Thailand's gemstone manufacturing industry is in a crisis, according to its leaders, who report that many gem cutters in Chantaburi have closed or suspended operations.

The two major trade associations have petitioned the government for funds to promote their gems in world markets and to establish a reasonable, government-sanctioned standard for disclosure of treatments.

Many of the industry’s problems are rooted in the controversy surrounding beryllium diffusion of sapphire, since the stone is a mainstay of the Thai trade. The treatment can be very difficult to detect without expensive testing, which often costs more than the sapphire is worth. Many manufacturers had declined to disclose the practice when it was introduced some six years ago, maintaining that it was traditional heat treatment with no additional chemicals added to improve or alter color. Ultimately, gemological researchers at GIA and other laboratories proved that beryllium was being intentionally added during heat treatment. As a result of this treatment and the fact that it is so difficult to detect, prices for commercial-quality corundum have fallen dramatically, accelerated by a general stagnation in world demand. In addition, undisclosed glass filling of ruby has also undermined buyer confidence, though that process typically is much easier to detect.

Exhibitors at the recent Thailand Gems and Jewellery Fair in Bangkok were offering sapphires in a variety of colors for as little as $5 per carat (less if you wanted to bargain and/or buy in quantity) without a lot of takers. Some exhibitors labeled diffusion-treated materials clearly, others did not. Buyers were unsure of what they were getting and, with only sporadic disclosure, sapphire prices for all colors have fallen to the level of greatest doubt.

Chirikiti Tang, of the Thailand Jewellery Manufacturers Association, acknowledged that disclosure of treatments is necessary but said it is not practical to issue individual statements for each of the hundreds of thousands of commercial-quality stones, which are often sold in large parcels. These parcels, usually of mixed colors, contain stones treated in a variety of ways.

“We are looking for a price threshold,” he said. “Below a certain price, perhaps only a blanket disclosure would be appropriate. Above a certain price, we would have to issue disclosure for individual stones. We are trying to determine where that line should be drawn.”

In addition, Tang said, the industry is looking to the government for funds to promote gemstones – particularly corundum, which remains the most popular colored stone in world consumer markets.

The Thai Parliament is studying the gemstone industry and the two requests, according to Nitoom Navaratna, the Member of Parliament who heads the legislative body’s gemstone committee. He agreed the industry was facing a crisis and noted that the study will be expedited, with a plan due in the next several months.

DIAMONDS: The De Beers Diamond Trading Company (DTC) scored its second legal victory of the year when the High Court of London ruled March 5 that the DTC could allocate rough diamonds to clients as it sees fit, according to the market and the sightholder’s ability to sell them.

The suit, brought by Antwerp-based Jayam NV, had alleged that the DTC’s limit on rough diamond sales restricted its ability to grow and to properly service its customers.

The Jayam suit could have had even greater financial repercussions than the pending $250–300 million class-action settlement in the U.S., because DTC clients traditionally have applied for more goods than they could use on the assumption that the DTC would ultimately reduce the allocations to what it believed the client needed. Thus, in theory, every sightholder could have sued the firm if Jayam had won.

The DTC scored another victory earlier this year when the European Union competition commission declined to reopen an investigation into the DTC’s competitive practices and its Supplier of Choice programs, saying that new players have entered the rough diamond market, making it more competitive.

Over the years, De Beers has had difficulty winning court cases.

Russell Shor
Senior Industry Analyst

The GIA Laboratory routinely receives large numbers of blue sapphires for examination. Many of these stones show relatively typical signs of heat treatment in the form of melted and resolidified mineral inclusions, heat-decrepitated primary and secondary fluid inclusions, and color zoning attributed to internal diffusion.

It has also been demonstrated through experimentation with synthetic corundum that the precipitation of inclusions formed by exsolution, such as fine needles of silk-like rutile, can be controlled during the growth process. As would be expected, this is true of natural corundum as well.

During the heat treatment of natural corundum, preexisting exsolved rutile can be dissolved back into the corundum lattice structure to clarify a rutile-clouded stone. This “breakdown” begins to occur at approximately 1250ºC and progresses more rapidly as the temperature and time-at-temperature both increase.

In some instances, however, the rutile is not completely reabsorbed, leaving behind tiny crystallite remnants aligned in typical corundum exsolution patterns; these are sometimes accompanied by clouds of color resulting from internal diffusion. The rutile may also partially recrystallize back into the corundum host. When this occurs, the rutile usually reappears as very fine, short needles or extremely small dust-like, light-scattering particles. Good examples of this type of controlled exsolution can be found in both flame-fusion (Verneuil) synthetic star sapphires and rubies and in cabochon-cut natural stones that have asterism forced on them through lattice diffusion.

