The Federal Trade Commission’s Guide for the Jewelry, Precious Metals and Pewter Industries

FTC writes:

23.26 Misuse of the words "flawless," "perfect," etc.

(a) It is unfair or deceptive to use the word "flawless" as a quality description of any gemstone that discloses blemishes, inclusions, or clarity faults of any sort when examined under a corrected magnifier at 10-power, with adequate illumination, by a person skilled in gemstone grading.

(b) It is unfair or deceptive to use the word "perfect" or any representation of similar meaning to describe any gemstone unless the gemstone meets the definition of "flawless" and is not of inferior color or make.

(c) It is unfair or deceptive to use the word "flawless," "perfect," or any representation of similar meaning to describe any imitation gemstone.

Appendix--Exemptions Recognized in the Assay for Quality of Gold Alloy, Gold Filled, Gold Overlay, Rolled Gold Plate, Silver, and Platinum Industry Products.
(a) Exemptions recognized in the industry and not to be considered in any assay for quality of a karat gold industry product include springs, posts, and separable backs of lapel buttons, posts and nuts for attaching interchangeable ornaments, metallic parts completely and permanently encased in a nonmetallic covering, field pieces and bezels for lockets,10 and wire pegs or rivets used for applying mountings and other ornaments, which mountings or ornaments shall be of the quality marked.

Note: Exemptions recognized in the industry and not to be considered in any assay for quality of a karat gold optical product include: the hinge assembly (barrel or other special types such as are customarily used in plastic frames); washers, bushings, and nuts of screw assemblies; dowels; springs for spring shoe straps; metal parts permanently encased in a non-metallic covering; and for oxfords,11 coil and joint springs.

(b) Exemptions recognized in the industry and not to be considered in any assay for quality of a gold filled, gold overlay and rolled gold plate industry product, other than watchcases, include joints, catches, screws, pin stems, pins of scarf pins, hat pins, etc., field pieces and bezels for lockets, posts and separate backs of lapel buttons, bracelet and necklace snap tongues, springs, and metallic parts completely and permanently encased in a nonmetallic covering.

Note: Exemptions recognized in the industry and not to be considered in any assay for quality of a gold filled, gold overlay and rolled gold plate optical product include: screws; the hinge assembly (barrel or other special types such as are customarily used in plastic frames); washers, bushings, tubes and nuts of screw assemblies; dowels; pad inserts; springs for spring shoe straps, cores and/or inner windings of comfort cable temples; metal parts permanently encased in a non-metallic covering; and for oxfords, the handle and catch.

(c) Exemptions recognized in the industry and not to be considered in any assay for quality of a silver industry product include screws, rivets, springs, spring pins for wrist watch straps; posts and separable backs of lapel buttons; wire pegs, posts, and nuts used for applying mountings or other ornaments, which mountings or ornaments shall be of the quality marked; pin stems (e.g., of badges, brooches, emblem pins, hat pins, and scarf pins, etc.); levers for belt buckles; blades and skeletons of pocket knives; field pieces and bezels for lockets; bracelet and necklace snap tongues; any other joints, catches, or screws; and metallic parts completely and permanently encased in a nonmetallic covering.

(d) Exemptions recognized in the industry and not to be considered in any assay for quality of an industry product of silver in combination with gold include joints, catches, screws, pin stems, pins of scarf pins, hat pins, etc., posts and separable backs of lapel buttons, springs, and metallic parts completely and permanently encased in a nonmetallic covering.

(e) Exemptions recognized in the industry and not to be considered in any assay for quality of a platinum industry product include springs, winding bars, sleeves, crown cores, mechanical joint pins, screws, rivets, dust bands, detachable movement rims, hat-pin stems, and bracelet and necklace snap tongues. In addition, the following exemptions are recognized for products marked in accordance with section 23.8(b)(5) of these Guides (i.e., products that are less than 500 parts per thousand platinum): pin tongues, joints, catches, lapel button backs and the posts to which they are attached, scarf-pin stems, hat pin sockets, shirt-stud backs, vest-button backs, and ear-screw backs, provided such parts are made of the same quality platinum as is used in the balance of the article.

