Was my ring appraised too high?

[senzafine]

Hello everyone!
I recently got engaged and was given a ring from my boyfriend that belonged to his dad's side of the family. It is an Emerald with 2 small diamonds on the side in 18k yellow gold. Since, I didn't know anything about it, I figured I would get it appraised.

To my surprise, the appraiser said the stone was synthetic! He noted that there were some flux veils on the stone that made it apparently. The weird part is, despite all this he still appraised the ring at around $2,500. Is this possible? I asked if most of the cost was due to the gold/diamonds but he said no and that despite being synthetic the Emerald was very good. I thought that if it was synthetic it would be pretty cheap.

Needless to say i'm pretty disappointed but I'm thinking of getting it appraised somewhere else again just to make sure. It all sounds kind of weird to me. Here's a picture of the ring.

 

[senzafine]

Wow! I did not know that. I tried searching for some online and a lot of the ones that were showing up were mostly lab created rings going for ~$100 so I just didn't think it could go that high. That's a little more reassuring. Thanks for your reply!

Believe it or not, some synthetic Emeralds can be $400.00, & more a carat at high end retail. Emerald is harder to create than Ruby or Sapphire, & was synthesized yeas later than corundum. Though, I've seen very expensive created Ruby & Sapphire to at high end retail, depends on the company. Overseas, you can get synthetic corundum very, very, cheap.

 

[T L]

Hello everyone!
I recently got engaged and was given a ring from my boyfriend that belonged to his dad's side of the family. It is an Emerald with 2 small diamonds on the side in 18k yellow gold. Since, I didn't know anything about it, I figured I would get it appraised.

To my surprise, the appraiser said the stone was synthetic! He noted that there were some flux veils on the stone that made it apparently. The weird part is, despite all this he still appraised the ring at around $2,500. Is this possible? I asked if most of the cost was due to the gold/diamonds but he said no and that despite being synthetic the Emerald was very good. I thought that if it was synthetic it would be pretty cheap.

Needless to say i'm pretty disappointed but I'm thinking of getting it appraised somewhere else again just to make sure. It all sounds kind of weird to me. Here's a picture of the ring.

You would never ever be able to sell it for $2500, and I think that estimate is kind of high. They sell synthetic emeralds at Costco, which I think are Chatham, for far less. Yes, I think it was appraised way too high, but that's usually for insurance value.

I personally would appraise the ring for $500 to $800 (primarily for the gold and diamonds, synthetics in the secondary market aren't as in demand). IRL, if you sold it, you might get lucky getting $300 for it.

 

[digdeep]

This is a great forum for getting information and you have two different opinions so far. I would never venture an appraisal without seeing the ring in person and knowing more about it. Even then it would be a wild guess because I am not GIA certified.
Did the person who appraised it have GIA credentials? Mistakes have been made both ways with emeralds so if it's important to you to know........then getting another appraisal and possibly a lab report would be an option.
Are you disappointed because it appraised for $2500 or because it may be synthetic?

 

[senzafine]

Digdeep, I'm mostly disappointed in it being synthetic because I was led to believe it was natural before that. I hope that doesn't make me sound too shallow. I don't think the person had GIA credentials but the appraisal document had something called IGS stamped onto it? In hindsight I probably should have done more research on finding a jeweler but they did have good reviews when I was looking for one.

TL, that's what I was thinking it would have been priced around $500 too. I don't have any plans on selling it but I definitely wouldn't have expected to get $2,500. Are appraisals often done slightly higher than the actual value for insurance reasons? Regardless, this kind of confirms my suspicion that it was appraised way too high.

 

[movie zombie]

I would add that while appraised high and a disappointment that it isn't "real", this ring is lovely and will probably stand up to 24/7 wear and last a lot longer than a real emerald that is prone to cleaving. and you can upgrade for an anniversary!

 

[T L]

Digdeep, I'm mostly disappointed in it being synthetic because I was led to believe it was natural before that. I hope that doesn't make me sound too shallow. I don't think the person had GIA credentials but the appraisal document had something called IGS stamped onto it? In hindsight I probably should have done more research on finding a jeweler but they did have good reviews when I was looking for one.

TL, that's what I was thinking it would have been priced around $500 too. I don't have any plans on selling it but I definitely wouldn't have expected to get $2,500. Are appraisals often done slightly higher than the actual value for insurance reasons? Regardless, this kind of confirms my suspicion that it was appraised way too high.

Yes, appraisals are often over estimated for insurance replacement, but supposedly a lot of insurance companies have caught on to this, and do not want to replace for appraisal estimates, from what I hear. I could be wrong.

