[Jewelry making - Article 00564] - Re: [Orchid] Marketing treated gems as legitimate product

[lee]

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>     What makes it especially wrong is that there are some people who
>     sell stones, like me and several others I know, who concentrate on
>     selling the natural and even the rare.

    I am right there with you. I think it is terribly misleading to use
    the term "natural" as merely the opposite of "lab-created," as is so
    often done. Natural should mean "nature made it this way." Yes, I
    know nature didn't facet or cab the stone, and everyone else
    understands that too. Nature didn't bezel set the stone, either. But
    give me a break-

    "yes, this topaz was heated to 600 degrees, and then bombarded with
    gamma radiation. We had to store it in a lead-lined vault until the
    rads dropped to legal levels. The sapphire was diffused with
    beryllium. They are natural stones." On what planet?

    Why value a gemstone above a piece of glass or plastic? Does it have
    to do with the fact that the beauty of the stone is produced by
    nature rather than artifice? Is it an old and deep-seated vestige of
    our reverence for the earth? Is the wearing of stones perhaps a way
    of connecting with the earth?

Lee
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