Rui Galopim de Carvalho’s Post

Jewellery lovers visiting Portugal often hear the term "crisólita" to describe what actually looks like chrysoberyl in 1700-1800s jewellery. As an actual fact, in the Portuguese antique’s market, “crisólita” is a very popular trade name although it is originally a late-18th century misnomer corresponding to greenish-yellow chrysoberyl, a mineral that was named after its transparency and colour, from the Greek , “chrysos”, “gold”, and berullos, “transparency”. In Portugal and Brasil, is has also been referred to as “oriental chrysolite” (crisólito/a oriental). This gemstone became very popular in Portuguese and Brazilian jewellery on the last quarter of the 1700s, especially in the early 1800s following the discovery of significant quantities of fine gem quality material in Minas Gerais, Brazil, particularly in the Minas Novas district. Chrysoberyl is, however, better known for its colour-changing chromium-bearing variety, alexandrite, the mint-green vanadium-bearing variety and, of course, for its cat's eye varieties, sometimes referred to in the trade as cymophane. In the photos, an very large silver and enamel pectoral set with foiled topazes, foiled chrysoberyls and two diamonds (16.80 cm x 8.80 cm), with floral motifs characteristic of the period, possibly designed to be used on a dress with similar phyto-morphic motifs. All the gemstones presumably from Brasil. Foto Carlos Pombo Monteiro © Fundação Eugénio de Almeida / Arquidiocese de Évora #chrysoberyl #gemstones #luxury #antiques #jewelry

The Star of the South, a Fancy Light pinkish brown 128.48 ct type IIa diamond with reported VS2 clarity is one of the most famous Brazilian diamonds. It was cut by L. B. Voorzanger at Royal Coster Diamonds, Amsterdam from a large 261.38 ct rough (42 x 35 x 27 mm) found by a slave woman in 1853 at the Bagagem river in Minas Gerais, near the town of Estrela do Sul (hence the name of the diamond Star of the South, in English). It was then bough by Prince Mulhar Raco for the royal family of the Gaekwars of Baroda, India, and here we see young Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad of Baroda and Sita Devi, maharani of Baroda, wearing the diamond on a necklace. After being discretely sold privately, in 2002 the Star of the South Diamond was acquired by Cartier and set on a bracelet and presented at the Biennale des Antiquaires in Paris in 2006. It was recently seen publicly as property of Sheika Moza of Qatar. Photos © the 2006 bracelet by Cartier. Loose Star of the South Diamond © Phillipe Hitz #diamond #brazil #jewelry #india #luxury #history

Starting the day with another great review, now on GIA (Gemological Institute of America) Research News and Articles, wrote by Dr James E Shigley. Very grateful and humbled by such words on GEMPEDIA by this icon of gemmological research from the GIA. #gemology #education #jewelry #gemstones

The Portuguese Crown Jewels, on display at the Museu do Tesouro Real, in Lisbon, serve as a perfect background for the forthcoming TREASURES - ROYAL GEMS & JEWELLERY INTERNATIONAL COLLOQUIUM in 8-9 November. After decades being kept closed on a secret safe, these royal treasures including estate and private jewellery, gold nuggets, diamonds, a rolled aquamarine (possibly the famous Braganza Diamond), silverware, sacred art, regalia, and other historically relevant pieces are finally offered for public fruition at the Palácio Nacional da Ajuda in Lisboa. Pushed forward by Museus e Monumentos de Portugal EPE with the support of Visit Lisboa and Câmara Municipal de Lisboaâ, the collection is protected by state of the art security in a huge 40 x 10 x 10 meter vault covered in golden aluminium foam and thick golden doors. More than 22,000 gemstones, the majority of which diamonds of most probable Brazilian origin individually documented, one by one, the pieces studied by art historians and all the artefacts carefully cleaned by a team of conservation experts of the Laboratório José de Figueiredo. Challenging to highlight any particular piece, but the +20 kg gold nugget and 35.80 carat diamond crystal fragment from Brazil, along with the emerald stomacher, the golden fleece insignia are hard to miss due to their uniqueness. Visit the collection during the November exclusive event (while there is still availability). Run for it at treasures-colloquium.com Photos © Luisa Oliveira / Museus e Monumentos de Portugal #museum #diamonds #crownjewels #lisboa #portugal #jewelry

The famous diamond and sapphire crown that was private property of Queen Maria II of Portugal (r. 1826-28 and 1834-1853), presented at Christie's Geneva in 2021, was temporarily on display at the Museu do Tesouro Real, in Lisboa, after negociations between the new owners and the leaership at Palacio Nacional da Ajuda (Museus e Monumentos de Portugal EPE ). The 1846 portrait of the queen by Ferdinand Krumholtz, from the PNA collection, depics the monarch of the Braganza dynasty wearing that very crown as well as a sapphire brooch and sapphire bracelet. One may speculate if those were matching with the tiara. Composed of nine numbered and detachable elements that can be worn as brooches, it is set with 5 blue sapphires with an estimated total weight 32-35 ct, the largest of which measuring 19.15 x 15.60 x 7.65 mm with a report stating Burmese origin and no indications of heat treatment. The crown is also set with a massive amount of old cut diamonds, with a total estimated weight of 90-95. Photos © Christie's #jewelry #history #luxury #royalty #gemstones

