Say, “Happy Birthday,” or “Happy Mother’s Day,” to your May-born special someone with an emerald! These beautiful, green gems are easier to shop for than you may know. The GIA specialist from Queen of PAWNS’ Kissimmee location has 3 main tips for you when looking at jewelry with emeralds.

The first thing we look at when purchasing an emerald is the color; we want it to appear that the color is coming out of the stone. Emeralds vary in shades of green, from medium to dark. The rule is simple - the deeper the color, the more valuable the gem.
Next on the check list for evaluating a stone is the size. Obviously, the larger the emerald with consistent color, the more valuable.
While inspecting emeralds, we look for small inclusions which are indicators that the gem is natural stone and not synthetic. The inclusions we look for, however, are not visible to the naked eye. Whereas in other gems, inclusions often diminish the value of the piece, the case is opposite with emeralds. An inclusion is the presence of (natural) material other than the stone itself in the form of gas, liquid or solids. Too large of an inclusion may affect the integrity of the emerald making it too brittle to be used for jewelry. A perfect emerald with no inclusions is extremely rare and would demand a huge price tag.

Other interesting facts include:

Colombia is the world’s leading location for natural occurring emeralds. Other important deposits can also be found in Brazil, Zimbabwe, Afghanistan, Madagascar, Nigeria and Tanzania.
Emerald is a member of the beryl gemstone family and a cousin to March’s birthstone, aquamarine.
A very high percentage of the world’s emeralds are treated with epoxies or resins to add depth and color. Gems treated with epoxies are undetectable without laboratory equipment. That being said, an all too perfect emerald, without inclusions is most likely not natural.
Handle these gems with care. Emeralds rate 7.5 to 8 on the Mohs hardness scale. (For reference, diamonds rate a hardness of 10.) Because of this “softness” emeralds would be best appreciated in pendants or earrings. If worn in a ring, we suggest that the ring is only for special occasions and not daily wear.
Emeralds do not conform to a crystalline fracture, meaning it does not cut best into faceted shapes like, for example, diamonds. Because of this, emeralds are more likely than other gemstones to be cut into cabochons, rather than faceted shapes. Cabochons, or convex cut and polished gems, protect softer mineral species like emeralds and keep scratches from being less evident.
Almost all emeralds have surface breaking fissures, which is basically an inclusion but on the surface. Because of this frailty, most emeralds are treated, called “oiled,” to enhance clarity.

All gems are closely inspected by Queen of PAWNS’ in-house GIA specialists before we purchase them. We make luxury affordable and emerald shopping easy.