Photos of FIPP2009 (Feira Internacional das Pedras Preciosas), Teófilo Otoni, Minas Gerais

Yesterday, I ran across a very nice set of photos of FIPP2009:

http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/uly4/2/1251291872/tpod.html#pbrowser/uly4/2/1251291872/filename=overview-of-a-show-section.jpg

...

Baby blue and baby pink iridescent bicolor tourmaline bought in Teófilo Otoni

OK, I admit it! I am a sucker for tourmalines, I really am.

When I saw this baby blue/baby pink bicolor tourmaline, I fell in love. The internal iridescence is just icing on the cake!

"Campbell Bridges 1937–2009: The Bridges' Family Needs Your Help" by Lisa Brooks-Pike, RGA

Dear Readers,

Movies such as "Born Free," "Safari," "King Solomon's Mines," "Mountains of the Moon," "A Nun's Story," "The Snows of Kilimanjaro" (and the book by Hemingway, of course), and "Out of Africa," and the books The Golden Impala, West with the Night, The Lion, The Poisonwood Bible, The Blue Nile, The White Nile, and many others have all informed my images of Africa, although I have never travelled there.

I didn't know Campbell Bridges. I had read only sporadically about him.

But the poignancy in his son's telling of his death, the survivor's remorse, the way we can see that he keeps playing it over in his head, thinking that if only, if only he had done something differently, his beloved father would not have died.

It's heartbreaking.

No one deserves to die like that.

Lisa Brooks-Pike has written a moving article of her interview with Bruce Bridges, and she is appealing to us to step up to the plate and sign the petition for justice for Campbell Bridges in an attempt to move Kenya to act as a nation of law.

Tenney

Campbell Bridges 1937–2009: The Bridges' Family Needs Your Help

by Lisa Brooks-Pike, RGA

It was an honor to meet recently with Bruce Bridges, son of Campbell Bridges, in the office of Tom Elliot, owner of the North American Gemological Laboratory (NAGL). Within moments of Bruce’s arrival, it was clear that he had the same great qualities and values as his father, and his passion for family and Tsavorite is extraordinary. Bruce and his family have suffered great adversity and even greater loss yet Bruce’s dedication to his father’s lifetime of work and to Tsavorite drive him forward with amazing strength and focus.

Bruce’s visit to NAGL was driven by this passion and dedication. He was there to honor Campbell, and protect the Scorpion mine and the brilliant vanadium-bearing grossular garnet known as Tsavorite. Bruce brought with him a carry-on bag filled with the Scorpion Tsavorite selected as the cream of the crop by Campbell before his brutal murder.

Like a child seeing the moon for the first time, I was in awe of the material Bruce carefully laid out on the desk before us. It was all beautiful – perfect in deep green color, expertly cut and meticulously polished. I expected as much from material hand-selected by Campbell Bridges; I did not expect to be equally awed by his son. Bruce knew every detail of every stone as if he had nurtured and raised them as children. He could touch one and with that touch he knew the exact carat weight and every tiny detail of that gem. These stones were special.

Bruce shared the largest gem quality Tsavorite to come out of the Scorpion mine – a 20.24-carat wonder. I held my breath as it lay in my hand. "The Scorpion King," I thought. Equally as impressive was the perfectly matched suite of graduated pear-cut stones that made their way to a center pear worthy of royalty: his Queen.

The 44 best stones were selected, all over 3 carats, all breathtaking. These 44 stones were about to receive a special inscription by Tom to identify them as Tsavorite mined under the watchful eye of Campbell Bridges. Watching the first stone being inscribed to honor Campbell and protect what he had created was a very emotional and moving experience, but paled in comparison to Bruce’s story.

Bruce’s own account of this tragic event was both heartbreaking and infuriating. He spoke of that awful day as a son who has suffered irreversible loss, but also as one who refuses to give up and bravely fights on through his sorrow. When we spoke he informed us that the local government had only one man in custody, even though he and his security team had provided them with the full names and photographs of the attackers. As of this writing, no other has been arrested, and the man in custody has been released.

He spoke of the current status of the Scorpion Mine with very real trepidation; while Bruce is currently paying armed guards to protect the mine, no one is there to work it. Mining has ceased, and he does not know when security will be established to enable mining to resume. "We wait to see if the government will reestablish protection for the legal miners," he says.

To say that there has been little action regarding the apprehension of Campbell’s murderers would be a gross understatement. There has been some misinformation regarding the identity of the attackers. While some published reports convey the idea that the attackers were locals, Bruce’s own words in his interview with the BBC say something different. Taken from the interview: "There were several politicians, that for their own greed, funded bandits, gangsters and these criminals, and it's the criminal, it's criminals that we fought with, not farmers. The people that murdered my father were known criminals." In fact, Bruce told me that "the vast majority of attackers were Kenyan Somalis with a couple local gangsters."

Bruce has sought the aid of the British and U.S. embassies, but has been informed by both that without a direct invitation by the Kenyan government, they cannot intervene. Tsavorite U.S.A. has sponsored a petition aimed at creating some forward movement and bringing more attention to this tragedy. As of right now, they need only 22 additional signers to reach their goal of one thousand.

I would like to personally urge anyone who has taken the time to read this article to click on the link, sign the petition, and help to bring to justice the murderers of a man who did so much for so many, without asking anything in return.

UPDATE: the petition has reached its goal of 1,000 signatures -- thanks to everyone!

Please click here and sign the petition: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/130/justice-for-campbell-bridges

Bruce Bridges' interview with BBC: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8199627.stm

Update:

From Bruce Bridges: "Three men have been arrested and one man released. None of these men are the masterminds but mid to lower tier in the murder, yet are all involved."

Article published online at the site of the Jewelers Ethics Association:

http://www.jewelersethicsassociation.com/news

Kicking myself in the posterior again -- Andalusite becoming very rare in Teófilo Otoni

Does anyone still remember when andalusite was a humble stone, unworthy of great consideration?

Sigh......

Oh! The stones I could have bought for mere centavos a few years ago.

[That was until IBAMA, the Brazilian environmental protection agency, decided to shut down the mine because it was polluting the area.]

To be continued...

Faceted Green Amber for Sale in Teófilo Otoni -- Part II

A few months back, I wrote a post about the faceted green amber I had seen in Teófilo Otoni, earlier this year.

I am happy to report that some of the best pieces were still at the dealer's office when I went to see him, yesterday, and I am going to break down and buy one of these incredible beauties (for study purposes, of course!).

