Jane Shafrin

Science Can't Explain It, But We Are Obsessed With Gems!



Posted: Thursday, February 25, 2010

by
Kenneth Jay Lane Sales

SCIENCE CANNOT EXPLAIN WHY Why do you fall in love with a certain gemstone, its vibrancy and color? Science cannot explain why a certain gem "speaks to you".

Although scientists and gemologists devote their careers to unraveling the mysteries of the wonderful gemstones that Mother Nature makes, our response to the beauty of a gem is completely emotional.

However, science can indeed explain how the diamond got its perfect hardness and transparency; how the ruby became incarnidine; how the sapphire mirrors the sky, the daffodil, the peach; how the aquamarine looks like a solidified chunk of the clearest South Sea; how the amethyst exhibits the deepest and most astounding purple like nothing else on earth except certain flowers like clematis or iris. How did lowly copper give birth to treasured turquoise?

When I look into facts about a diamond's hardness, I find a dry pedagogical discussion dealing with the diamond's atomic structure. The diamond is crystallized carbon, but so is graphite. However, the atomic structure of graphite is incomplete in comparison. To simplify, the forces exerted by the nucleus in each diamond atom are so powerful that nothing but another diamond can break off any of the trillions of atoms joined in the jewel's perfect structural linkage.

The diamond's perfection can be explained by words such as octahedron, dodecahedron, electric forces, molecule, electronic shell.

But at the end of the day who cares? We love the diamond, any gemstone, for its perfection and the fact that it could only be revealed by a dangerous process of humans going into the earth--or the sea.

(By the way, pearls are the only precious gem immediately ready to wear.) For a more complete technical explanation refer to the book Five Centuries of Jewelry by Jean Lanllier, 1983, Arch Cape Press.

Diamonds are nature's royalty and their powers will never be surpassed. Thrones won and lost, lovers torn apart, lives lost, diamonds are an obsession and a prize.

Where are Bernie Madoff's diamonds? Gemstones are an age-old way to reduce unwieldy clots of cash into a tiny handful of value, very necessary if a wealthy person is on the lam.

DeBeers no longer owns all gem diamond production. Diamond mines in Canada, Russia, and Brazil now contribute gem quality diamonds. Only 20% of diamonds mined possess gem quality.

Among the most astounding diamonds because of their huge size, are the Cullinan, 530 carats (owned by the Queen of England), the Jonker, 726 carats, the Lesoto, 601 carats.

Jane Shafrin's lifelong fascination with jewelry and the sparkly objects and metals jewelry is made from, has resulted in her websites, http://kennethjaylanesales.com and http://beadsbymail.com . Jane began her relationship with Kenny, as Mr. Lane is called, 20 years ago, and now publishes the Web's widest catalog of KJL Couture Jewelry, along with pages of detailed information about each necklace, earring, bracelet, and ring, as well as fascinating trivia about Mr. Lane.
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Top-level comments on this article: (3 total)
» left by Jack H. Schick
 1 year 338 days ago.
89 fans.
There is a very interesting article on gem stones in this month's Scientific American magazine
» left by Terence Tam
 1 year 338 days ago.
28 fans.
A woman's best friend, it is! What would be her world like without diamonds?
 
Terence
» left by Kim Condemarin
 1 year 336 days ago.
24 fans.
Jane,
 
I have to count myself as a fellow gem lover. There is just something about looking at those sparklers that make me happy. Thank you for the article.
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