April 2008 Archives

Thai officials say the country is interested in direct imports

The Thai Gem & Jewelry Traders Association (TGJTA) announced that it is considering a visit to Namibia, to establish bilateral trade. TGJTA is looking at establishing a long-term trade, to facilitate direct import of roughs, and investment in diamond and jewellery cutting, mining and material supply.

TGJTA has been urged by the Namibian government to set up gems and diamond cutting facilities in Namibia. During his visit to Thailand, Mr. Neville Melvin Gertze, Ambassador of Namibia stated that, Namibia is keen on welcoming foreign investment especially in its jewellery business. TGJTA is likely to make its visit in June 2008.

H.E. Mingkwan Sangsuwan Deputy Prime Minister and Commerce Minister, accompanied by Mr. Rachane Potjanasuntorn Director-General Department of Export Promotion and senior representative of Thai Gem and Jewelry Traders Association, announced that Thailand is interested in signing deals with Namibia, particularly in direct raw material import. Currently, the Thai jewellery industry imports raw materials from Namibia, mainly through middlemen.

The visiting group to Namibia will consist of government and private sector individuals, who will scout for raw material resources for the Thai jewellery industry and persuade the Thai government to promote Thailand as a free-port for Gems & Jewellery Industry. The waiver will allow a free flow of needed raw materials. TGJTA is also thinking of inviting Namibia's top diamond mining companies to participate at the forthcoming Bangkok Gems & Jewelry Fairs. Namibia is Africa's fifth largest mining industry, with rich sources also in tourmaline, amethyst, topaz and such gems and precious stones. Its diamond mining industry contributed to 74 percent of the country's gross domestic product, with its diamond manufacturing industry contributing 11 percent.

Ancient priceless gemstones and jewels belonging to postdated Achaemenid era have been unearthed in Iran's southern province of Fars.

Archeologists succeeded in discovering over 20 pieces of 2,200-year-old bracelets, necklaces and earrings adorned with agate, ruby and opal in ancient graves behind Salman-e Farsi Dam in Iran's southern city of Yarj.

"The discovery of such gemstones is a unique achievement. Agates in various colors, ivory, opal and rock crystal (Quartz) in many colors were used to embellish the bracelets, necklaces and earrings," said Alireza Ja'fari Zand, head of the archeological team at the dam.

"Discovery of jewels and gemstones in Sassanid and postdated Achaemenid graves is unprecedented," he added.

Opal, which is described by Shakespeare as a miracle and the Queen of Gems, is depicted as a symbol of hope, happiness and truth in the East.

Ivory and clay were also used in making some of the necklaces.

Las Vegas, Hearts On Fire founding couple Susan and Glenn Rothman are the winners of the American Gem Society's (AGS) 2008 Robert M. Shipley Award.

The Rothman's received the award on April 12, during the AGS' annual Conclave in Seattle.

They are the first co-winners of the award, as well as the first husband-and-wife team to take this honor.

Glenn Rothman has served as a member of the AGS Laboratories board of managers since 1999, serves as the board's marketing committee chair and is an active member of the Jewelers for Children board of directors.

Both Glenn and Susan Rothman also serve as chairman and founding board member, respectively, of the Lenny Zakim Fund in their hometown of Boston.

"Susan and I are both deeply honored to receive this award from AGS," Glenn Rothman said. "Since starting Hearts On Fire in 1996, we've been motivated by our dream to always achieve excellence--this is the energy, the culture, and the unique character of Hearts On Fire."

AGS Executive Director Ruth Batson said the couple's focus has brought them both professional and personal success.

"Through their dedication to industry education, their commitment to the jewelry retailer and incredible generosity and devotion to community service, the Rothmans have made a lasting impression on the American Gem Society and on all who have benefited from their dedication and involvement."

The Robert M. Shipley award is an annual honor given to an AGS member in recognition of outstanding service to the society, significant contribution to gemology and for exemplifying the AGS' high ideals.

Geneva--Jewelry from a number of noteworthy women will be on the auction block during Sotheby's spring sale of Magnificent Jewels, the auction house has announced.

Scheduled for May 15 at the Beau-Rivage Hotel in Geneva, the auction will feature the jewels of Dona Lily Marinho, a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador and wife of Brazilian media magnate Roberto Marinho.

She is widely considered to be the "first lady"of Brazil.

Among the highlights of Marinho's collection are a 20.09-carat pear-shaped diamond pendant valued at $750,000-$1.5 million, and an aquamarine and diamond parure estimated at $50,000-$80,000.

In addition to Marinho's jewels, Sotheby's will offer a 206.82-carat Cartier sapphire pendant worth $1.1-$1.5 million formerly in the collection of the Dutchess of Windsor, and a diamond tiara estimated at $60,000-$100,000 from the collection of socialite and fashionista Daisy Fellowes.

Other gems included in the sale are: a 5.06-carat fancy purplish-pink diamond estimated at $2.35 million-$2.85 million; a pear-shaped fancy blue diamond weighing 3.73 carats and worth an estimated $2.8 million-$3.5 million; and a 41.73-carat fancy yellow-brown diamond with an estimated value of $310,000-$510,000.

Rubies, emeralds and tourmalines can only sparkle with the right cut. Since early this year, a fully automatic machine has undertaken this grinding process for Paul Wild GmbH. It saves up to 30 percent of the precious material and grinds the gems with greater precision.

Not until they are given the right cut do precious stones reveal their true value. And they only fetch the highest prices if the facets are even and exact. However, the grinding process - which has hitherto been performed exclusively by hand - leaves little remaining of the valuable uncut stone: 66 to 70 percent fall to the ground as dust, while only a good 30 percent eventually sparkle in the light as a precious jewel. But which of the numerous cuts will make the most of the raw gemstone in question? Experienced lapidaries have an instinct for it.

For the first time ever, a grinding machine is challenging this collected experience: On average, it uses 15 percent more of the volume of the uncut stone. The machine has been in use with Paul Wild gem-cutters near Idar-Oberstein for three months, and has already transformed over a hundred lumps of rough stone into sparkling gems. "The machine - a CNC grinding machine with 17 axes - first maps the surface of the uncut stone," explains Dr. Karl-Heinz Küfer, head of department at the Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Mathematics ITWM in Kaisers-lautern, who developed the software for controlling the machine with the help of his colleagues.

"To do this, narrow bands of light are projected fully automatically onto the uncut stone, and its geometry can be determined from their curvature. The computer takes ten minutes to determine the image of the enclosed gemstone awaiting grinding, and sends the appropriate commands to the process control unit. The 17 axes ensure that the milling head can move along any desired path and grind the facets to an accuracy within ten micrometers - the gemstones become perfectly geometrical." For comparison, hand grinding achieves an accuracy of about 100 micrometers, or the width of a hair. Hand-polished gems appear less exact, their facets and polished edges seeming to be slightly rounded.

The fully automated system takes an average of 20 minutes to give an uncut stone its facets. The machine has to work with extreme care and therefore allows the precious dust to fall rather more slowly than a skilled lapidary who has an instinct for the correct grinding pressure. On no account must the precious stone be allowed to get too hot, as this could cause it to split. During polishing, however, the machine works faster: Whereas the skilled worker repeatedly has to wipe the stone clean and carefully inspect it, the machine sets the polishing time automatically depending on the size of the facets and the type and weight of the gem. "With uncut gems of average quality, the system will pay off within a year or two," Küfer estimates.