For those of you who have not seen the first post, here is the link:

http://gringa-gem-news.blogspot.com/2009/06/faceted-green-amber-for-sale-in-teofilo.html

Right now, I have only very bad photos that don't come anywhere near to showing the wonderful liquid green-gold lights bouncing off those facets -- here is what I have, but I will post new photos once I get back to Conquista and am able to use my old 4 Mp Olympus D580, which has good sensors for yellows and greens. (The stones in the background of the top photo are chrysoberyls.)

Copyright © 2009 N. Tenney Naumer -- All rights reserved.

More info on the formation of amber here:

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/47998/title/Flowerless_plants_make_fancy_amber

Good news in earlier today from Teófilo Otoni gem dealers exhibiting at the 2009 Hong Kong Gem Show

The news from Praça Tiradentes this morning is that so far sales have been good in Hong Kong for the Teófilo Otoni gem dealers.

What a break this is after lackluster sales earlier in Bangkok and at the FIPP2009.

As expected, the best movers were the larger, high-quality aquamarines, alexandrites, and tourmalines, in particular the indescribably beautiful mint green tourmalines from the Pirineo mines.

Among the sellers from Teófilo Otoni with stands in Hong Kong are: Oswaldo Tavares, Marcelo Gemas, Mamão, Duarte & Bastos, and Emerson Tavares. (Remember that Teófilo Otoni is a very small town, and the well known sellers may be recognized by only their first names.)

Stands in Hong Kong can cost US$8,000. Add to that the cost of flying and hotel rooms, and if these dealers are sending happy news, then they must really be pleased!

Copyright © 2009 N. Tenney Naumer -- All rights reserved.

What I wouldn't give for one of these beauties from Pirineo!

Photo by Anfilófio Bastos, 2009.

Gorgeous, enormous, and problematic green tourmalines in Teófilo Otoni

Let's talk about these two beauties.

The first one, at the top (or on the left, depending on how your browser displays this page), is actually green going into blue-green. It is a good 2 inches long. If you were to buy it for yourself, all well and good. But if you are buying it to resell, what to do? What types of clients do you have? For example, what is a jeweler going to do with such a long stone? Really, it is too long to put in a ring. Should it be set into a pendant? I dunno. A pendant would not really show off the beauty of this stone. What about a brooch? Do you have jeweler clients who specialize in making brooches? Hmmm. This leaves you with thinking about your clients who are collectors and who are not interested in setting this stone. It is a marvelous example of a flawless bicolor tourmaline that goes from green into blue-green.

OK, now let's have a look at the second stone on the right (or below). This beauty has even more problems than the first one. This stone is so large that it is next to impossible to set (if I remember correctly, it was somewhere between 40 and 60 carats). This leaves it for a collector. But look at the cut. Look at the table. Hellooo! Really nice window to the bottom, isn't it!

You could have the stone recut as a round, but it might still be way too large to put in a ring, unless you are willing to lose a lot of carat weight. And for that, you need to pay a low-enough per carat price, because basically we are talking about rough here now, aren't we?

This stone is a perfect example of the prevailing tendency (by the less sophisticated dealers) here in Brazil to cut the stone as large as possible. This is called to aproveitar the stone (or to "take advantage" of the stone). They will have the stone cut as large as possible while still avoiding inclusions. Some of the really unsophisticated sellers will have the stones cut even larger and include inclusions in the belief that size is more important than an obvious flaw.

Copyright © 2009 N. Tenney Naumer -- All rights reserved.

On Pink Tourmalines from Araçuaí, Minas Gerais -- To Heat or Not To Heat

The tourmaline mines around Araçuaí in Minas Gerais are aptly famous for their pink tourmalines, although they have great greens, as well.

Pink tourmalines from Araçuaí are routinely heated because they often have a strong underlying brown tone. You can see examples of unheated and heated in this image taken in a dealer's office in Teófilo Otoni in March this year (click on the image to see the entire photo):


Generally speaking, many of these pinks look very light and washed out in daylight, but at night, under incandescent light, they have a wonderful color shift and change to a brilliant cherry color, although the brownish tone doesn't ever seem to be totally eliminated by heating.

In 2007, I bought an 18-carat oval for my mother -- IF at 30x -- and I had a terrible time trying to photograph it. In fact, I did not succeed. It looked just horrible in daylight, but at night -- wow!

Here is my best shot after several desperate attempts to manipulate the colors using Microsoft's Picture Manager, and it comes nowhere near doing justice to that stone:


On that same trip to Teófilo Otoni, I bought a 15-carat, peachy-pink, trillion-cut tourmaline that has something extra special about it that I have not seen before or since. As best as I can describe it, it was neon. And talk about not being able to photograph the particular beauty of that stone! Goodness! But I sent a message to a client in Rio de Janeiro, and he bought it sight unseen. When he received it, he sent me an e-mail to say that his eyes had fallen of his head when he saw it. It is nice when you have clients like that because if the sale had been based on a photo and not on trust, no one in their right mind would ever have bought that stone.

Copyright © 2009 N. Tenney Naumer -- All rights reserved.

Imperial topaz, characteristics and description, from the Ouro Preto region of Minas Gerais, available in Teófilo Otoni

[Photo copyright of Anfilófio Bastos. Please click on the photo at left to see the full screen image in all its glory! Or, click on this text to go to a collection of photos of stunning examples of the finest imperial topaz from the region of Ouro Preto, Minas Gerais!]

Recently, on one of the gemology forums, there was a discussion of imperial topaz. I was pretty surprised by the confusion as to what exactly is an imperial topaz.

For one thing, no one mentioned that the internal structure of real imperial topaz is quite different from common topaz. I don't have the technical vocabulary to describe it, but I can tell you what it does.

First, imperial topaz comes only from Minas Gerais in the region near the city of Ouro Preto. Minas Gerais is a very large state, comprising an area about 50% larger than the state of California, just to give you an idea.

The crystals are usually quite small in comparison to common topaz.

Unlike common topaz, their internal structure contains many tiny fractures. Thus, while cutting and polishing an imperial topaz, great care must be taken or it will break. And, sometimes these fractures are large enough to permit the polishing material to enter. Very fine visible fractures are normal in imperial topaz. Such fine fractures visible only at 10x normally do not affect the value of the stone greatly, although of course a really clear stone is more valuable, much like a clear rubilite tourmaline.

As already mentioned above, the crystal's color will intensify when viewed through the c-axis.

But the main difference is something called in Portuguese brilho de fogo, or "brilliance of fire."

Imperial topaz has a special way of reflecting light that causes it to shimmer.

Anyone who has actually seen real imperial topaz of even moderate quality will have seen this shimmer. It is somewhat similar to a schiller effect, but it is much finer and is extremely difficult to photograph, although I have come close even with my little amateur cameras.

