aquamarines

[Gemmal]

Are Unheated aquamarines expensive stones. Does anyone know how they compare in value compared to other stones like rubies, sapphires etc. Considering getting one but I used to think of them as inexpensive, semi precious stones. All opinions are gratefully appreciated. Thanks for taking the time.

 

[Kismet]

I love aquamarines! They may be less expensive than rubies or sapphires but I wouldn''t consider then ''cheap'' by any means. A well cut aquamarine with a good color will be much, much less expensive than say a similar sized well cut ruby with good color. Take a look at sites like AJS or Cherrypicked where they sell a variety of gemstones and check out relative prices.

 

[movie zombie]

almost all aquamarines are heated and always have been.

do a search on pricescope re aquamarine and you''ll get some resources for learning more about this stone.

precious v. semi-precious: imo, who cares?! if you love the stone and its look then it is ''precious'' in your eyes. marketing/industry nomenclature has been used to ''discriminate'' unfairly, i believe, between stones.

the important thing about buying aqua is avoiding a ''gray'' color cast to the stone. right now a deep stronger blue is popular but many like a more green overtone.

as with all color stones, there is aqua then there is Aqua then there is AQUA. not all are created equal and there is something for every budget.

if you want to see what a high end budget aqua looks like and read more about the stone and get some good educational info, see rwwise.com. he is quite frank about his stones listed and admits they have some gray cast to them, which is not desireable. most will not be willing to pay his prices but it is a good website for learning more about a stone you are interested in.

picture from palagems.com of a stunning pear aqua "devoid of the gray found in lesser stones": http://palagems.com/gem_news_2006_v2.htm

for another stunning aqua see: http://www.webgraphicsengineering.com/Gemstones/query3.cfm?yVarieties=Aquamarine&ySpecies=Beryl
see number 4571
these are concave cut and this marquis has a bit more green in the color [which i also like] and the cut just makes the stone sing!

most aqua is just pale glass when compared to higher quality aqua. as in all things, you get what you pay for. however, great aqua is certainly more affordable than great ruby or sapphire. for the price of a mediocre [when compared to high end priced] ruby or sapphire, you could have a fabulous world class aqua.

movie zombie

 

[JulieN]

so true that there''s aqua, and there''s AQUA.

the former is usually too pale, windowed, and grey.

 

[Gemmal]

Wowie, gorgeous examples. Thanks guys. Knew I could count on you.