Desired by royalty from Cleopatra to the present day, the emerald is the undisputed king of green gemstones. Considering an emerald ring? This expert guide is essential reading.
First: Emeralds always look better in person.
How Do You Evaluate Emerald Quality?
All gems are evaluated based on the 4Cs of color, clarity, cut, and carat weight. The 4Cs are not a fixed set of standards, but various ranges. There are three separate ranges for color alone with hue, tone, and saturation. Clarity, cut, and carat weight all have their own ranges, and getting the best possible result from each is very low odds.
It is possible, but very rare to find emeralds (or any other gem for that matter) that are perfect at any weight. These types of emeralds are also so expensive that only a select few people can afford them.
Color
It cannot be emphasized how important color is in emeralds. Hue is what most people understand as color. Emeralds do not have a wide range of colors.
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The definition of emerald requires a green color. Not yellow, orange, or blue, but green. Modified greens are acceptable too, like bluish green and slightly yellowish green. Like how the emerald hues are limited, the tone is too.
An emerald must have a medium light tone to qualify as an emerald and not green beryl. Dark emeralds do not have this problem, though if they are so dark they are black and are no longer emeralds. Also worth noting is that very light and very dark tones mess with our perception of color. Saturation is essentially color purity.
Green can become grayish or brownish, though this is not usually a concern for most dealers since desaturated gems are not usually stocked. For the best possible emerald color, a bluish green is the most desirable color. Ideally a medium tone is desired in order for the color to be shown as clearly as possible. Lastly, the saturation needs to be a vivid green instead of a desaturated gray.
Answer: The best emeralds are a rich bluish-green with even saturation.
Clarity
Emeralds are near-always included, so finding one with high clarity runs for a premium roughly three times the amount of a comparable looking fracture-filled emerald. Furthermore, emeralds can have a lot of stuff in them, with the French referring to it as a “. They can have other crystalline minerals inside, as well as liquid, solid, and gas inclusions.
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Emerald Buying Guide
What Are Emerald Inclusions (“Jardin”)?
Almost all emeralds have visible inclusions known as "jardin" (French for "garden").
Cut
Cuts partially determine the clarity of a gem, but only through the decisions of the gem cutter. Additionally, the cutter works with what mother nature created with the gem.
History - The emerald cut was developed to be used on emeralds specifically. The cut was gentler on these frequently brittle gems, and gave them a durable shape less likely to chip. Also necessary to mention about colored gem cuts is that they are almost never perfectly symmetrical. Diamonds are cut well because their sparkle benefits from this.
Why Is the Emerald Cut Famous?
Carat Weight
Incorporating weight into price is much trickier. Weight gauges the rarity, rather than the quality, of the gem. The price of emeralds does not increase at a fixed rate, like $1,000 for one carat, $2,000 for two carat, $3,000 for 3 carats, etc. The price increase is more like $1,000 for one carat, $2,000 for two carats, $4,000 for three carats. It doubles with every carat increase, though this is only an example of pricing.
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As seen above, E1257 is more than double the price of E1681. This is due to the sheer rarity of the larger carat sizes.
Notice that while all the emeralds above have similar prices and cuts, their color, clarity, and carat weight all vary.
Emerald Treatments
Over 99% of emeralds are "oiled"-tiny fractures filled with oil or resin to improve clarity and stability.
Choosing the Right Setting
Picking out the gem is a process, but choosing the appropriate setting is important too. Some settings work better with some shapes than others, and design becomes a much bigger factor.
Rule of thumb with jewelry is that placing the gem in the setting, along with the side stones and labor is to never exceed the cost of the main gem. Why pay $5,000 for a ring with a $500 gem?
Emeralds look stunning in yellow, white, or rose gold and platinum. Rose Gold: Romantic, soft, ideal for vintage or unique couple rings ([see Unique Couple Rings](6.
Protective settings(bezel or halo with robust prongs) are strongly advised-especially for engagement or men’s rings ([see Men emerald rings](5.
Both options offer unique advantages.
Zambian Emeralds vs. Other Emeralds
There are many industry standards combined into what is considered the “ideal” emerald, most citing ideal emeralds coming from Colombia but Zambia is also capable of producing world-quality emeralds.
Personal Preference
The most important thing is what you are happy with. Color preference is a highly personal topic, and not everyone has the same taste in emeralds. The types of inclusions some individuals find acceptable varies from person to person. Furthermore, it is possible to match the color to another piece of emerald or green-colored jewelry.
The Value of Emeralds
Top-quality emeralds can cost more per carat than diamonds.
Emerald rings are a unique blend of history, rarity, and beauty.
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