Imperial topaz is defined by these special small shimmering crystals with internal fractures, and so far as I know, the only region in the world where they are found is in Minas Gerais.

As to color: imperial topaz comes in colors from a weak pale yellow to a better gold, to slightly orange, to salmon, to sherry and on along this sort of spectrum -- but they are all imperial topazes.

The difference is in the prices that are paid for these colors.

Some are heated to become pinkish. Lavender is a highly desired but rare color.

Nowadays, some are irradiated, but this is usually discernible because the colors have an intensity and tone that are not natural.

Generally, imperial topaz cannot be cut in the same way as common topaz due to the breakage problem. Thus, there are traditional cuts specific for imperial topaz.

I have seen irradiated citrines and low-quality rubilites cut in these imperial topaz cuts and hawked as imperial topaz.

Five years ago or more, common topaz (slightly off white in color) from the Khatlang province of Pakistan was being irradiated, and this process produced a very strong coppery orange shimmer, which unfortunately faded over time. It was noticeable that the shimmer effect was not nearly so fine. Nevertheless, these stones were often quite pretty.

The producers of this irradiated topaz did not bother to have it cut in the traditional cutting styles of real imperial topaz.

Very often, the irradiation produced very easily discernible color zoning -- something I have never seen in real imperial topaz.

The color was usually an orange copper with grey and brown undertones. It was especially easy to see these undertones and the color zoning if one put the stone, table down, on a piece of white paper and looked through the pavilion.

Sizes could go up to 40-50 carats -- an almost unheard of size for real imperial topaz.

But the dead giveaway was the price.

Even the lowliest cut imperial topaz with a washed-out, orange-salmon color (VS) would cost $12-$15 per carat in Teófilo Otoni.

A great website for finding the technical data on minerals, and with many good photos of these minerals, is www.mindat.org

That site currently has over 50 photos of imperial topaz crystals of the various natural colors. The first, a light golden brandy in color, displays the typical size, shape, color, and form of the most commonly found imperial topaz crystal, not to mention the internal fractures. These crystals can be had for pennies, as they are not gem quality and are sold merely as curiosities. The descriptions of the imperial topaz crystals on mindat contain a lot of hype. Almost none of the brandy-colored crystals is gem quality. The lavender crystals, however, are valuable. Here is the link:

http://www.mindat.org/min-8110.html

Copyright © 2009 N. Tenney Naumer -- All rights reserved.

Here is a link to a flickr album with photos of variously colored imperial topazes cut and available at the firm of Duarte & Bastos in Teófilo Otoni (photos by Anfilófio Bastos):

http://www.flickr.com/photos/dbprecious/sets/72157622158501184/detail/

FIPP2009 is opening auspiciously!!!

The latest news on FIPP2009 is that lots of international buyers are in town!

Naturally, the dealers are very pleased and excited about this.

I won't have much more information until Friday or Saturday, but I will just say that I am very happy for the gem dealers and miners of the region.

International buyers are already in Teófilo Otoni, in advance of FIPP2009

The news from Teófilo Otoni is that buyers have already been in town for a week ahead of FIPP2009. My sources tell me that they have seen buyers from Germany, Italy, and Israel. In particular, the buyer from Germany was surrounded by sellers, meaning that he actually is spending some money.

Normally, the big buyers come in before the gem fair begins and buy all the good stuff early. However, current production of good rough continues to be very low. Good stones are not available in large quantities, except from the larger more established firms, with very high prices, except for aquamarines, which as I have written before, are as common as popcorn.

OK, this is just my opinion, but I will give it, anyway.

Firms that are well positioned to ride out the crisis (those who have managed their cash flow wisely and did not take risks and become overextended) are using this opportunity to buy for clients who are in the same situation, and they are also buying with the long-term future in mind.

It is my understanding that prices have declined only a little. This is where the laws of supply and demand come in. There is relatively little supply of good stones because mining production has been greatly reduced for several months.

I would tend to say that any real buyers are buying now to snap up what is left of production.

And these are the buyers who can afford to wait a long time for sales or who already have orders of some kind.

My good friend, Natasha Petrova, will be scanning the scene by this coming Friday.

At that time, she will be able to talk to the dealers and let me know how things went. I have also asked her to take some photos for posting to this blog. [This year, I had to make an unexpected trip to the States, so I will not be there, myself, as I had intended.] She has already told me that Russian jewelry companies have not placed any orders. [The financial crisis has hit Russia much more than other countries.]

FIPP2009 (Feira Internacional das Pedras Preciosas), Teófilo Otoni, Minas Gerais

Last week, it seemed that FIPP2009 might not go on; however, according to Monday night's news broadcast, whatever complications there might have been have now been resolved, and FIPP2009 is good to go!!!

Here is a true gem -- my beautiful baby girl, Alais Elena

FIPP2009 (Feira Internacional das Pedras Preciosas), Teófilo Otoni, Minas Gerais

Feria de Piedras (for our Spanish readers), Teófilo Otoni

Just a tiny update here to let you all know that according to my contacts in Teófilo Otoni, the upcoming edition of FIPP is still on (August 25-28, 2009).

There is, however, a slight problem with the GEA website, possibly due to an error creeping into the code during a change. The FIPP2009 page with its poster has disappeared.

But the webpage for signing up for the gem fair is still there:

http://www.geabrasil.com/inscricao.php

Gemstone sales are dead right now in Teófilo Otoni

hmm, I don't like to be the harbinger of bad news, but word on the street in Teófilo Otoni is that sales are dead. In Portuguese they say "parada" (stopped). Let me explain a bit. When things are not going well, no one admits it. They might say something like "sales are fine," "sales are ok," "sales are not bad," but no one tells you that they are absolutely terrible.

Except that now they are saying this.

You know what they say -- that in bad economic times the big juicy stones still move, the best still sells.

Except that now they are not selling.

Owners of mines were already laying off workers and production had declined dramatically a few months ago. It was nearly impossible to come across any good stones. Well, aquamarine is always available, the stuff grows like mushrooms.

In-house cutters were already at a minimum (one?).

A Japanese buyer (but was he buying? hmm, I will check) told a friend that things would not get better for 5 years. Personally, I think that is an exaggeration, but who knows? Certainly, no one is expecting things to go back to the way they were during 2004-2007 any time soon.

Faceted Green Amber for sale in Teófilo Otoni -- Who knew?

Readers, I am very sorry that I did not get a photo of the absolutely gorgeous clear, faceted green amber that I was shown last month in Teófilo Otoni.

For one thing, I almost never buy something the first time I see it. I have to wait and investigate. Today, I finally found an article about this beautiful stone.