If you don't 100% trust your jeweler, you can send it for an AGL gem brief, which is relatively easy if you live in the United States (do you??), or some other reputable lab. If it comes back as natural, you may want to get a new appraisal done, but again, don't be surprised it the estimate comes back much higher.

The tell tale signs that an emerald might be a synthetic, at least to the naked eye, is that if there are absolutely no eye visible inclusions. It looks like the stone is dirty, so you may want to clean it with a soft toothbrush and a little dish soap. If it looks completely eye clean, it's probably a synthetic, although there are eye clean emeralds, they are extremely rare and pricey. Also, they make synthetics with natural looking jardin (inlcusions found in emeralds) as well, so just because it has inclusions doesn't mean it's natural. Then you have doublets, triplets, etc. . .

However, to be really sure, a reputable gemological lab would be able to tell for certain.

 

[senzafine]

I do indeed live in the US. I might have to consider sending it off, but I think I will get a second opinion first. If two people say it's synthetic odds are it's probably synthetic. Due to the high appraisal, part of me thought maybe it is a natural stone and he just made a mistake, but I know that's pretty unlikely. Wishful thinking maybe? Ha!

In any case, the Emerald is actually clean. The jeweler had polished it off when he resized it after for me. I might just be bad at taking pictures! It also does have some inclusions in it, but it's almost like just one line going across the stone and the rest of it is fairly clear. It probably is synthetic.

Thanks for all your advice everyone! I really appreciate it!

 

[T L]

If two people say it's synthetic odds are it's probably synthetic.

Not necessarily. Many jewelers will look at a gem and say, "oh it's clean, so it must be fake." I wouldn't waste anymore time and money and just send it ot AGL for a gem brief. With shipping and handling, and the brief itself, it will be around $100, but if its synthetic, they won't even issue a report or brief.

 

[digdeep]

I agree with TL -- AGL can confirm whether it's synthetic or not...........

Of course you would be disappointed if you thought it was a 'real' emerald and this jeweler said 'no'.......but wait until you hear from the lab. I just didn't understand your comment and wanted some clarity......

There are countless stories of expensive rings that were handed down through generations and people being told they were the real deal only to find out it was a synthetic. The world was not nearly as connected as it is now, and most synthetics were more durable than the real stones, and as mentioned some of them are indeed quite valued now and were expensive back then......so consider this an adventure.

Your family members no doubt were told it was a real emerald.......and until you have the AGL confirmation.....it's still an adventure. Congrat's on the engagement!!

 

[pregcurious]

It is a different crowd that buys from high end retail, much different than here. People here know where to get stones as nice, but much cheaper, but many don't understand retail pricing, & would never buy there because, they don't have too.

Very true. PSers usually want no treatment, minimal treatment mined stones. I have a pair of synthetic emerald earrings because I was curious what completely clean synthetics look like.

 

[T L]

I do indeed live in the US. I might have to consider sending it off, but I think I will get a second opinion first. If two people say it's synthetic odds are it's probably synthetic. Due to the high appraisal, part of me thought maybe it is a natural stone and he just made a mistake, but I know that's pretty unlikely. Wishful thinking maybe? Ha!

In any case, the Emerald is actually clean. The jeweler had polished it off when he resized it after for me. I might just be bad at taking pictures! It also does have some inclusions in it, but it's almost like just one line going across the stone and the rest of it is fairly clear. It probably is synthetic.

Thanks for all your advice everyone! I really appreciate it!

You have to remember, an appraisal is done for insurance, but many are done for replacement value too, or both. I'm not saying you'd get $2500.00 out of the ring, but I am saying high end retail charges a lot for good quality synthetic emerald. They would probably price the ring to sell that much. It is a different crowd that buys from high end retail, much different than here. People here know where to get stones as nice, but much cheaper, but many don't understand retail pricing, & would never buy there because, they don't have too.

Elvis,
I've seen retail synthetic emerald rings in gold with diamonds, and I live in a large urban environment, and I never see them that highly priced. I think it's probably a "high retail estimate." The kinds of retail stores that carry them are also not high end for jewelry, (ie Tiffany & Co), so you often find them for a lot less, or on perpetual sale.

I am familiar with retail pricing, which is why I refuse to pay it.

So for example, here's a selection of rings from Zales, a well known brick and mortar retailer, some in 10K gold and with diamonds. I gave a little higher estimate for her ring because it's probably at least 14K and has two diamonds, maybe slightly larger than the ones here. None of them, in 10K gold and diamonds, come anywhere near $2500. I'm not trying to argue with you, but I think it was appraised way too high.

http://www.zales.com/search/index.jsp?sr=1&kw=lab+emerald&kwCatId=&fbc=0&f=Taxonomy%2FZALES%2F3740873&origkw=lab+emerald&s=D-StorePrice&page=1&kpc=1