Recently the Laboratory received a relatively large (20+ ct), faceted, transparent blue sapphire for identification. The many inclusions, all of which showed evidence of heat treatment, made the identification as a natural but heat-treated stone relatively easy.

However, the examination also revealed an inclusion with a dendritic pattern that was unique in our experience. This feature was very elusive in that it was only visible when a fiber-optic light was directed in a specific way oblique to the plane of the table facet. These dendrites were arranged in consecutive rows and displayed an obvious arborescent habit, as illustrated in the figure. They also appeared to occupy the same plane in their host. This, combined with their reflective thin-film behavior and crucial directional visibility, led to the conclusion that they were the result of post-treatment exsolution. The fact that they were composed of numerous tiny individual disk-like crystallites also suggested that they originally formed as continuous branching dendrites that then contracted down into individual droplets as the corundum cooled before they finally solidified.

This entry was provided by John I. Koivula of the GIA Laboratory in Carlsbad. For more of the latest findings from the GIA Laboratory, read the Lab Notes section in every issue of Gems & Gemology. There’s also still time to vote in this year's Gems & Gemology Edward J. Gübelin Most Valuable Article competition, which recognizes the best G&G articles in 2006. The ballot is contained in the Winter 2006 issue, and must be postmarked by March 12. To subscribe to G&G, click here or contact Circulation Coordinator  Debbie Ortiz. Call toll-free 800-421-7250, ext. 7142. Outside the U.S. and Canada, call 760-603-4000.

The Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce introduced a new award called the “Corporate Citizen of the Year” and presented it to GIA at the Chamber’s 85th Anniversary Celebration on March 2. The Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce is the 10^th largest in the state of California.

Presenting the award, Paul Thompson, chairman of the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce’s Board of Directors said, “In order to be a good corporate citizen, an organization must give freely of its time, effort, and experience to make the community a better place to live, work, and play.  Our honored Corporate Citizen of the Year has a department charged with leading the way to not only make them a good neighbor but a neighbor of choice.”

For example, the Chamber highlighted three of GIA’s corporate citizenship activities. They are:

• Since its inception in 2000, GIA’s Community Development Department has contributed executive time and intelligence to at least 43 organizations or committees, and has participated in well over 450 community meetings, activities, and events.
• GIA employees have donated thousands of hours to community efforts such as clean-ups, community projects, fund-raising events, and the Carlsbad trails program.
• The leadership of GIA has allowed Gary Hill, GIA's director of Community Development to sit on the Chamber Board of Directors for nine years and serve as Chairman of the Board of the Chamber in 2002.

The award was accepted by Donna Baker, president of GIA, and Hill.

“We’re thrilled to be the first organization to receive Carlsbad’s Corporate Citizen of the Year Award,’” said Baker.  “In turn, we congratulate the Chamber on the occasion of its 85^th Anniversary, and look forward to working with Chamber members on other community projects in the future.”

Set your calendars for GIA’s Career Fair to be held July 27 in New York and Oct. 19 in Carlsbad.

Career Fair is a showcase of unique employment opportunities specifically for the gem and jewelry industry. More than a job fair, this one-day event presents the jewelry industry’s most respected leaders who will share strategies on how to get and keep a career in the jewelry industry, talk about what employers look for, and share their secrets for success.

The New York event will kickoff with the "Working to Win" panel – an insightful discussion held with some of the gem and jewelry business's most successful and influential executives. Led by GIA Chairman Ralph Destino, the panel includes Hoda Esphahani, president of SAFDICO; John Green, president and CEO of Lux Bond & Green; Lowell Kwiat, president of Kwiat, Inc.; and Catherine Coquillard, vice president of Merchandising Jewelry at QVC.  

“Career Fair is like no other event in the industry. The connections made during this busy day often lead to dream careers,” said Kathryn Kimmel, GIA vice president – Marketing and Public Relations who also co-founded Career Fair. “The concentration of top tier jewelry companies looking for new employees, highly trained and motivated job seekers, industry experts and VIPs makes Career Fair a unique opportunity for everyone. It should not be missed by anyone serious about a career in the gem and jewelry industry.”