OK, of course, it is not from Brazil -- I am pretty sure of that.

This is what happened. I was sitting in the office of a dealer I like and trust, and he's telling me stories about this stone and that, when he mentions this guy who left a couple of bags of stones for him to sell if he finds any buyers.

The first bag was of those now notorious "andesine" labradorites from Mexico (or China, if you drink the cool aid). They were a very light golden color, not red. But they were easily recognizable. I'm like... uh, no thanks.

Then, he gets out a bag of these gorgeous dreamy green ambers. They reminded me of the color and clarity of the best sweet white wine I have ever had in my life, a golden nectar of the gods from Hungary that I drank back in 1979 -- you know, the kind of wine you never forget.

These faceted green amber gems were the type of stone that makes your eyes light up involuntarily as soon as you see them, and you lean forward, and everything about you tells the seller that you want them, and you want them bad!

Then, he tells me the per carat price.

Fortunately for me, or unfortunately, as the case may be, I was so damned cash poor that they were completely out of my league, especially as I didn't even really know what they were.

The dealer told me that a Japanese buyer had taken some away to be tested to see if they were really amber or not, and that he had come back and said that, yes, it was real amber, but he also didn't much like the price.

It was already late in the day, so I couldn't take a photo. However, today, while I was trying to find articles about the process for stabilizing amber, I ran across one on the treatment for green amber, so below, I am posting three photos taken by the author, Dr. Lore Kiefert, of the AGTA. I don't have permission, so eventually I may have to take these photos down. None of these stones was faceted, and only the really nice ones come anywhere near the stones I saw in Teófilo Otoni, but I think they will give you a pretty good idea.

All three photos were taken by Dr. Lore Keifert, who owns the copyright to their reproduction.

Below is the link to Dr. Lore Keifert's original article on the treatment process; UPDATE, October 14, 2009 -- the link is broken, and I have read on a forum that going to the AGTA site could involve receiving a Trojan virus, so please be careful there: http://www.agta-gtc.org/amber-green.htm

Climate change comes to Teófilo Otoni -- How to make donations for flood victims

Here is my translation of the news story in the post below this one:

"Yesterday afternoon, a storm with extremely strong winds and hail caused damage in the city of Teófilo Otoni, in the Muruci Valley, Minas Gerais state. According to the Minas State Civil Defense Coordinating Office (Cedec), a daycare center and six houses had tiles ripped off their roofs. A tree fell on some wires and caused damage to the electrical system. The southern zone of the municipality had no electricity for a few hours. There were no reports of injuries.

Persons who had to leave their homes were put up by friends and family. Cedec is still adding up the damage caused by the storm. It is not yet known if additional support in the form of food packets will be necessary for the families affected.

Since the rainy season began in September 2008, approximately 113,300 people have been displaced and 1,540 have been made homeless in Minas Gerais state."

OK, so what is the big deal about a storm with strong winds and hail?

A single bad storm cannot be attributed to global warming. But according the the Brazilian weather service, the number of lightning strikes per year has doubled in the last 4 years.

I can attest to that. When I first moved here, 12 years ago, from my home in tornado alley, I was amazed at how quiet the storms were. The rain came, lots of it fell, but there was no thunder and lightning. I actually missed it. In the last two years especially, we see lightning here with almost every storm that comes through. It is a very noticeable change.

I was surprised to read just now that 113,300 people had been affected in Minas Gerais since last September. I knew that it had rained a lot, but I had thought that the main problem was in the north and northeast of Brazil, where there are more than 400,000 displaced and many homeless people -- many have been cut off from the basic necessities for two months. Up in the Amazon region, there is very little in the way of potable water, food, medicines, medical care, electricity, and just about anything else you might need. If you would like to make a donation, in this case I recommend the Catholic charity called Caritas because they have people on the ground in every community and the money cannot be diverted by the local politicians.

Please see my other blog for instructions:

Japanese & American donate to Caritas International for the flood victims in northern and northeastern Brazil -- Learn how!

Caritas - the charitable arm of the Catholic Church - is appealing for contributions to provide assistance to flooded areas in northeastern Brazil

If you are Brazilian and want to make a transfer to a bank account here in Brazil, this is the link to the list of accounts to make donations to the Red Cross:

Cruz Vermelha do Brasil: Como fazer doações p/ os atingidos das enchentes do Norte e Nordeste

Vendaval e chuva de granizo causam estragos em Teófilo Otoni

Um vendaval, seguido de uma chuva de granizo, atingiu o município de Teófilo Otoni, no Vale do Mucuri, na tarde dessa terça-feira, causando vários estragos. Segundo a Coordenadoria Estadual de Defesa Civil de Minas (Cedec), seis casas e uma creche tiveram os telhados arrancados. Uma árvore caiu sobre a via pública causando estragos na rede elétrica. A zona Sul do município ficou sem energia por várias horas. Não houve registro de feridos.

Os desalojados foram abrigados em casas de parentes e amigos. A Cedec ainda faz um balanço dos prejuízos causados pela chuva. Ainda não se sabe se há necessidade de apoio complementar, como cestas básicas, para as famílias afetadas.

Desde setembro de 2008, início do período chuvoso, aproximadamente 113.300 pessoas ficaram desalojadas e 1.540 desabrigadas em Minas Gerais.

(Cecília Kruel/Portal Uai) Link to this article: http://www.uai.com.br/UAI/html/sessao_2/2009/06/03/em_noticia_interna,id_sessao=2&id_noticia=112998/em_noticia_interna.shtml

GEA: Gem Exporters Association (Associação dos Exportadores e Comerciantes de Jóias e Gemas do Brasil, list of members

This is a list of the dealers and members of GEA (possibly somewhat outdated):

