Reviews for Gemstones of the World: Newly Revised & Expanded Fourth Edition

The average rating for Gemstones of the World: Newly Revised & Expanded Fourth Edition based on 2 reviews is 4.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2015-02-03 00:00:00 Finkador Fineas It's unusual to find a gemstone reference that can be used by scientists, jewelers, collectors, and laypeople, but such is this book, complete with color photos of over 2500 gemstones, both finished and in natural state. The volume is heavy for its size because it's published on high quality glossy paper. As the author warns us, the text is small and in some cases abbreviated and condensed. This is to cram the maximum amount of information into a guidebook that's quite portable. One interesting note about the photos is that often average specimens, rather than be-all, end-all quality gems are depicted. No space is wasted; even the inside covers show different gemstone cuts and a world map of gemstones respectively. Yet because of clever use of headers, shaded sections, illustrations, and white space, the text never seems cramped. The book begins with descriptions of gemstone identification properties. Moh's scale of hardness, basic mineral chemistry, specific gravity, cleavage and fracture, refraction and absorption, pleochroism, and fluorescence are described in sections followed by charts of these properties for selected gemstones. Later, these concepts are referenced and quantified in specific descriptions for each gemstone. Short, useful sections on mining, polishing, and faceting follow. The listings of common gemstones follow in logical order, starting at the top of the Moh's scale with diamond and working down to sodalite and malachite. Physical and chemical properties of each gem or gem group is identified in a header on the top of the left page, followed by notes of interest and specific varieties. On the right page are the photos of the gems described on the left. It is easy to see which gemstones are most closely related chemically and it is particularly interesting to see the large number and variety of colors and forms that quartz (silicon dioxide) exhibits in different gemstones. The volume is well-referenced, in that if another gem or mineral is referenced the author includes a page number for ease of comparison. This formatting continues throughout the next section, the lesser-known gemstones which are becoming more popular, such as fluorite, apatite, and chrysocolla. The section called Gemstones for Collectors contains quite a few pages of gemstones that are either too soft, too brittle, endangered, or too rare to be of interest to anyone other than collectors. This section is not very well edited and appears to be a listing of such stones in no particular order. I would like to know, for example, which stones are too soft or brittle, and which are rare or endangered. Chemical information is not always consistent either. Still, it is rather fascinating to view the radioactive gems such as Ekanite, and to read about how Sulfur is so sensitive to heat that it bursts when warmed in one's hand (how did they facet it for the photo without generating heat?). These arcane stones are followed by sections called "Rock as Gemstones" (obsidian, moldavite, fossils, etc.) and "Organic Gemstones" (coral, jet, ivory, etc.). Quite a large section on cultured pearls is included. Next is a section about the art and craft of imitation and synthetic gemstones, followed by a section on heating, irradiating, coloring, and otherwise enhancing gemstones'including what must be disclosed to the buyer, legally speaking. Next is a section of "new on the market" gemstones such as sugilite, unakite, and petrified wood; an odd assortment of new and not-so-new offerings. The book concludes with charts of traditional astrological stones, the more recent birthstone-by-month designations, and some remarks on medicinal uses of stones (clearly not recommended by the author, but added for the curious). The book ends with a chart of gemstone listings by color. Anyone who is interested in gemstones, for whatever reason, will enjoy this book. Whether the reader wants to look at the chemistry behind the stones, find out where various gemstones come from, learn about diamonds, rubies, emeralds, jaspers, or other specific stones, or simply look at pretty photographs, this is the book to use.

Review # 2 was written on 2021-02-26 00:00:00 Anthony Goins Great reference book. Love the photos. Found my second dream ring in this volume