Career Fair was founded by GIA and The Jewelers 24 Karat Club of Southern California. VNU Jewelry Group is the primary sponsor of the New York Career Fair. Employers interested in recruiting and job seekers can contact GIA’s Career Services office at 800-421-7250, ext. 4195, or e-mail  Dani Oliver. Job seekers can also call GIA’s Jewelry Career Fair hotline at 800-421-7250, ext. 4100, or e-mail  Career Fair.

GIA opened the first of its new GIA Laboratory Service Centers in Hong Kong on March 8.

The Hong Kong Laboratory Service Center is a GIA point of contact in Hong Kong where clients can drop off and pick up their goods to be serviced by GIA. Hong Kong clients will pay the same fees as all GIA Laboratory clients, and the service center has a staff that is fluent in English and Chinese.

“The purpose of the new Laboratory Service Centers is to bring the Institute’s Laboratory services closer to customers throughout the world,” said Senior Vice President of GIA Laboratory and Research Tom Moses. “Expanding the number of take-in centers and making GIA services more easily accessible should help reduce overall shipping and turn-around times for customers.”

Moses said the GIA Laboratory Service Centers will complement the GIA LabDirect consolidator network that the Institute announced last August.

Accompanying Moses at the event were Sheryl Cashmore, manager of the new Laboratory Service Center; Ken Scarratt, director of Research, GIA Laboratory, Bangkok; Seung-Hae Moon, director – GIA Global Education; and invited VIP guests, including laboratory clients, GIA alumni, and the media.

Housed in the same building as GIA's Hong Kong educational facility, the service center may be contacted by phone at (852) 3114-7102, fax (852) 3114-7135 or by email at HKlabinfo@gia.edu. 

Miss California USA 2007 Meagan Tandy, and INTA Gems founders Jerry and Connie Pheng Young with their son Peter Young, G.G., presented the GIA Museum with INTA Gems' "Vinissimo" ruby and diamond necklace Feb. 26.

INTA Gems is the official jeweler for Miss California USA and donated the necklace in honor of Tandy.

The Vinissimo necklace, a combination of 3.35 cts of rubies and 1.3 cts of diamonds set in 18k white gold, was created by Peter Young following a trip to Napa Valley, Calif.

“Vino” is the Latin root for wine and each component of the necklace was inspired by the California wine country. The diamond pear shapes represent the leaves of the vineyard. The circles symbolize the many round objects commonly seen in the Napa Valley – from the fermentation barrels and the wine bottles, to the fragrant corks. The red rubies signify the bountiful grapes and berries ripening on the sun-drenched vines. 

“We are so appreciative of this gracious gift. It is a beautiful representation of California, and we are pleased to display it in our headquarters,” said Elise Misiorowski, GIA’s Museum director. “This donation was especially meaningful because it came from a GIA graduate and his family.”

“This design is meant to epitomize the bountiful harvest of the beautiful State of California,” said Peter Young. “I am proud to donate it to GIA, because the education and networking opportunities I received while attending the Institute are the reasons my family is doing so well today.”

INTA Gems, a fine diamond, gemstone, and jewelry company based in Los Angeles, was founded by Jerry and Connie Pheng Young in 1998.

For more information on how to donate in-kind gifts to the Institute’s Museum Collection, contact GIA In-Kind Gifts Director Patricia Syvrud at 760-603-4432 or by e-mail at patricia.syvrud@gia.edu.

Make this the Year of the Pearl. In GIA's one-day pearl grading lab class, students will learn how the world’s foremost experts determine the quality of Akoya, freshwater, South Sea, and Tahitian cultured pearls.

Through direct practical experience with pearls and careful, one-to-one coaching, students will learn GIA's 7 Pearl Value Factors™ and how to evaluate cultured pearls. By the end of the class, they will be able to explain the interrelationships of pearl beauty, value, and quality to customers and increase sales.    

In March and April, the following Pearl Grading and other Lab classes and student workrooms will be held in these cities:

• New York: Pearl Grading (April 2), Diamond Grading (March 19–23), Gem Identification (April 2–6), and Colored Stone Grading (March 26–28)
• Lafayette, LA: Pearl Grading (March 29), Diamond Grading (March 12–16), Gem Identification (March 19–23), and Colored Stone Grading (March 26–28)
• Carlsbad: Pearl Grading (April 12), Diamond Grading (March 26–30), Gem Identification (April 2–6), Colored Stone Grading April 9–11), and Student Workroom (Monday–Friday, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.)

For information on U.S. Lab classes or other GIA seminars  click here, or call 800-421-7250, ext. 4001, or e-mail  GIA Education. Outside the U.S., call 760-603-4001. To apply online,   click here.