• AMS - IMPORTAÇÃO EXPORTAÇÃO DE PEDRAS PRECIOSAS
• APJ - APRENDER PRODUZIR JUNTOS
• AV PEDRAS PRECIOSAS
• BERYNO GEMS LTDA.
• BEZIM GEMS
• BRAZCRYSTAL LAPIDAÇÃO E COMÉRCIO LTDA.
• BRASGEMAS LTDA.
• BRASIL GEMAS
• CAIMEX - COMISSÁRIA E ACESSORIA IMPORTAÇÃO E EXPORTAÇÃO
• CIA DAS GEMAS
• CMP DO BRASIL
• COLORGEMS LTDA.
• CRISTAL GEMAS
• CRISTAIS CORINTO
• DUARTE & BASTOS LTDA.
• EMBRARAD - EMPRESA BRASILEIRA DE RADIAÇÕES LTDA.
• EMPRESA DE MINERAÇÃO BADIN LTDA.
• GEMAIA PEDRAS LTDA.
• GEMAS DA TERRA
• GEMAS MMD
• GEMS HÉRCULES PRECIOUS
• GEMS FROM BRASIL EXPORTAÇÃO E IMPORTAÇÃO LTDA.
• GMIR LTDA.
• GRP GEMAS E MINERAIS
• INDO BRÁS UNITED LTDA.
• JAA GEMAS LTDA.
• JG LTDA.
• KALINA NEUMANN
• K'ELAWAR LTDA.
• KELLES PEDRAS
• LAPIDAÇÃO KELLER
• LP GEMAS
• LUIZ MENEZES COMÉRCIO E EXPORTAÇÃO DE MINERAIS LTDA.
• LUPO MINERAÇÕES LTDA.
• MARKSTONE PEDRAS PRECIOSAS
• MINERAÇÃO TAPICURU
• NATURALE STEIN LTDA.
• OPALAS PEDRO II
• ORGANIZAÇÕES DUARTE LTDA.
• OTF GEMS - OGANIZAÇÕES TAVARES FILHO COM. EXP. IMP. DE P.PRECIOSAS
• QUARTZO ROSA COMÉRCIO E INDÚSTRIA LTDA.
• RAINBOW EXPORT SERVICES
• R. FIGUEIREDO BRASILIAN GEMS STONES LTDA.
• R & R GEMAS
• RSV GEMAS LTDA.
• SANTOS STONES
• SILVA E GUIMARÃES COMÉRCIO E INDÚSTRIA LTDA.
• STONE KELLER COMÉRCIO E INDÚSTRIA EXPORTAÇÃO LTDA.
• STONE WORLD INDÚSTRIA E COMÉRCIO LTDA.
• STONES PICTURES
• TAMIL - TAVARES MINÉRIOS E EXPORTAÇÃO LTDA.
• TEÓPHILO STONES
• TRANSPORT SERVIÇOS INTERNACIONAIS
• VALOR INDÚSTRIA E COMERCIO
• VIEIRA & SOARES GEMAS LTDA.
• VIEIRA LAPIDÁRIOS
• VIEIRA PEDRAS PRECIOSAS

Gem cutting in Vitória da Conquista, Bahia, Brazil, and The One That Got Away

For a long time I have wanted to write about the gem cutters here in Vitória da Conquista, Bahia, and later about the cutters in Teófilo Otoni and Governador Valadares in Minas Gerais. Finally, I found the photos I had taken, back in late 2006, of my friend, Saturno. There are really only two cutters in this city, Saturno, and his teacher, Sr. Antônio.

One thing that amazes me about Saturno is that he is roughly my age (in fact, I think he is a few years younger) and he does not need to use reading glasses.

Of course, much more amazing is how he uses equipment that would be considered relatively unsophisticated or even completely inadequate in the U.S. and Europe.


OK, so the first photo here is of his grinding wheel (proper term to be inserted later) where he forms the rough, holding the rough stone in his fingers. He really does everything he wants to do right there.

Once, I was sooooo peeved with him because he had some gorgeous pinkish amethyst rough, and I sat next to him, and he formed a large piece of it into a triangular shape just the way I wanted it. The finished stone would have been about 80 carats. When I came back on the weekend to pick it up and pay for it, it was no where to be found. How does this happen? My mistake! If I had paid for the rough first, then paid for him to cut it, he would have made much more, but I wanted to pay by the finished carat weight. Once he had finished the stone, he must have decided that it was worth a lot more to another buyer, so away it went.

I, being American, assumed that we had a done deal -- after all, had I not sat there right next to him while he formed the rough to my specifications and agreed to have it finished at the weekend when I was to come and pick it up? There was a deal made, wasn't there?

Hellooooo! This is Brazil we are talking about.

There I am, completely confused because I have known Saturno for years, and he has never pulled a stunt like this on me before, and I was also extremely disappointed because that particular amethyst rough was so unusual. It was extremely sparkly, had a silver cast to it, and showed both pink and blue. It even sparkled in the evenings when amethyst is normally a fairly dull stone. Furthermore, there was no chance of getting any more because the owner of the mine had shut it down due to so much theft.

But really, the worst was that I had trusted him. And, in his Brazilian way, he made up all sorts of excuses and fibs about how he had had to give it to Sr. Antônio to cut it for him because he had had other work to do, and it was gone or it had broken or some such nonsense, and this being Brazil, I had to get over it right there on the spot and not get mad and just accept the fact that he had found someone willing to pay a lot more money, and it was my mistake for not paying for the rough up front.

This is called "going native."

Or, "live and learn."



The first rule of business here is: don't trust anyone!

The second rule of business here is: don't trust anyone!

The third rule of business here is: well, maybe trust just a little bit, but not really.

Here are some photos of one that did not get away:

Sr. Antônio is a bit hard to get along with, but his work is better. I asked him to put twice the number of facets on the pavilion as usual -- this is called a fantasia cut, here. So, this is the best I can get, here, which is the reason that I am in search of a really confiável (someone I can trust -- LOL) cutter in Teófilo Otoni with whom I can work. I am beginning with the "french-fried" tourmalines guy, so we'll just have to see how that goes.

By the way... That big oval was cut back in 2006, and I sold it to a really nice client of mine in São Paulo. He was also studying gemology with the GIA there. After he received the stone, he phoned me all in a panic, saying that it was giving the wrong Chelsea filter reaction. I was like, please, Arnaldo, calm down. Ask your teacher. I know this is a real stone because I saw the rough. Look, you can see the growth layers. Later, he phoned back and told me his teacher, a nice guy from Spain, had checked it out, and indeed, yes, it was natural.

[Last paragraph deleted because it was an embarrassing display of gemology ignorance -- I love the fact that blog posts can be edited!]

Copyright © 2009 N. Tenney Naumer -- All rights reserved.

International Gem Fair will be held!!! FIPP2009, August 25-28, 2009, Teófilo Otoni, Brazil

Boy, am I ever pleased to be able to write this post!!!!

Here is the official site for registering for the 2009 Feira Internacional das Pedras Preciosas (FIPP: International Gemstone Fair)!

In Portuguese and English: http://www.geabrasil.com/inscricao.php

In better times (I am thinking of 2006 and before), the fair was held in the main square (Praça Tiradentes), where you can stand under the trees outside the pavillion and have the birds drop fruit juice from the berries on top of your head or in your eye while watching the tree sloths. Tree sloths are called preguiças in Portuguese (loosely translated, this means "lazy" or "sleepy" ones), and the praça is the only place where I have seen them.

