GIA Alumni Association Global News & Events

Happy National Space Day! Pallasite is a type of meteorite that contains crystalline olivine in a nickel-iron matrix. It is believed that pallasite only forms in certain types of asteroids, which explains its relative rarity. Gem-quality olivine crystals, or peridot, can sometimes be extracted from pallasite meteorites to make beautifulalthough typically smallfaceted gems. Extraterrestrial peridot can be separated from peridot that formed on Earth through its trace element ...chemistry and unusual inclusions. The faceted green gems, which range in size from 0.17 to 1.40 carats, are pallasitic peridot from the Jepara meteorite found in Indonesia. The slab at the back is from a meteorite found in Argentina and shows olivine in a metallic matrix. Learn more about this stellar gem: https://bit.ly/3toQrfD (Slab) Photo: Orasa Weldon/ GIA. Gift of Gerald Stockton (Cut gems) Photo: Robison McMurtry/ GIA. Courtesy: Bradley Payne See more

Often called black pearls, Tahitian cultured pearls can also be gray or brown in bodycolor with blue, green, purple or pink overtones. Some also show orient, a shimmer of iridescent rainbow colors on or just below a pearl’s surface. Want to learn more about pearls? Check out our Continuing Education seminar, The 7 Value Factors of Pearls, on May 19, 2021; 10 a.m.-12 p.m. PDT! This seminar will cover how to evaluate the quality of different types of cultured pearls, including akoya, South Sea, Tahitian and freshwater. Participants are encouraged to ask questions as they are guided along by GIA gemology instructors! Register now: https://bit.ly/3upDPpU (Image 1) Photo: Matteo Colombo. Courtesy: Getty Images; (Image 2) Photo: SunChan. Courtesy: Getty Images

This (multi) million-dollar baby was bought by John D. Rockefeller, Jr., son of the famous oil tycoon, in 1934 from an Indian Maharajah rumored to have been the Nizam of Hyderabad. Rockefeller had it recut by Cartier in the 1940s and set for his wife, Abigail Aldrich. One of the most valuable sapphires in the world, it is remarkable for its size (62.02 carats) and clarity as well as its Burmese origin. Courtesy: Christie's

A pair of sweethearts. These diamond earrings feature a 0.73 carat Fancy blue heart-shaped diamond and a 0.63 carat Fancy Intense purplish pink heart-shaped diamond. Did you know that blue diamonds are colored by the element boron while pink diamonds are colored by distortions in their crystal lattice? Blue and pink diamonds are some of the rarest and most sought-after colored diamonds in the world. Know the quality of your colored diamonds with our suite of GIA Grading Reports: https://bit.ly/3ta9Lxe Courtesy: Christie's

A delectable selection of Argyle diamond rough, from colorless, yellow and brown to pink. Discovered in the late 1970s and mined since 1983, the Argyle mine in Western Australia closed in November of this year. Known for producing fancy color diamonds, the mine has transformed and captivated the trade in the past few decades. Some of the rarest and most stunning red and violet diamonds were discovered here. It was also the world's largest producer of fancy pink and purplish p...ink diamonds. Although less than 0.01% of the mine's production, its pink diamonds amounted to more than 90% of the world's supply. Argyle pinks appreciated roughly 400% in price over the past two decades. Now that the mine has closed, it is estimated that the price of pink diamonds may rise even more. According to president of L.J. West Diamonds, Larry West, the closing of the mine is "a sad moment. It’s the equivalent of a great artist dying, as far as I’m concerned. The Argyle closed because the mine was so deep that further mining was no longer financially viable. Image 2 shows pink diamonds from the Argyle mine. Image 3 shows the Argyle mine itself. Learn more about the development of the Argyle mine: https://bit.ly/2VQp7sE (Image 1) Photo: Anthony B. Bannister. Courtesy: Rio Tinto. (Image 2) Robert Weldon/ GIA. Courtesy: Argyle Pink Diamonds. (Image 3) Copyright: yewenyi/Getty Images See more

May your holiday season be filled with sparkle and delight. The GIA Alumni Association is grateful for our alumni around the world and would like to wish you peace, health and success in 2021. Photo Courtesy of Rainbow Lattice, Australia.

