Emerald is one of the most valuable stones in the world. In some cases, it turns out to be even more expensive than a diamond. But you can also find relatively inexpensive emeralds on the market, comparable in price to semi-precious stones.
This price range is explained by the fact that emeralds are very different from each other in quality. It depends on many factors: the country and the place of the deposit, the depth at which the gem stone lies and the method of its mining. In some deposits, they find bright, clear, transparent stones, while in others they are pale and cloudy.
In this article, we will tell you everything you need to know about emeralds and their prices: what determines the value of a stone, how it is analyzed, how to distinguish a natural nugget from a lab grow or fake one.
What forms the price of an emerald
Emeralds are evaluated by gemologists. It is almost impossible to independently determine with high accuracy how much your stone is worth, you need special knowledge and experience. However, it is still possible to understand whether an emerald is expensive or cheap, it is enough to know the factors that affect its price.
The price of an emerald depends on several factors:
- The region where the stone was mined. Colombian, Ural and Brazilian emeralds are valued higher than Australian and Zimbabwean emeralds.
- The purity of the stone. If there are no impurities and unnecessary inclusions in an emerald, it will be much more expensive than a muddy or defective one.
- Transparency of the stone. Pure translucent stones are more expensive than turbid ones.
- Type and quality of cut.
- Carat weight of the emerald. At the same time, the price increases non-linearly, one stone weighing 5 carats will be more expensive than five similar stones weighing 1 carat each.
- Saturation and tone of color. Intense green and bright herbaceous are most highly valued, but yellow ones are cheaper.
- Availability of a gemological certificate. This document confirms the authenticity and specifies the characteristics of the stone.
The region of production is one of the most important factors. The fact is that the quality of an emerald is largely determined by the nature of its deposit. Almost all Colombian stones are clean, transparent, almost free of impurities, chips, cracks, and other defects. In Zimbabwe, on the other hand, the vast majority of mined emeralds are cloudy and less spectacular.
Some of the most common emeralds are stones from African Zambia. The deposit was discovered only in the early 2000s, but the gems found there have already amazed jewelers from all over the world with their quality and availability. Zambian emeralds are bright green and crystal clear. Now Zambia is the leader in the production of gem-quality emeralds.
The historical Malyshevsky deposit in the Urals also presents some of the most valuable and expensive emeralds. The stones mined here are characterized by an incredibly rich color, a bright grassy hue, transparency, and a smooth surface without defects. The number of impurities is minimal. In addition, the rarest giant emeralds are often found at the Malyshevsky deposit. It is not easy to buy Malyshevsky emerald today, as this deposit is a strategically important object for the country, and visits to it, as well as the purchase of raw materials, are very limited.
At the same time, absolutely pure and transparent emeralds are one of the rarest. As a result, they may turn out to be even more expensive than diamonds, especially large stones weighing more than 5 carats. For such stones, the country-of-origin fades into the background, and color and transparency become the most important pricing parameters.
The type and quality of the cut also determine the price of the stone. A perfectly cut small emerald can cost as much as a stone twice as large, but with an economical simple cut that keeps the weight of the stone. The classic method is emerald cut, it grinds the crystal a bit, keeping it large and massive. But there are also round, oval shapes. The pear-shaped cut is very popular, it’s made in the shape of a drop.
Some complex cuts can also reveal the richness and depth of an emerald, and thus increase its price.
The color saturation also determines the price of the stone. The rarest and most expensive are intense green, dark and deep. Light-colored stones are cheaper. However, some bright grassy emeralds can compete with diamonds in price.
A certificate issued by a gemological laboratory is a document confirming the authenticity and characteristics of a stone. In essence, it builds consumer confidence. The most reputable laboratories and certification centers are the United States Association of Gemologists and the Gemological Center of Moscow State University.
Finally, natural emeralds are many times more expensive than lab grow ones. The latter is often cheaper than even semiprecious stones.
Emerald classification
There are several classification systems for emeralds. In Russia and many countries of the post-Soviet space, a set of standards is used that distinguishes five groups of gems by color:
- Dark green.
- Medium dark green.
- Medium green.
- Medium light green.
- Light green.
Emeralds from the first color group are the most expensive, and from the fifth – the cheapest (unless they have perfect clarity and transparency).
A system of three categories is used to assess purity:
- Transparent, practically free of impurities and inclusions.
- Transparent, with a small number of impurities and inclusions.
- Stones with a large number of defects, impurities, opacities, cracks.
The stones of the first category are the most expensive.
Also, the classification system distinguishes four grades of mass:
- Small – weighing 0.49 carats or less.
- Medium – weighing 0.5-1 carats.
- Large – weighing 1-10 carats.
- Very large – 10 carats or more.