Did you know that "Tiradentes" means tooth puller? Perhaps an archaic word for dentist? No, Tiradentes is a great hero of Minas Gerais who was executed by impalement in Ouro Preto -- Yikes!!!! Don't worry, it was a very long time ago! For more on the history of this Mineiran hero, click here: http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/topics/Tiradentes

[OK, here it is -- it doesn't matter where you are as a tourist, the tour guides will often tell you the most complete nonsense right off the top of their heads. I visited Ouro Preto in 1998, and the guide actually showed me the very spot where Tiradentes had been executed. I absorbed it all. However, if you go to the above link, you will read that he was executed by hanging in Rio de Janeiro. hmmm]

According to the gem dealers I have talked to over the past few weeks, they expect the show to be held inside the Palmeiras Country Club. In fact, this is a pretty good spot, although without the small town charm of the praça. I prefer the praça because it is close to the offices of the dealers, some of the best cutters, all the banks, and lots of places to eat with good food and good prices.

The Palmeiras Country Club does offer good security, and it is very close to one of the better hotels (more on this later), as well as being within walking distance of the SESC pousada. The SESC pousada does offer wireless Internet (but I will check on this, again, next week, to be sure), and it is very close (5 minutes walking) to the bus station. Almost directly across the street from the pousada is a wonderful place for having lunch with a wide variety of fresh dishes that only Mineiras can cook. I am thinking of going down to Teófilo Otoni early next week, so I will firm up all these little details with business names and addresses.

I am not sure where all of the little stands will be located (another detail to be provided later).

The fair is organized by the GEA (known as the Gem Exporters Association in English, but the Portuguese name is Associação dos Comerciantes e Exportadores de Jóias e Gemas do Brasil, which translates as Association of Business Owners and Exporters of Jewelry and Gems of Brazil). Brazilians are fond of pronouncing the anacronyms as if they were words, so the GEA is called the "gee ah" (that is a hard "g" as in gadfly). I'll tell ya, though, Brazilians talk so fast that even knowing what they are going to say, I find it difficult to catch it all.

That's all for now, folks!

(But I am soooo happy!!!!)

Copyright © 2009 N. Tenney Naumer -- All rights reserved.

Brazil Gem Show (13ª Feira Internacional de Gemas e Jóias, Governador Valadares, 2009) cancelado -- notícia official do Sistema Sindijóias Ajomig

UPDATE -- PLEASE DO NOT CONFUSE THE SHOW IN GOVERNADOR VALADARES WITH THE SHOW IN TEÓFILO OTONI.  THE SHOW IN TEÓFILO OTONI HAS NOT BEEN CANCELLED AND WILL BE HELD 25-28 AUGUST 2009!

UPDATE -- ENGLISH TRANSLATION RECEIVED TODAY, JUNE 3, 2009 (I'm thinking they need to hire me to touch up their translations, although this one is not really all that bad.)

Dear Visitor,

As you already know, the international economical turbulence in the main jewelry consuming countries has had a significant impact in the whole industry worldwide, notably in the gem business. As a direct result, all the players in this segment are being forced to adapt to the current harsh market situation, aiming at minimizing the losses in the short and medium terms. Having this perspective in mind and hoping to preserve the interests of exporters and importers, we regretfully inform that the 13th Edition of the Brazil Gem Show, which was scheduled for the period of June 24 thru 27, in Governador Valadares, Minas Gerais, has been postponed for 2010, at a new date to be defined in the near future, taking in consideration the international trade shows calendar. We hope to receive your full support and patronage in the next Brazil Gem Show, which will certainly enhance its success history. We are at your disposal for any further clarification.

Sincerely yours,

Recebido, agora, dia 13 de maio do 2009

Prezado,

Como é do conhecimento de V.Sas., a turbulência econômica nos principais países consumidores de jóias provocou um impacto relevante no âmbito de suprimentos dessa cadeia produtiva, sobretudo no setor de pedras preciosas, o que vem obrigando os operadores desse segmento a uma adaptação às circunstâncias de mercado a fim de minimizar as perdas a curto e médio prazos. Alinhados a essa perspectiva e no sentido de preservar os interesses maiores dos empresários exportadores e dos clientes do setor, comunicamos o adiamento da 13ª edição da BRAZIL GEM SHOW - FEIRA INTERNACIONAL DE GEMAS E JÓIAS, que estava agendada para o período de 24 a 27 de junho próximo, na cidade de Governador Valadares, Minas Gerais / Brasil, para 2010, em data a ser definida, levando-se em consideração o calendário de feiras internacionais do setor, a fim de garantirmos a participação de V.Sas.

Na época oportuna faremos a divulgação do evento, esperando contar com sua presença, que será significativa para o sucesso do evento. Colocando-nos à disposição para maiores esclarecimentos, subscrevemo-nos.

Atenciosamente,

Sistema Sindijóias Ajomig


Brazil Gem Show homepage in English:http://www.brazilgemshow.com/en/index.htm

Brazil Gem Show homepage in Portuguese:http://www.brazilgemshow.com/pt/index.htm

Interesting website -- Sistema Sindijóias Ajomig: http://www.ajomig.com.br/produtos.php?prod_tipo=1

Prasiolite and Rose Quartz purchased in Teófilo Otoni, cut in Governador Valadares, Minas Gerais

Pssst! Don't tell anybody, but if you know the right people, you can buy these pretty rose quartz or prasiolite stones for $2.50 a carat there in Teófilo Otoni!

My camera doesn't show the colors very well. The prasiolite was a light mint green, and the rose quartz was more open.

Copyright © 2009 N. Tenney Naumer -- All rights reserved.

French Fried Tourmalines in Teófilo Otoni

And this is why you should never ever turn your back on a six year old!Just click on the photo to enlarge it and see the details.

The cutter and owner of the oven told me that he had been babysitting his young daughter at his place of business, and when he got ready to leave, someone stopped him to talk while he was walking out. His daughter was behind him, and was eye level with the dial on the oven, which she must have turned to the right, up to well over 700 °C, and so the blue-green tourmalines he had cut were cooked from Saturday afternoon until Monday morning.

Note that the stones were cut and polished before heating, just like the ones in the photo that were not over cooked. Another dealer told me that if the stones are not polished before heating, in which case the surface is not smooth, then during heating the stones can acquire a coating that cannot be polished out.

Copyright © 2009 N. Tenney Naumer -- All rights reserved.

Brazil Gem Show, Governador Valadares, and FIPP2009 (Feira Internacional das Pedras Preciosas), Teófilo Otoni

UPDATE:  FIPP2009 IN TEÓFILO OTONI WILL GO FORWARD -- WILL BE HELD ON 25-28 AUGUST 2009!

