• - Of over 2000 different types of minerals, less than 100 are considered beautiful or durable enough to be used as gemstones. Of these, only 20 are commonly used in jewelry.

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• - meteorites - generally consisting of iron / nickel are extraterrestrial pieces of rock which originated from distant stars and fall to Earth after traveling for millions of years through space. Their crystal structure can only form through the process of cooling approximately 1 degree per year over millions of years in absolute weightlessness. The center core of the earth is believed to consist of the same composition .
  

• - crystals don’t just form in rocks - they also form within plants and animals

          Examples:

• - our bones are composed of tiny crystals of apatite.

• - hormones within our bodies such as adrenaline are found under magnification to be containing tiny crystals

• - gall stones found in cows are found to be identical in composition to struvite, a naturally occurring mineral.

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• - The life of a crystal not only requires perfect conditions for formation to begin, but also later changes must be perfect to protect them rather than destroy them. Most crystals actually grow and dissolve and grow and dissolve as the conditions change and chemicals and elements necessary for their formation are depleted and replenished. Internally most minerals show inclusions and growth patterns caused by this changing environment which a gemologist can use for identification and can prove natural origin. The process of cutting a gemstone involves removing these traces or "imperfections" in order to render the most desirable finished stone, often leaving only the slightest visual clues, if any. Once formation of a mineral concludes, they often continue on a journey involving powerful forces which push them closer to the surface where they become exposed to the forces of erosion such as being washed away in rivers and streams, often thousands of miles to their final resting place as waterworn and tumbled pebbles. Those lucky enough to remain protected from these destructive forces must be subjected to the forces of mining, which often involve the use of dynamite and bulldozers to extract these minerals from the earth. No wonder perfect specimens of minerals are so highly valued amongst collectors who understand and appreciate their rarity.

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• - The name crystal is derived from the Greek word Krystallos which came from the Latin word Kryos meaning icy cold. The ancients believed that crystals formed from water which froze so hard that it would never melt.

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• - Even though diamond is known to be the hardest naturally occurring mineral it would be crushed into dust if hit with a hammer. The hardness relates to its ability to scratch other materials, whereas toughness relates to a mineral’s ability to withstand impact.

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•   Testing for hardness is a destructive test and should never be performed on a gemstone. The age old test of trying to scratch glass in order to prove diamond has resulted in damage to many fine diamonds. Yes, diamond will scratch glass, however damage to the surface of the diamond being tested frequently occurs.

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• - Ancient Vikings are known to have tested Emeralds by smashing them with a hammer. One can only wonder how many rare and beautiful Emeralds were destroyed by this ignorance.

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• - The toughest gemstone is actually Jadeite or Jade. Early tools and hammers have been found which were formed from this gem mineral.

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• - Gold is more malleable and ductile than any other metal. It can be hammered down to a thin sheet with a thickness 1/250,000 of an inch.

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• - A three inch cube of gold could be hammered so thin that it would cover an acre of ground!

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• - An ounce of gold could be drawn into a wire that would be 3 miles long!

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• - If you took all of the gold that had ever been mined in all of recorded history and put it in one place, it is estimated that it would form a single cube only 19 yards square and would weigh over 190 million pounds - so heavy it would sink deep into the ground!

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• - Gold is virtually indestructible. Only a few chemicals will attack gold, thus it will last for many centuries. No wonder the Spacecraft Voyager launched in 1977 and sent to explore Saturn before traveling off into space for thousands of years was carrying a pure gold plate which had been engraved with wording and pictures telling about the planet earth as we know it , just in case it was discovered by some other far away civilization on a distant planet.. NASA wanted the most durable and lasting metal possible.

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• - Due to its permanence, virtually all the gold ever mined is probably still in existence somewhere in the world in some form or other (excluding that which we may have sent into space)

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• - A cube of gold 1 foot tall, wide and deep would weigh approximately 1/2 a ton and be worth over 4 million dollars at today’s gold price of $300.00 per oz.

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• - In 1980, gold reached its highest peak of value at $850.00 per oz.

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• - It takes approximately 3 tons of mined ore to yield 1 oz. of gold.

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• - Scientists believe that gold exists on Mars, Mercury, and Venus.

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• - Platinum, another very rare and precious metal is even more expensive than gold. It is so dense and heavy that it is approximately 1.65 times denser than gold.

Famous Diamonds ...

I Dresden 41 carats, most probably from India. Early history not known. Around 1700 in possession of August the Strong, Duke of Saxony. Kept in the Green Hall in Dresden, hence its name.

2 Hope 44.50 carats. Appeared 1830 in the trade and was bought by the banker H. T. Hope (hence the name) of London. Probably re-cut from a stone stolen during the French revolution. Changed hands frequently. Since 1958 in the Smithsonian Institution, Washington.

3 Cullinan I 530.20 carats. Cut from the largest diamond ever found (3106 carats named after Sir Thomas Cullinan, chairman of the mining company) together with 104 other stones, by the firm of Asscher in Amsterdam in 1908. Adorns the sceptre of King Edward VII; kept in the Tower of London, largest cut diamond, also called "Star of Africa".

4 Sancy 55 carats. Said to have been worn by Charles the Brave around 1470. Bought 1570 by Signeur de Sancy (hence the name) from the French Ambassador to Turkey. Since 1906 belonging to the Astor family, London.

5 Tiffany 128.51 carats. Found in Kimberley mine, South Africa, in 1878, rough weight 287.42 carat. Bought by the jewelers Tiffany in New York and cut in Paris with 90 facets.

6 Koh-i-Noor 108.92 carats. Originally a round stone of 186 carats belonging to the Indian Raj. Bought 1739 by the Shah of Persia, who called it "Mountain of Light" (Koh-i-Noor). Came into possession of the East India Company who presented it to Queen Victoria in 1850. Re-cut, it was set in the crown of Queen Mary, wife of George V, and then in the crown of Queen Elizabeth, now in the Tower of London.

7 Cullinan IV 63.60 carats. One of the 105 cut stones from the largest diamond ever found, the Cullinan (see no.3). Also in the crown of Queen Mary, can be removed from this and worn as a brooch. Kept in the Tower of London.

8 Nassak 43.38 carats. Originally over 90 carats and in a Temple of Shiva near Nassak (hence the name) in India. Looted in 1818 by the English, re-cut 1927 in New York. Today in private possession in U.S.

9 Shah 88.70 carats. Came from India, shows cleavage planes, partially polished. Has three inscriptions of monarchs' names (amongst them the Shah of Persia's -hence the name). Given in 1829 to Tsar Nicholas I. Kept in the Kremlin, Moscow.

10 Florentine 137.27 carats. Early history steeped in legend. 1657 in the possession of the Medici family in Florence (hence the name). During the 18th century in the Habsburg crown, then used as brooch. Whereabouts after First World War unknown.

Other cut diamonds are famous for their size, beauty or sometimes their romantic history, for instance: Cullinan II, De Beers, Great Mogul, Jonker I, Nizam, Jubilee, Orlow, Regent, Star of the South, Victoria I.

The greatest rough stones found suitable for gem purposes in carats: Cullinan (3106), Excelsior (995.2), Star of Sierra Leone (968.9), Great Mogul (about 800), Woyie River (770), President Vargas (726.6), Jonker (726), Jubilee (formerly Reitz 650.8), Dutoitspan (616), Baumgold (609).