The categories are arranged according to the increase in cost: small – the cheapest, very large – the most expensive due to their rarity.
Correspondence of size and weight of emeralds
The size (geometric, width and height) of a stone depends on its mass and cut. Therefore, two emeralds of the same weight may have different sizes.
It may happen that after the application of the classic cut with facets, the emerald will lose its attractiveness, since the edges will be emphasized and show inclusions that will be perceived as imperfections of the stone. The emerald is cut with a cabochon cut to avoid this. The cabochon has no edges, it is flat on one side and convex on the other.
How emeralds are imitated and counterfeited
The high price and the impressive demand for emeralds encourage unscrupulous jewelers to forge these precious stones. At the same time, the methods of misleading can be different. Sometimes semi-precious stones are sold under the guise of emeralds, and sometimes laboratory-origin emeralds are sold under the guise of natural ones.
Imitation emeralds (semi-precious stones)
Semi-precious stones are often sold under the guise of emeralds. They are also green, which can mislead an inexperienced buyer. At the same time, the list of semi-precious stones that can be sold under the guise of emeralds is quite extensive.
Demantoid is a rare bright green stone. Its clear and transparent varieties have excellent light refraction, so in some cases, they can be even more expensive than emeralds. However, for falsification, of course, low-quality demantoids are used.
Fluorite is rarely used in jewelry. It is a very soft stone that shines poorly and scratches quickly. But thanks to its deep green color, scammers use it as an imitation of an emerald.
Tourmaline is usually red in color, but the Tanzanian variety has an intense green. This stone is very similar to an emerald and can fool even a novice jeweler. However, an experienced technician will instantly distinguish tourmaline from a gemstone, since it has a higher degree of light refraction.
Chromiopside is so similar to emerald that it can deceive both buyers and jewelers. Fortunately, this stone is quite rare. It is possible to distinguish chrome diopside from emerald only in laboratory conditions. By the way, earlier chrome-diopside was mistakenly called “Siberian emerald”.
Glass is also often used in gemstone counterfeiting, not only in emeralds.
Chrysolite is a semi-precious stone that is often sold under the guise of an emerald. But an experienced jeweler will easily distinguish these nuggets. Chrysolite is characterized by high birefringence – if you look at it through a magnifying glass or microscope, you can easily see the birefringence of the edges. Also, inclusions in chrysolites differ from those in emeralds.
Uvarovite is often found in the form of a brush, a group of small crystals on one base. Therefore, they sometimes try to pass him off as a druse, a special form of rough emerald. Such specimens are not cut but sent to collections in their original state. Their cost significantly exceeds the cost of faceted emeralds.
Jadeite has a characteristic greasy sheen.
Kyanite, synthetic quartz, YAG, green spinel, and moldavite can also be used as imitations.
Lab grow emeralds
Lab grow emeralds began to be produced in the first half of the 20th century. For their cultivation, the conditions that are observed in the depths of the earth’s crust are recreated. Emeralds are “born” in just a couple of months.
The chemical composition of natural and lab grow emeralds is identical. However, there are still differences in the stones. If natural emeralds without inclusions, defects, and impurities are extremely rare, then each specimen grown in the laboratory is perfectly clean. So, gemologists, having met a stone devoid of flaws, carry out complex analyzes to make sure of its natural origin.
To make law grow emeralds as similar to natural ones as possible, they can be processed, cracked, specially grown with gas bubbles and inclusions. For an experienced gemologist, it will not be difficult to distinguish such a stone from a natural emerald, although it may be necessary to have an amplification higher than a simple magnifying glass.
Although fake emeralds may seem even more beautiful than natural emeralds, they lack personality and history. Most importantly, they lack investment value. Over time, such stones only become cheaper.
Doublets and triplets
Doublets and triplets are one of the crudest ways to counterfeit emeralds, designed exclusively for inexperienced buyers. To counterfeit a gem, two pieces of the mineral are glued together, and a doublet is obtained. If you need to make a triplet, three pieces are used.
Cubic zirconia, glass, and other materials are used to create doublets and triplets.
In some cases, real natural emeralds, sometimes transparent varieties of beryl, are used to create a doublet and a triplet. Usually, these are small, damaged stones that cannot be cut. The main problem of such doublets is the low quality of gluing, such an emerald simply collapses over time.
As a result, cheap stones are obtained. If they are trying to sell you an “emerald” at a suspiciously low price, do not rush to buy.
Luxurious jewelry with natural emeralds
Jewelry with inlaid emeralds is not only a luxurious piece of jewelry but also a good investment. So, the purchase must be approached responsibly. In our catalog you will find proven jewelry with emeralds – with natural stones of exclusively gem quality.