I'm here in Teófilo Otoni, a city I really love (especially when the weather is as it was today -- the temperature was perfect and the humidity was low).

I was expecting the streets to be a bit calmer, but like many cities in Brazil, Teófilo Otoni has been experiencing quite a bit of growth in recent years (not due to the stone business, I might add).

OK, so the word on the street is that the Brazil Gem Show has been cancelled. That is a great pity, but if too few people have signed up, then what else can they do?

So what is going to happen in Teófilo Otoni this August with FIPP2009 (Feira Internacional das Pedras Preciosas)?

I sincerely doubt we will know the answer to that question for a couple more months.

Copyright © 2009 N. Tenney Naumer -- All rights reserved.

2009 Brazil Gem Show cancelled -- had been scheduled for June 2009 in Governador Valadares, Minas Gerais

UPDATE:  PLEASE DO NOT CONFUSE THIS CANCELLATION WITH THE SHOW TO BE HELD ON AUGUST 25-28, 2009, IN TEÓFILO OTONI -- THE SHOW IN TEÓFILO OTONI HAS NOT BEEN CANCELLED!

There is no official word, yet, and nothing on the website, but word is racing all over Teófilo Otoni that the Governador Valadares show has been cancelled. This is not good for the gem business in Brazil which has been in decline since mid-2007.

Let's hope the FIPP2009 doesn't go the same way.

Brazil Gem Show homepage in English:

http://www.brazilgemshow.com/en/index.htm

Brazil Gem Show homepage in Portuguese:

http://www.brazilgemshow.com/pt/index.htm

FIPP2009 cancelada? Feira Internacional das Pedras Preciosas, Teófilo Otoni, Minas Gerais, August

UPDATE: July 3, 2009: my friends in Teófilo Otoni are telling me that sales are dead, but the FIPP2009 has NOT been cancelled.

____________________________________________________

UPDATE: May 9, 2009: right now it appears that all systems are go for the 2009 FIPP!

____________________________________________________

Well, if this happens I will be really, really disappointed, and I won't be the only one.

There is some talk now that the gem fair in Teófilo Otoni, scheduled for August, will be cancelled.

From what I understand, the association was thinking of having it at the Palmeiras Country Club, which is just up a steep hill from the SESC (a nice, clean, inexpensive place to stay!).

If the vendors and the association do not have enough funding to rent the pavillion and hold the fair in the square, then indeed, the country club would be a great venue.

The club is still far from the banks, cutters, and dealers' offices, but it is also located near the better hotels and also very near the bus station (not to mention SESC). There are also some nice restaurants in that neighborhood of town.

The praça (square) was the most ideal location, but if it is not doable, then the country club idea ain't half bad.

OK everybody, please cross your fingers and hope the gem fair in Teófilo Otoni will carry on.

Brazil Gem Show homepage in English:

http://www.brazilgemshow.com/en/index.htm

Brazil Gem Show homepage in Portuguese:

http://www.brazilgemshow.com/pt/index.htm

Copyright © 2009 N. Tenney Naumer -- All rights reserved.

Brazil Gem Show foi cancelado? Scheduled for June 2009 in Governador Valadares, Minas Gerais

UPDATE: PLEASE DO NOT CONFUSE THIS CANCELLATION -- FIPP2009 HAS NOT BEEN CANCELLED, THE SHOW TO BE HELD IN TEÓFILO OTONI, ON 25-28 AUGUST 2009, HAD NOT BEEN CANCELLED!

My friends in Teófilo Otoni are telling me that the Brazil Gem Show scheduled for June 2009 has been cancelled. However, there is no official word on this as of yet, and the website is not showing anything on this.

Here is the current list of exhibitors:

Auriverde
BC Gemas
Ben Sabbagh Bros.
Bezim Pedras
BGC Gemas
Blue Gem Ind.
Caimex
CAMBRY
Carneiro Gems Stone
CMP Cristais
Cosmos
Cristalina Ltda
Di Grande
Embrarad
Enigma Gems
Gemas de Minas
Geometa Ltda
GRP Gemas
ICA
Igem
J. G. Ltda
J. Pinto Pedras
Js Gems
Lapidação Industrial
Lapidação Minas Gemas
Lapidart
Luciane Sabbagh
Manoel Bernardes
Manoel Nogueira
Marcelo Gemas
Marjon Bio-Jóias
Mineração MG
Mosalite
Natural Gems
Neiva & Neiva
Nevestones
Opalas Pedro II
OTF Gems - Org
Paixão Pedras
PinkStone
Possebon Jóias
P. P. Brazil
Premier Gems
Ribeiro Precious
Rocha Mineração
RM Gemas
Salomon Design Ltda
Tecnoforte
Topázio Imperial
Transport
Vianna Jóias
Vasconcelos Pedras
Wilson's Pedras

Brazil Gem Show homepage in English:

http://www.brazilgemshow.com/en/index.htm

Brazil Gem Show homepage in Portuguese:

http://www.brazilgemshow.com/pt/index.htm

12th Annual Brazil Gem Show, Governador Valadares, MG, June 25-28 2009

UPDATE:  THE SHOW IN GOVERNADOR VALADARES WAS CANCELLED.

THE FIPP2009 WILL GO ON!  THE GEM FAIR IN TEÓFILO OTONI WILL BE HELD ON 25-28 AUGUST 2009!!!

Below is the text of the press release for the upcoming annual gem show in Governador Valadares, Minas Gerais, Brazil, to be held on June 25-28, 2009. The exhibition center will be open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. June 25th is a Thursday, and most of the big spenders will come in at least one day before the show to see if they can pick up everything they want and leave before the lesser mortals show up. June 28th is a Sunday and is likely to be the day when the local public are allowed to come in and look around. (This is pretty much the same thing that occurs in Teófilo Otoni in August.) Now, differently from Teófilo Otoni, there are not many places to sit and haggle over bargains on the final day. In Teófilo Otoni, the gem show ends on a Saturday, and exhibitors will already begin to pack up on that day. But, I happen to know that if you stay until Sunday, you can go to the praça and continue to pick up good deals, if you make arrangements beforehand. There is really no convenient way to do this in Governador Valadares.

I have a few words to say about the text below. You will note that it says they had 15,000 visitors. Hmmm, I would really like to know how they came up with that figure. My friend, Natasha and I were there in 2007, and it was fairly slow. Natasha has been attending since 2006, and she reported back that 2008 was very, very slow. Things were very nice at the shows in Teófilo Otoni in August 2005 and 2006, but after that, attendance at both shows has dropped off a lot. If there were 15,000 attending, last year, then most likely they were locals. During the first few days of the show, only registered visitors, dealers, and exhibitors are permitted to enter. On the final day, the local public may enter. That might account for the attendance figure. Generally, the locals hardly buy anything -- after all, they live in a gem center all year round, and prices during the show are much higher than they are during the rest of the year.

