a vacuum's. The refractive index measures this slowing. Due to the fact that atoms can be more closely packed in some directions than in others, some minerals have two or even three refractive indices.
Birefringence:
A mineral with more than one refractive index value has a difference between its highest and lowest refractive index.
Dispersion:
There is a wavelength associated with each color of the spectrum. Different wavelengths have different refractive indices (the proper refractive index is 589 nm, in the yellow region of the spectrum). Blue-violet light (at 486 nm) and red light (at 656 nm) have different refractive indices (for light traveling in the same direction).
Specific gravity:
Using the same volume of water as a reference, specific gravity measures the weight of an object. In the hand, a gem with a high specific gravity, such as white jadeite, will feel heavier than one with a low specific gravity, such as white opal
Hardness:
This is the resistance of a material to scratching. A harder mineral scratches a softer mineral, Hardness is measured using the Mohs Scale, according to which hardness is categorized as below:
1. Talc - It is a clay mineral used in paper making, rubber, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and ceramics.
2. Gypsum - It is a soft sulfate mineral used in construction, medicine, cosmetics, and agriculture.
3. Calcite - It is a carbonate mineral used in building materials, agriculture, pharmaceutics, etc.
4. Fluorite - It is the mineral form of calcium fluoride used in steel manufacturers, high-performance telescopes, cameras, lenses, etc.
5. Apatite - It is a group of phosphate minerals mainly used in agriculture to make fertilizers and also rarely used as gemstones.
6. Orthoclase - This mineral forms igneous rocks due to its tectosilicate composition. Used mainly in the making of glass and ceramics also occasionally transparent crystals are used as gemstones.
7. Quartz - It is a crystalline mineral composed of silica used in jewellery making, glass making, watches, and clocks also used as a sharpening tool.
8. Topaz - is a silicate mineral of aluminum and fluorine mainly used in jewellery making and also available in various colors.
9. Corundum - The crystalline form of aluminum oxide is used in jewellery making. Sapphire and Ruby are two variations of corundum.
10. Diamond - It is the solid crystalline form of carbon and it is not only used as jewellery but also in the automotive industry, medicinal purposes, beauty products, etc.
Cleavage:
This is the natural tendency of a mineral to break along flat planes. These breakage surfaces correspond to planes where the bonding between atoms is weak.
Fracture:
This is the way a mineral breaks along lines other than a flat cleavage plane A fracture may be described as, for example, conchoidal (curved, or "shell-like"), hackly (jagged), splintery, or uneven.
Habit:
This refers to the common way a mineral grows, such as in cubes, kidney like masses, and so on.
The extensive rarity and the enchanting beauty of Gemstones make them precious forever. Furthermore, a preeminent fact is the formation of Gemstones takes millions of years. So always try to keep your Gemstones forever.
