Gemmological photojournalist Robert Weldon shares the stories behind some of his favourite photos.
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Gem cutters - whether “gem whisperers” or mathematicians - create breathtakingly artistic individual gems and sculptures.
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Ruby and sapphire (usually blue, but also in every other colour) have been the most important coloured gemstones for several thousand years. Originating historically in south-east and central Asia, and more recently in eastern Africa, these coloured varieties of the mineral corundum have been much sought as gems because of their rarity, colour and durability. Gem corundum can display asterism and chatoyancy due to the presence of oriented mineral inclusions, and in some cases, a change of colour when viewed under different light sources.
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Chemically pure beryl is colourless, but trace elements give rise to green, blue and pink/red colours.
Read MoreAquamarine is the green-blue to blue variety of the mineral beryl.
Read MoreThe name “aquamarine” is derived from two Latin words: aqua, meaning “water”, and marina, meaning “of the sea”.
Read MoreNamed after seawater, aquamarine’s fresh watery hue is a cool plunge into a refreshing pool
Read MoreLearn about the factors that make aquamarine so desirable.
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Circumnavigate the boreal reaches of the globe to explore gems from polar regions.
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A transparent greenish-blue pear-shaped gemstone, reportedly from Madagascar, is discovered to be a Maxixe-type beryl.
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