A drop of sunshine on a cloudy day. For those of you experiencing winter chill, here's the Sun-Drop diamond to warm you up! This 110.03 carat diamond was graded Fancy Vivid yellow by GIA, the highest color grade for a yellow diamond. When the Sun-Drop was auctioned by Sotheby’s Geneva in 2011, Alan Hart, then head of collections for the Mineralogy Department at London's Natural History Museum, explained that the diamond "formed deep within the Earth's crust 1-3 billion years ...ago. As it grew, it incorporated nitrogen into its carbon crystal structure. It is these nitrogen impurities that give the diamond its yellow color as they modify light, absorbing the blue part of the visible spectrum. The diamond then traveled on a long journey upwards in a slushy rock magma. After it was found within a kimberlite pipe (a type of volcanic rock), it was expertly studied and cut, bringing the diamond to life." In a study of yellow diamonds published in 2005, GIA noted that on average only 5% received a grade of Fancy Vivid. Diamonds that combine such opulent color with incredible size are rare indeed! Image 2 shows yellow diamonds that represent the color grades Fancy Light, Fancy, Fancy Intense and Fancy Vivid from left to right. Learn more about fancy color diamonds: https://bit.ly/2VGHPCW (Image 1) Courtesy: LAURENT FIEVET/AFP/GettyImages. (Image 2) Courtesy: Robert Weldon/ GIA See more

Congratulations to our talented alumni who won the 2020 AGTA Spectrum Awards. We are proud of you! https://bit.ly/34HSjak

An eye for beauty. When Colombian emerald cutter Misael Angel Rodriguez was offered a large, dark chunk of emerald for purchase, he nearly passed on the stone. The nearly 370 carat rough was covered in a black carbonaceous coating that prevented him from seeing the stone's quality. He was intrigued by what secrets this gem from the legendary Muzo locale might reveal, however, and took a gamble. He purchased it, and after polishing the rough "skin" off the stone, he saw green ...inside. His emerald chunk consisted of two portions of a six-ray trapiche emerald, which is incredibly rare. Rodriguez and his wife decided that a pair of gems could be fashioned from the rough. They also noticed that the rough contained tube-like internal structures that could produce a cat's eye effect if polished the right way. After careful planning, cutting and polishing, they created a pair of cat's-eye emeralds weighing about 75 carats total. Cat's-eye emeralds are incredibly rare, and this might just be the largest known pair. This gamble was definitely a win for the couple! These images show the cutting process in reverse, from finished gems to cut crystals prior to polishing, to the original rough. Image 4 shows a complete trapiche emerald. Learn more about how this stone was cut and polished: https://bit.ly/36HGEsW (Images 1-3) Photo: Robert Weldon/ GIA. Courtesy: Misael Angel Rodriguez, Accessorios Colombian Esmerald. (Image 4) Photo: Robert Weldon/ GIA. Courtesy: Jose Guillermo Ortiz, Colombian Emerald Co. See more

Gems and jewelry are more than just beautiful. For millennia, they’ve been fraught with symbolism thought to contain medicinal powers and be able to ward off evil or bring their wearer joy and good fortune. Some jewels, on the other hand, are the opposite and are rumored to be cursed! Join our GIA Knowledge Sessions webinar tomorrow at 10 a.m. PDT as Senior Research Librarian Rose Tozer explores the beliefs and superstitions people have held about gems and jewelry throughout history. Learn about cursed gems, mourning jewelry, charms, amulets, jewelry symbols, such as the evil eye, and animal motifs, such as bats, scarabs, snakes, skulls, spiders and more! Register now: https://bit.ly/35M9AyB

When these purple opals were sent to the GIA laboratory in Carlsbad, our scientists immediately suspected they had been dyed. Purple opal exists but it’s opaque and not known to display play-of-color like these specimens do. One of these opals was soaked in acetone and after 54 hours, the acetone turned light purple. After further testing, GIA scientists concluded these 'purple opals' are dyed hydrophane opals from Wollo, Ethiopia. Hydrophane opals are porous and readily absorb water. In fact, they sometimes feel sticky when held because they try to draw moisture from the skin. Their liquid-loving nature means their color can easily be changed with dye. Want to learn more about how GIA uncovered the truth about these opals? https://bit.ly/34DvtRn Photo: Robert Weldon/ GIA

Pumpkin spice and everything nice. Nothing says fall like pumpkins (or the Pumpkin Diamond). The 5.54-carat, Fancy Vivid orange Pumpkin Diamond was auctioned off on Halloween Eve in 1997 to Harry Winston, who purchased it for $1.3 million. Discovered in the Central African Republic (reportedly by a farmer), it was initially an unassuming, brown-looking rough. A diamond purveyor bought it on a leap of faith. In the hands of the right cutter, its stunning orange color was revealed! Photo: Shane McClure/ GIA

