6 / 100
6
he idea that some gemstones are
precious and others are only semi-precious
is familiar to every buyer of colored stones.
Precious stones - diamond, ruby, sapphire
and emerald - traditionally command high
prices due to their extraordinary color or bril-
liance and extreme rarity.
While the precious stones are deservedly
famous, the conventional distinction between
precious and semi-precious gems is laden
with myth and misconceptions. Let’s try to
sort out
some
of the myths from the reality.
One common misconception is that the
distinction between precious and semi-
precious gemstones is traditional, going
back many centuries. In fact it is a recent
innovation, dating only to the nineteenth
century. The first use of “semi-precious”
to mean “of less commercial value than
a precious stone” can be traced back to
only 1858.
Another misconception is that the list of
four precious gems has a long history. In
fact the traditional list of precious gem-
stones is rather longer and includes some
surprising members. Pearl was consid-
ered to be precious; so was opal. One of the