Jewelry Reality

I believe I have been writing this column for more than 25 years now. A good amount of it is informative, and some you can put down to completely useless information. All and all, folks have come in and thanked me for saving them from losing a lot of money and the pain and embarrassment of being duped by some unscrupulous varmints who loosely call themselves “jewelers.” 

Con men and con women can be found all over the world, especially in areas of high tourism where they prey on the uninformed and naïve (aka those with plenty of money but no sense), who don’t have a clue about what is real and what is not and most importantly, the difference in what makes jewelry and gemstones valuable or worthless. It’s all about knowledge. 

Just recently, a couple who were browsing in the shop mentioned they had an “investment gem collection” and were bragging about how in the future, it would fulfill all their needs when they retired. This fairy tale was told to them by their “private gem dealer” who assured them that their purchases from him (her) would be increasing in value as the years went by. She flaunted a very large black oval gemstone ring saying this was her “investment sapphire ring” favorite and asked if I could clean it for her. 

As I inspected and cleaned the ring, I noticed its jet-black color with noticeable surface striations and inclusions - the stone was completely lifeless. Now where I come from my blue sapphires are blue, my pinks are pink and yellow sapphires are yellow. A black sapphire is not a desirable color and in no way is it valuable, especially with surface inclusions. It will never be valuable. She went on and on about the beauty of their other “valuable gems.” I feared someone has been pulling the wool over this couple’s eyes more than just big time. If their other gems are this same particularly bad quality, they may have to alter their retirement expectations, such as living on TV dinners or meals consisting of beans three times a day because they will be lucky their collection will even be worth a hill of beans. That will be a rude awakening when they go and cash it in and try to locate their special “private gem dealer” who has for years been laughing on their way to the bank and has now become a ghost. I was polite and courteous while cleaning her ring and said yes, it’s a nice ring… I’m not going to be the bearer of bad news and heaven forbid they ever want their treasures appraised by a professional.

I have come across this deceptive practice numerous times in my career, where some folks squandered tens of thousands of dollars purchasing trash material cut into popular “gems cuts.” These “uncut gems,” or reject materials, were usually discarded at the mine site or put aside to be turned into abrasive products like sandpaper or grinding wheels or even to line the bottom of an aquarium. These horrendous quality cut gems are then sold to those gullible enough to buy them on the streets.

 To quote the famous P.T. Barnum, “There’s a sucker born every minute!”

To add insult to injury, these con artists will also supply all kinds of fancy paperwork, even phony certifications, attesting that what you are buying is not only a great deal but also a genuine thing. (In most instances it is, in fact, a natural gemstone but the lowest of lowest quality).

I may have mentioned in the past a couple presented the “score” of rough loose emeralds they purchased for the wee sum of $500 in Bogota, South America. They were told they would be worth thousands in the U.S. when cut into sellable gemstones. Oh, really? On close examination I had to laugh under my breath in front of the couple. I pulled my cigar lighter out and held the flame under one of the “gems” and to their horror, it melted up like candle wax. The emeralds in question were, in fact, green plastic, the exact green plastic the Columbian Public Works Department uses in their traffic lights. I heard kids would climb traffic light poles, remove the green and red lenses, break them up, polish them into believable chunks and sell them to the tourists as emeralds and rubies. They were lucky they got scammed for only $500!

I have a “jar of shame” in my shop full of deals customers brought in thinking they purchased gold jewelry when in fact all they bought was gold-plated brass or copper. The scary thing is that all the pieces in question were stamped either 14kt. or 18kt. gold, which only further helps the scammers make your purchase of a lifetime believable. A sure sign of being had is when you wear the “gold” you bought off the street for a month and your neck, finger or wrist turns green.

Always be a bit careful about the recommendations on where to go to buy gold and gems at certain ports of call from crew members on cruise ships - they could also be in on the scam - they get kickbacks from the results of the fraudulent purchases.

It’s a dog-eat-dog world out there, and then there is that fool and his money thing… If the deal seems too good to be true, then it is!