Does it look like a natural alexandrite?

[XandriteLover]

Hello,

First of all, I want to say "Thank you" to all of you. I read and learned so many things about stones here.

I am about to purchase a natural alexandrite stone from a private collector. He has a paper from a local jeweler who appraised this stone.
It shows it's a natural alexandrite and color changes from green to red/purplish red. But, when i see the picture from the seller, i don't see any green hue in his image.

Does it look like a natural alexandrite? If so, is it a good quality one? Also, he mentioned that it was from his grandfather who got this stone from Africa in early 1950. Then, what would be it's origin? Any guess? Any information will be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

 

[chrono]

No lab report for this stone? Ask the seller to describe the colour. If you are local, make sure to view the stone in person first. In any case, the cut looks atrocious in the second picture. If of African origin, my guess is a Tanzanian stone.

 

[minousbijoux]

Can you provide us details on carat weight and clarity? I would NEVER purchase an alex without an AGL report; there is just too much likelihood that it could be something else. At least buy it contingent upon lab confirmation and if the seller does not agree, run, don't walk.

 

[MollyMalone]

I'm assuming he's not priced it low... as if it were, say, an amethyst. If it weren't being touted as natural alexandrite, would it appeal to you?

My recommendation: let the seller first obtain an AGL report & then he can set his price -- and you can decide whether to pay it -- on the basis of an assessment that's more informed-reliable than paper from a neighborhood jeweler; that actually would benefit both him and you. It could be a huge hassle (and perhaps futile) to try to wrangle a refund from him were you to buy it, submit it to AGL, only to be told it's a synthetic or a natural stone that doesn't command alexandrite pricing.

(So far as I know, natural alexandrite had not been identified anywhere in Africa in the early 1950's; think it was another couple of decades before it "surfaced" there.)

P.S. I dearly loved my paternal grandfather (my mother's father died when she was a baby). But I'll admit I've been thinking today it would have been a fun plus if his hobby had been collecting gem stones, etc. -- like the two grandfathers we've recently heard about -- instead of fly fishing; the only sparklies in my grandfather's tackle boxes were those intended to catch the eye of fish

 

[lovedogs]

I'm assuming he's not priced it low... as if it were, say, an amethyst. If it weren't being touted as natural alexandrite, would it appeal to you?

My recommendation: let the seller first obtain an AGL report & then he can set his price -- and you can decide whether to pay it -- on the basis of an assessment that's more informed-reliable than paper from a neighborhood jeweler; that actually would benefit both him and you. It could be a huge hassle (and perhaps futile) to try to wrangle a refund from him were you to buy it, submit it to AGL, only to be told it's a synthetic or a natural stone that doesn't command alexandrite pricing.

(So far as I know, natural alexandrite had not been identified anywhere in Africa in the early 1950's; think it was another couple of decades before it "surfaced" there.)

P.S. I dearly loved my paternal grandfather (my mother's father died when she was a baby). But I'll admit I've been thinking today it would have been a fun plus if his hobby had been collecting gem stones, etc. -- like the two grandfathers we've recently heard about -- instead of fly fishing; the only sparklies in my grandfather's tackle boxes were those intended to catch the eye of fish

This is wise advice from MM in my view. I think maybe part of the appeal is that it's being sold as natural alex, which might be clouding judgement in terms of just looking at the stone's beauty. I certainly don't think it's an unattractive stone, but I do see some flaws and am nervous about you buying it with the price of alex without a reputable report confirming it as such. It's smart to have the vendor submit to AGL and then figure out if it's worth it to you or not.

 

[Cognition]

imo, that one can be anything. However, imo it looks like synthetic or ccg

 

[XandriteLover]

Thank you all. It is over 3ct and the seller said he sees green in his eyes when he took the second pic, but somehow it's not showing up in the pic. Does it make sense?

 

[MollyMalone]

Think the green he's seeing is from the $ $ in his eyes, in anticipation of someone paying real money for a 3 ct "natural alexandrite" on the basis of a couple of really bad pics & a local jeweler's say-so.

Did he refuse to send the stone off to AGL?

 

[minousbijoux]

Think the green he's seeing is from the $ $ in his eyes, in anticipation of someone paying real money for a 3 ct "natural alexandrite" on the basis of a couple of really bad pics & a local jeweler's say-so.

Did he refuse to send the stone off to AGL?

I could not agree more. OP: please do not waste your hard earned money based on just promises and assurances from a vendor. Do not buy without testing.

 

[katharath]

Think the green he's seeing is from the $ $ in his eyes, in anticipation of someone paying real money for a 3 ct "natural alexandrite" on the basis of a couple of really bad pics & a local jeweler's say-so.

Did he refuse to send the stone off to AGL?

HA!! That one made me lol.

But seriously OP, you've received good advice in here, definitely do not buy without a report from a quality lab.

 

[LD]

I hope I'm not too late to chime in on this one.