Footnotes
1. The Guides for the Watch Industry, 16 CFR part 245, address watchcases and permanently attached watchbands.
2. See 23.4(c) for examples of acceptable markings and descriptions.
3.The term substantial thickness means that all areas of the plating are of such thickness as to assure a durable coverage of the base metal to which it has been affixed. Since industry products include items having surfaces and parts of surfaces that are subject to different degrees of wear, the thickness of plating for all items or for different areas of the surface of individual items does not necessarily have to be uniform.
4. A product containing 1 micron (otherwise known as µ) of 12 karat gold is equivalent to one-half micron of 24 karat gold.
5. See footnote 3.
6. Under the National Stamping Act, articles or parts made of gold or of gold alloy that contain no solder have a permissible tolerance of three parts per thousand. If the part tested contains solder, the permissible tolerance is seven parts per thousand. For full text, see 15 U.S.C. 295, et seq.
7. See footnote 3.
8. See footnote 3.
9. Under the National Stamping Act, sterling silver articles or parts that contain no solder have a permissible tolerance of four parts per thousand. If the part tested contains solder, the permissible tolerance is ten parts per thousand. For full text, see 15 U.S.C. 294, et seq.
10. Field pieces of lockets are those inner portions used as frames between the inside edges of the locket and the spaces for holding pictures. Bezels are the separable inner metal rings to hold the pictures in place.
11. Oxfords are a form of eyeglasses where a flat spring joins the two eye rims and the tension it exerts on the nose serves to hold the unit in place. Oxfords are also referred to as pince nez.

More info @ http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/guides/jewel-gd.htm

The Complete Handbook For Gemstone Weight Estimation

By Charles I Carmona
Gemania Publishing Company
1998 ISBN 0-9666370-0-3

Richard Liddicoat writes:

A serious problem for all of those who are called upon to appraise or identify the gems set in various types of jewelry is first to ascertain not only the identity of the gems, but also the weight of the gems in rings, bracelets, necklaces—or other forms. Often, the nature of the mounting makes it difficult.

Charles Carmona has spent many years assembling and / or developing a remarkably comprehensive set of weight estimation formulae for mounted diamonds, colored stones and pearls—and used them to prepare detailed tables based on millimeter measurements. Those who appraise, buy, sell, insure or loan on used or estate jewelry depend on accuracy in weight estimation. Such individuals engaged in activities involving a need for accuracy in weight estimations for estate purposes, appraising, identification, pawnbroking of jewelry, or other needs should consider such detailed tables a major resource in their estimating process. Obviously most practitioners have some means of estimating the weight of common shapes, but the number of shapes included in Carmona’s tables is unusual.

Obviously, estimation tables are only substitutes for direct weighing, but when that is not an option, accurate tables become a vital tool. It is also obvious that no individual would have access to every size and shape of every gemstone included in comprehensive tables. Many sizes and shapes were measured in quartz or synthetics for the differences in specific gravity. Extrapolation was used to fill in between measured samples.

Frequent users are likely to make their own adjustments to various elements of the tables as they employ them, but their availability in such detail should prove to be exceptionally useful to many in the jewelry industry.

About the author
Charles I Carmona has been active in the mineral collecting hobby and the gem and jewelry trade for over 30 years, from prospecting and mining to gem cutting, wholesale and retail sales, and extensive experience in the appraisal of all types of gemstones and jewelry. As a consultant to attorneys, accountants, banks, government agencies and the gem and jewelry trade, his reputation as an expert has been well established. The need to accurately estimate the weights of mounted gemstones on a daily basis led to this compendium of formulas and tables.

Gem Artists Of North America

Gem Artists of North America is a forum for artists and professionals of the gem art industry. They offer information about gem carvers and their various techniques.

More info @ http://www.gemartists.org

The Traveler

Pablo Neruda writes:

They are not so sad these stones.
Inside them lives the gold,
holding seeds of planets,
holding bells in their depths,
gauntlets of iron, marriage
of time with amethysts:
within they laugh with rubies!
they were nourished by lightning.

For what, traveler, beware
of the sadness of the road,
of the mysteries in the walls.

Much it cost me to learn
that not all is alive without,
and not all is dead within,
and that Age inscribes letters
with water and stone for no one,
so that none may know where,
so that none may understand.

Manhattan Movie

Memorable quote (s) from the movie:

Isaac Davis (Woody Allen): This is so antiseptic. It's empty. Why do you think this is funny? You're going by audience reaction? This is an audience that's raised on television, their standards have been systematically lowered over the years. These guys sit in front of their sets and the gamma rays eat the white cells of their brains out!

Mary Wilke (Diane Keaton): I was tired of submerging my identity to a very brilliant, dominating man. He's a genius.

Isaac Davis (Woody Allen): Oh really, he was a genius, Helen's a genius and Dennis is a genius. You know a lot of geniuses, you know. You should meet some stupid people once in a while, you know, you could learn something.

