The library
Buying guides
Written for buyers who wire real money to dealers they have not met. Each guide sets out what the paperwork should say, what disclosure looks like and where the risk actually sits.
Emerald oiling grades, explained
Nearly every emerald reaches the market with surface-reaching fissures, and nearly every one has had those fissures filled.
How to read a lab reportA laboratory report is the closest thing the coloured stone trade has to a common language, and it is routinely misread.
How insured shipping of loose stones worksA fine loose stone crosses borders in a parcel the size of a paperback, and it does so safely thousands of times a week.
Questions to ask a dealer before wiring moneyThe loose stone trade still runs on bank wires between people who have often never met.
Ruby origin: Burma and MozambiqueTwo names anchor the modern ruby market.
Heat treatment in sapphire, and what disclosure should sayMost sapphire on the market has been heated.