BREAKING NEWS
APRIL 16, 2006
Raleigh, NC--A new created gem material has entered the U.S. market, the Malossi synthetic emerald, a product of Italian technology and Czech Republic manufacture. While the material has been sold in Italy since December 2004, U.S. distribution of finished jewelry and loose stones by Raleigh, NC-based Malossi, Inc. began just last month. So far, sales have been limited and the company plans a major introduction later this year. according to Andy McCord, Malossi vise president in the United States.
Material in available in octagonal or radiant cut only and is priced around $210-$240 per carat, with inclusion -free material priced slightly higher says McCord. The stones appearance is typified by a yellow-green cast he says, and an overall lighter color than other synthetic emeralds.
A research article on the new material appears in the Winter 2005 issue of Gems and Geology, the Gemological Institute of America's (GIA) quarterly publication.
In the research article "Characterization of the New Malossi Hydrothermal Synthetic Emerald," gemological researchers in Milan study the recently introduced synthetic, whose properties can be distinguished in a number of ways. According to the article, one way to identify the stones is that they have a strong red appearance when viewed through a Chelsea filter.
The authors of the article compare the new material to natural emeralds, along with other flux and hydrothermal synthetics. They describe the material's diagnostic properties, including its internal features, chemical composition, and bands in the mid-infrared spectrum that distinguish it fro more familiar lab-created and natural emeralds.
Dr. Lore Kiefert, laboratory director for the Gemological Testing Center of the American Gem Trade Association in New York, Says she has not yet encountered the material.
"I have seen the press information [on the material], but I haven't seen any of it on the U.S. market yet" she says.
This article from April 16 issue of National Jeweler Magazine by Glenn Law
EMERALD MAGNATE SHOT
MAY 2006
The
Colombian newspaper El Tiempo reported that unknown assailants have shot the
emerald magnate Yesid Nieto a few weeks ago. The news was only made public
yesterday. Although he reportedly survived the attack at his Bogota apartment,
he is said to remain in a coma. Sources close to Nieto indicate his
prognosis remains guarded.
Nieto, one of several major mine owners in the remote, emerald-rich region of Boyaca, Colombia, rose to prominence following his astute management of the successful La Pita emerald mines, of which he is part-owner. Nieto has also been credited for ushering in a new era of openness in the notoriously sealed emerald business and for reigniting confidence in Colombian emeralds among global buyers. (Note: For more information about Yesid Nieto's mark on the Colombian emerald business, please read The Emerald Architect in the January 2006 issue of Professional Jeweler Magazine.)
El Tiempo reports that Nieto is a spokesman for seven powerful clans that control 80 percent of Colombia's emerald exports and suggests the shooting could destabilize power and control of the region among rival clans. In the 1990's a war between clans claimed the lives of thousands of people in the region. Nieto recently offered to help Colombian government authorities eradicate several coca plantations in the region, which some Colombians speculate was tied to the attempt on his life.
This article from the May issue of Professional Jeweler by Robert Weldon, G.G.