Doing Business In Mexico

World Bank / IFC writes:

Doing Business in Mexico 2007 is the second sub-national report in the series Doing Business in Mexico. Last year, quantitative indicators on business regulations and their enforcement were created for 12 cities and states. This year, Doing Business in Mexico 2007 covers all 31 states of the Mexican Republic and measures the progress of the 12 states analyzed last year. The report finds that some states compare well with the best of the world, while others need much reform to become globally competitive. Doing Business in Mexico 2007 gives federal, state, and local policymakers the ability to measure regulatory performance against other states and countries, learn from global and national best practices, and prioritize reforms.

Points of interest
Aguascalientes was the easiest state in which to do business last year. State and city officials have successfully used the benchmark as a promotional tool to compete for business at home and abroad. Simultaneously, they have continued to press ahead with reforms. As a result, Aguascalientes earned the top rank again this year. Querétaro, the lowest ranked overall performer last year, created a public-private task force dedicated to improving its benchmarks. The task force systematically studied bottlenecks, proposed reforms, and measured progress throughout the year. The reforms helped Querétaro climb nine ranks on the ease of doing business to number seven out of 31 states and Mexico City. In this year’s report, three of the top six performers are “new” states: Sonora, which ranks fourth, Campeche in fifth place, and Zacatecas in sixth. Sonora and Campeche are especially efficient when it comes to property registration, ranking first and second in that indicator. Zacatecas stands out both in the ease of registering collateral to access credit, as well as in the ease of enforcing contracts, where it is the top performer. Such state and city level reforms are becoming increasingly important in a globalized world, where specific locations as much as countries compete for investment – e.g. Monterrey versus Shanghai rather than Mexico versus China.

More info @ http://www.doingbusiness.org/main/Mexico.aspx

The Federal Trade Commission’s Guide for the Jewelry, Precious Metals and Pewter Industries

FTC writes:

23.25 Misuse of the word "gem."

(a) It is unfair or deceptive to use the word "gem" to describe, identify, or refer to a ruby, sapphire, emerald, topaz, or other industry product that does not possess the beauty, symmetry, rarity, and value necessary for qualification as a gem.

(b) It is unfair or deceptive to use the word "gem" to describe any laboratory-created industry product unless the product meets the requirements of paragraph (a) of this section and unless such word is immediately accompanied, with equal conspicuousness, by the word "laboratory-grown," "laboratory-created," or "[manufacturer-name]-created," "synthetic," or by some other word or phrase of like meaning, so as to clearly disclose that it is not a natural gem.

Note to 23.25: In general, use of the word "gem" with respect to laboratory-created stones should be avoided since few laboratory-created stones possess the necessary qualifications to properly be termed "gems." Imitation diamonds and other imitation stones should not be described as "gems." Not all diamonds or natural stones, including those classified as precious stones, possess the necessary qualifications to be properly termed "gems."

More info @ http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/guides/jewel-gd.htm

A Roman Book On Precious Stones

By Sydney H Ball
Gemological Institute of America
1950

Sydney H Ball writes:

Rightly or wrongly, I have for some years felt that the outstanding classical book on precious stones, the 37th book of Pliny’s Natural History, has never been edited by one well versed in the lore of precious stones.

After years of disuse, my Latin limps; consequently, I take the liberty, to save the reader’s busy time, of rendering into modern English what is generally considered to be at least one of the best English translations, that of Philemon Holland, published in London in 1601. (The Historie of the World, commonly called the Naturall Historie of C Plinius Secundus. Translated into English by Philemon Holland, Doctor of Physicks. Printed in London by Adam Islip, 1601).

Holland graduated from Trinity College, Cambridge, and later received his M D from an unknown university. While practicing his profession, he translated a dozen Greek and Latin works. That he was not over paid is suggested by the fact that one such arduous task he received 4 pounds; for another 5 pounds. Referring to his translations, Fuller in his Worthies says, “These books alone of his turning into English will make a country gentleman a competent library.”

I have ventured, for easier reference, to disregard Holland’s rather inadequate chapter headings and have introduced the more numerous and more logical headings in the Latin edition of Jean Hardouin (Joannes Hardiunus, Paris, 1723).

No work is complete, and this one is far from it. For the shortcomings of my modest part in this book, I can only claim indulgence. As for Holland’s translation, my introductory chapters and notes were written in “those hours which might be spared from the practice of my profession and the necessarie cares of this life.” I am in great debt to Miss Kay Swindler who edited my manuscript.