I highly suspect this is NOT a natural Alexandrite for the following reasons:-

1. A 3ct ROUND cut alex is highly unusual. You very rarely find round cut Alex especially one over 3ct. They just don't lend themselves to be cut this way in that size.

2. There is no evidence of inclusions in your photos (although I appreciate the photos are not great). An eye clean 3ct round cut Alex is again, very unusual. It's not impossible to find eye clean stones - if you look at my avatar that's a 3ct eye clean one but they're few and far between. Alex is a type II gemstone so you should expect some inclusions.

3. The colours are not quite right but again, these are awful photos so they don't really point to anything concrete other than warning signals.

Unless this has a lab report from AGL or another reputable lab I wouldn't risk your money

 

[XandriteLover]

Thank you for your comments. Those are exactly my concerns as well. However, I have to correct several comments I made previously.

First, he is not a private collector. The stone was given by his grandfather in early 50's after his trip from Africa. He didn't get the stone appraised until last year (when I contacted him to discuss a sale).

Second, he showed me a couple of images of appraisal, which stated that it is a natural alexandrite and color does change from green to reddish purple and red. However, the jeweler also stated that the cut is not good too shallow, 10.06x10.07x4.75mm and it has slight inclusions.

Third, he was not looking for a buyer but I contacted him first thru one of my friends. He didn't want to sell it at first but now he is willing to sell it at 25% of estimated value. He seems sincere and not trying to trick me in anyway. As matter of fact, I was the one who talked him into sale.

At this point, I guess I need to ask him to get another appraisal from AGL. But I am afraid that he might change his mind not to sell it or he wants to sell it at much higher cost.

What should I do?

 

[Lady_Disdain]

If he wasn't looking to sell the stone, why would he be willing to sell it for a fraction of the value?

 

[chrono]

A good lab does not appraise; it verifies. My first step is to have it tested to be 100% sure that it is alexandrite. Everything you've written about it screams warning alarms to me that it isn't a natural alexandrite.

 

[LD]

Thank you for your comments. Those are exactly my concerns as well. However, I have to correct several comments I made previously.

First, he is not a private collector. The stone was given by his grandfather in early 50's after his trip from Africa. He didn't get the stone appraised until last year (when I contacted him to discuss a sale).

Second, he showed me a couple of images of appraisal, which stated that it is a natural alexandrite and color does change from green to reddish purple and red. However, the jeweler also stated that the cut is not good too shallow, 10.06x10.07x4.75mm and it has slight inclusions.

Third, he was not looking for a buyer but I contacted him first thru one of my friends. He didn't want to sell it at first but now he is willing to sell it at 25% of estimated value. He seems sincere and not trying to trick me in anyway. As matter of fact, I was the one who talked him into sale.

At this point, I guess I need to ask him to get another appraisal from AGL. But I am afraid that he might change his mind not to sell it or he wants to sell it at much higher cost.

What should I do?

As somebody has mentioned earlier, there were no finds in Africa in the 1950s so this is another red flag. HOWEVER, this is a very similar story to ones we hear all the time ie a family gemstone, purchased in Africa/Alexandria etc.

So what should you do? You shouldn't buy it. You should suggest that the person sends it to AGL for a lab report and that you both know what it is then and he can then make a decision whether to sell or not.

OR

You buy it on the condition you get your money back if this isn't an Alex. HOWEVER, this is a high risk strategy.

If you're desperate for an Alex I think you ought to look somewhere that has a returns policy and you've got protection.

As I said, in my earlier post, I highly doubt this is an Alex. Have a search for 3ct round cut Alex and see what you can find (obviously from reputable dealers). I think you'll understand my caution once you've done that.

EDIT: Can you post photos of the snippets of lab reports you were shown please?

 

[minousbijoux]

FYI: Appraisers do not identify material; they value items based on what they see and assumptions they make about the material. Labs and gemologists with the right equipment verify material. The typical order is lab first to identify, then appraiser to value what has been identified. To do anything else is pointless as you would be establishing a value on an item that has yet to be determined.

 

[XandriteLover]

Thank you all. I will contact the seller to see if he is willing to send it to AGL. Really appreciate all your help!!

 

[Lady_Disdain]

Thank you all. I will contact the seller to see if he is willing to send it to AGL. Really appreciate all your help!!

And we have our fingers crossed for you!

 

[drruby]

No lab report for this stone? Ask the seller to describe the colour. If you are local, make sure to view the stone in person first. In any case, the cut looks atrocious in the second picture. If of African origin, my guess is a Tanzanian stone.

Tanzania is a recent Alexandrite lode

1950 it was rare to see any Alexandrite, most of it was Russia from Imperialistic times

Modern deposits have been found in many areas.

Asia
South America
Two zones in Africa with Tanzia being the newer find

So no way can it be Tanz IF it is from 1950

Now it could be very new and from Tanz

But dealer wants you to think an old stone to sell it IMO