One of the Oldest Pearls on Record In 2017 the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) announced the find of a historical pearl at an archeological site in the Marawah Island, Unites Arab Emirates (UAE). Dubbed “Abu Dhabi Pearl” the small (ca. 3 mm) slightly pinkish pearl (locally known as wardi), presumably from the local pearl oyster (Pinctada radiata) was radiocarbon dated to 5,800 - 5,600 BCE, making it one of the oldest pearls on record so far. In 2012, a team of scientists working on a burial site in Umm al-Quwain, also in the UAE, had also reported on a ca. 7,500 years old 4 mm pearl, dated 5547-5235 BCE, which was, then, the oldest pearl ever found. These finds, and many others in the area, notably the 62 pearls in Jebel al-Buhais (5200-4000 BCE) and the 18 pearls in Akab Island (4700-4100 BCE), support the thesis that the pearl trade, and possibly pearl fishing, is an ancestral millennial activity in the region. Similarly, more Neolithic pearl finds have been reported in Arabia, namely in Saudi Arabia and in the Sultanate of Oman. Pearls have a strong tradition in the Persian Gulf and there is a strong cultural heritage associated with pearl collection and trading. © Abu Dhabi Department of Culture and Tourism; In the photo, Adi al Fardan with rare natural pearl strands from his family's pearl collection in the UAE © Tasneem A. #pearl #jewelry #luxury #history

Amethyst, the violet to purple variety of quartz, is among the oldest gem minerals on record, with known use in jewellery since Antiquity. It is a known curiosity that its name basically means not-drunken, from the Greek “amethustos” and its presumed alcohol-safe properties going back to its association with Bacchus (Dionysius), the God of wine and Methe, the goddess-nymph of drunkness. I've been trying to, unsuccessfully, verify this theory personally, but I somehow I keep investing on this research and continue trying. Now more seriously, the colour purple of amethyst comes with blue or red overtones and often shows well-defined colour banding (quite useful in visual gem identification). The colour is associated with an Fe3+ related colour centre that results from natural irradiation (O2 : Fe4+). Synthetic amethyst, now often seen as "lab grown amethyst" (sometimes erroneously named “hydrothermal amethyst” in the trade), has been produced in significant quantities since the 1970s when the colour mechanism was understood. Its positive identification may pose challenges although a combination of classical gemmology (observations under the polariscope and microscope) and advanced diagnostic techniques (e.g. FTIR, LA-ICP-MS) may separate between natural and synthetic. Submitting to a gem lab or an experienced gemmologist is here highly recommended. In the photo, a Bizantine necklace by Verdura, a New York-based Maison founded by Sicilian born Fulco Santostefano della Cerda, Duke of Verdura, in 1939, set with high-quality amethysts, light pink kunzites and small vivid green tsavorite garnets © Verdura #amethyst #gemstones #luxury #jewelry

Another awesome speaker visiting Lisbon in November 💎

Diamonds have been used for more than 2,000 years both as a gemstone and as a material for tools. As a tool, it was the high hardness of the mineral, 10 in the Mohs' scale (a scale devised in 1822 by Frederich Mohs, hence the name) that made them quite useful in Antiquity for gem engraving or glyptic work, for example. As a gemstone, it was this same physical property that made them practically impossible to cut and polish and therefore, in jewellery, diamonds were originally used in their natural as-grown crystal shapes (also known as crystal habits in mineralogy), namely octahedrons and dodecahedrons, up until the late 14th century. Modern designers have revisited this antique concept and we see more and more rough diamonds being used as gemstones in high-end jewellery, most notably those of a pronounced colour that are known in the trade as fancy colour diamonds. Two immediate advantages of using rough diamonds in jewellery are the larger carat sizes being ready to use without loosing 50% or more of their weight during cutting and the time, cost and energy savings of the whole cutting process, from planning to polishing. Another advantage is with green diamonds, specially those that only have the colour at the crystal surface, that will keep their naturally-irradiated colours. In the photos, examples of rough diamonds and rough diamond and cut diamond jewellery © De Beers Group #diamond #jewelry #luxury #gemstones #mineral

This diamond star is part of one of the stars of the Museu do Tesouro Real (Royal Treasure Museum) at the Royal Residence of Palácio Nacional da Ajuda in Lisboa, Portugal. The jewelled element was detached from a gold and diamond necklace during the gemmological study and metal conservation interventions, being composed by 224 diamonds sourced from the crown’s vast Brazilian diamond fund at the time. The jewel was commissioned to the Portuguese jeweler Estêvão de Souza in 1863 by Queen consort Maria Pia de Savoy. Originally the necklace was part of a complete set that included, for example, earrings, bracelets, a brooch, a hair comb and a tiara that is the only piece that survived until present day. In this star we can see a larger diamond in style of cut that is commonly referred to today as “old mine cut” with a total of 58-facets. The smaller diamonds are simplified versions of the brilliant cut, with fewer facets, and five rose cut diamonds can be seen in the tips of the star. It is definitely worth visiting while in Lisbon (private guided gemmological tours can be arranged), or maybe you are lucky to attend the TREASURES, Royal Gems & Jewellery International Colloquium later this year and experience it! © Rui Galopim de Carvalho / Museu do Tesouro Real #diamond #jewelry #luxury #gemstones #history