A mineral from the stars? One of the most popular diamond substitutes is lab-grown moissanite (silicon carbide). Moissainte was first discovered in nature by French chemist Henri Moissan in a crater in Canyon Diablo, Arizona in 1893 (although it had been grown in a lab two years before). This natural moissanite was likely brought from outer space by the asteroid that created the crater! At first, Moissan mistook the mineral for diamond, but in 1904, he correctly identified it... as silicon carbide. The mineral was eventually named "moissanite" after him. Moissanite is never found in large enough size or high enough clarity in nature for jewelry use. But high-quality lab-grown moissanites are produced in labs and are popular in both their colorless and colored forms. With incredible brilliance and fire and high hardness, it is closer to diamond in its physical properties than any other diamond substitute. Don't worry about not being able to tell lab-grown moissanite and diamond apart, though! One easy way to distinguish them is to look inside the gem. You will see a doubling of lab-grown moissanite's back facets (some people say this makes the inside of the stone look blurry), while diamond doesn't show doubling. The stunning bluish-green stone seen in this image is the 27.15 carat "Birth of the Star" lab-grown moissanite faceted by Victor Tuzlukov. What do you think? Is it a stellar gem? Photo: Robert Weldon. Courtesy: Victor Tuzlukov See more

GIA is proud to sponsor Diamonds Do Good’s virtual event: Understanding Current Consumer Values to Capture Market Share for Natural Diamonds. Diamonds Do Good is a non-profit organization that celebrates the positive impact that diamonds have on communities around the world. Hear industry leaders discuss the market share of natural diamonds in the upcoming holiday season at their free virtual event on October 29th. Register here: https://bit.ly/35qh2PG

Now you see me... This 3.02 carat beauty is a contra luz opal from Ethiopia. The play-of-color of this shy gem only manifests itself under transmitted light. In fact, contra luz means "against the light" in Spanish. While it might not display its full magnificence under most lighting situations, under transmitted light, contra luz opal is truly a delight! Courtesy: Uniquegems from OpalAuctions.com

Gemstone royalty. The Raj Pink at 37.30 carats is the world's largest known Fancy Intense Pink diamond. Found in South Africa in 2015, it was described by GIA graders as an astonishing stone with a bright and ravishing fancy intense pink color. Less than .02% of the diamonds that move through GIA's labs each year are predominantly pink. (Image 1) Photo: Tristan Fewings/Getty Images for Sotheby's. (Image 2) Courtesy: Sotheby's

Natural blue diamonds are among the most valuable and famous of fancy color diamonds. From the Hope diamond with its fiery phosphorescence to hydrogen-rich diamonds with their intriguing Alexandrite effect, blue diamonds have always captured our imagination. Join our GIA Knowledge Sessions webinar tomorrow at 10 a.m. PDT as Dr. Sally Magaña Sr. Manager of Diamond Identification explores the science of blue diamonds and their close cousins, violet and gray diamonds, and delves into the stories of these legendary stones. Register now: https://bit.ly/3oefn8j

Not horsing around. This adorable seahorse was hand-carved in Bali out of Australian opal. Bali, Indonesia, has a rich tradition of hand-carving pendants and artwork out of wood and cow bone. Now, its gem carvings are starting to reach the international market, with opal carvings being especially popular. Learn more about Balinese gem carvings in the latest issue of G&G https://bit.ly/3dEg9qc. Photo: Jennifer Stone-Sundberg/GIA.

I'm jelly about this jellyfish necklace! This pendant by designer Loretta Castoro features a 49.37 carat moonstone that has a Mexican hyalite opal placed inside. Hyalite opals are fluorescent and glow under shortwave UV light. That's because they contain trace amounts of uranium, which makes them slightly radioactive (but not enough to be hazardous to your health). The green glow of this hyalite opal resembles the bioluminescence of jellyfish (Image 2). The tentacles of this jellyfish are set with with tsavorite garnets, blue sapphires and diamonds. Learn more about other finds from the 2020 Tucson show https://bit.ly/31cjLe0. (Image 1) Photo: Robert Weldon/GIA. (Image 2) Photo: NataliaCatalina. Courtesy: Getty Images/iStockphoto