Examination of commercially-available “shell pearls” reveals imitation material.

An overview of the Summer 2014 issue of Gems & Gemology, plus thoughts on the journal's future.

Items presented as red coral are revealed by testing to be composite coral veneers over an artificial matrix.

An unusual synthetic ruby, combining a hydrothermal ruby seed and flux ruby overgrowth, is examined at the Carlsbad lab.

Examines the history of diamond production in Botswana and the long-term outlook for beneficiation through value-added industries.

Discusses the role of three-phase inclusions in emerald, in combination with spectroscopy and trace-element analysis, in determining geographic origin.

Amber samples were heat-treated, using various procedures and parameters, in an effort to reproduce materials found in the jewelry market.

Investigates the presence of fluorescence, rather than iridescence, as the cause of color in blue amber from the Dominican Republic and Indonesia.

Review of The Collector's Guide to the Minerals of New York State.

Review of Franco Cologni’s In Praise of Hands: The Art of Fine Jewelry at Van Cleef & Arpels.

Review of Diana Scarisbrick’s Rings: Jewelry of Power, Love and Loyalty.

A jadeite jade bangle is submitted for lab testing to investigate the possibility of treatment.

Natural moissanite crystals found in Israel have broken world records, with evidence of larger crystals in the area.

A bluish violet sapphire shows surprising effects under lab examination.

A natural diamond with a CVD synthetic film is examined at GIA's Carlsbad lab.

A stone submitted for identification is revealed to be the first wurtzite examined by the GIA lab.

An opal featuring a rare six-rayed star is examined in GIA's Bangkok lab.

Color modification is observed in a reddish orange zircon at the Bangkok laboratory.

A Fancy yellow type Ib CVD-grown synthetic diamond undergoes testing at the New York lab.

Bumble Bee jasper, first discovered on Java, exhibited at the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show.