Now, let's talk about the "180 exhibitors." Hmmm, not inside the main exhibition hall (there are two floors), I would say. But, just outside under tents, there are the smaller sellers of less precious stones and minerals. You can get some good buys on mineral crystals, rose quartz, smoky quartz (also known as "morion" here), dendritic quartz, agates, etc. But, the "good stuff" is inside.

The exhibition hall is situated just up from the bank of a river, making it a very picturesque spot in an area otherwise mostly devoid of natural beauty (the region is largely deforested). However, this year, there has been an absolutely astounding amount of rain, so everything should be very lush and green as opposed to the years of drought. This reminds me that I should check into the situation of the river since so many areas of Brazil are flooding due to the abnormal quantity of rainfall.

One thing that you should know about Governador Valadares is that it is hot! I mean, really hot! And humid! The interior of the exhibition hall is not air conditioned but has a system of misters hanging down from the high ceilings that sprays a fine mist of water into the air. This actually cools things down inside the hall, which gets heated up due to the high-intensity spots that many exhibitors use to show off their wares. But be prepared to sweat!

On the backside of the exhibition hall, there is a large restaurant with pretty good food, and you can sit outside on the ample balcony, resting your feet while overlooking the river, and where there is usually a nice breeze -- very nice and refreshing, indeed!

12th Annual Brazil Gem Show

The world of precious stones trading is here.

Latin America’s largest gem show, the Brazil Gem Show is held in Governador Valadares, one of the major mineral and stones extraction areas in the world. It success in attracting public, attractions and trading have made it a great opportunity to do business with hundreds of exhibitors who offer a large variety of gems and precious stones of incomparable quality. A success in public attendance, attractions and sales, the show is one of the biggest trading opportunities, with hundreds of exhibitors who offer a large variety of incomparable quality gems and precious stones.

The largest gem show in Latin America

Visitors from 22 countries
13 Brazilian states
180 exhibitors
15 thousand visitors

A show of opportunities

The show presents visitors with the trends, products and development policies for the precious stone industry. In a single venue, the visitor will find a wide variety of Brazilian stones, which are the highlight in the domestic and international markets.

The Brazil Gem Show is a Sindijóias Ajomig event (the Minas Gerais Syndicate and Association of Jewelers, Precious Stone, Watch and Fashion Jewelry Traders) and IBGM, the Brazilian Gems and Jewellery Trade Association in partnership with the Ministry of Tourism, the Government of the State of Minas Gerais, the International Colored Gemstone Association (ICA), the Governador Valadares Municipal Government, FIEMG (Minas Gerais State Industrial Federation), Apex Brasil (Brazilian Export and Investment Promotion Agency) and Sebrae-MG (Brazilian Support Agency to Micro and Small Companies).

____________________________________________

Link to this page: http://www.brazilgemshow.com/en/brazilgemshow.htm

This link will take you to a page where you can sign up to receive upcoming information: http://www.brazilgemshow.com/en/index.htm

Here you can sign up to be a visitor (this is a good idea since you need to register to be permitted to enter -- however, I believe that registration can also be done onsite, provided someone brings you inside and past the security at the main entrance): http://www.brazilgemshow.com/en/beavisitor.htm

Here you can sign up to be an exhibitor (not free and not cheap): http://www.brazilgemshow.com/en/becomeanexhibitor.htm

____________________________________________

Here is some additional information concerning the 2006 show -- 2006 was really a high point in both Governador Valadares and Teófilo Otoni. Let us all hope that such good times return!

Exhibitors and Visitors

The Brazil Gem Show is an event aimed at two different kinds of public:

The main exhibition area with stands and other facilities for gems and jewells trade, exclusivelly open to previously registered professionals with credentials such as exhibitors, traders, designers, buyers, dealers, exporters, newspeople and authorities. The outside area, with restaurants, veranda, hancrafted products exhibition and commerce, workshops and seminars halls will have public free access, representing a large number of visitors from regional communities such as from Valadares, Teófilo Otoni, Ipatinga, Belo Horizonte. The previous exhibition, the 10th Brazil Gem Show represented a big sucess as for public attendance, events and sales. The 2006 Show had 150 exhibitors, 3,500 visitors with credentials and a major 14,000 people flow of visitors to the event.

Link: http://www.brazilgemshow.com/en/brazilstones.htm

Strongly pleochroic tourmalines from Araçuaí in Teófilo Otoni, Minas Gerais, Brazil

As promised, here are two photos of some nice furta-cor (parti color) tourmalines encountered in Teófilo Otoni, in March 2009.

The top photo shows a selection from a rather pricey salada. [The price was high because the seller owed the buyer a bundle of money, so he over-priced the stones.] The golden tourmaline in the front is considered furta-cor. If you look closely, you can see that it is gold and pink. From the side it is greenish, if I remember correctly (always a good question).

The bottom photo shows what is known as "millenium" cut around here. Any cut on the bottom of the stone that is remotely similar is called a millenium cut. Just the local jargon. These furta-cor tourmalines were actually much paler in color than the photo would have you believe. In fact, Natasha would have bought them if their colors had been stronger, but based on her experience in trying to resell such stones in Moscow, these lighter colors are not very salable (at least with regard to tourmalines -- morganites and aquamarines are a different matter entirely).

Most of these tourmalines are probably from the region of Araçuaí, Minas Gerais.

Copyright © 2009 N. Tenney Naumer -- All rights reserved.

Rubilite rubricks from Teófilo Otoni, March 2009, and a dearth of good tourmalines for buyers and sellers

Sad to say, Natasha and I are not getting any younger -- she is 59 and I am 54. What this means is that both of us are getting to have terrible eyesight. I need really strong light and high magnifications, and she does, too.

So, the week before last, she saw this yummy looking rubilite -- by yummy, I mean the color, because the cutting was not that great and the stone could have used a bit more altura.

[Height? Depth? I'll have to come back and correct this post once I learn the proper cutting terms. Natasha speaks no English, and I speak no Russian, so we have to communicate with each other in our bad Portuguese; thus, most of the gem business vocabulary that I know, I learned in Portuguese, not English. UPDATE: yup! Altura is the distance between the very bottom of the stone and the table.]

But on this particular trip to Teófilo Otoni, we really didn't see much to buy. There was a real lack of decent merchandise for sale, particularly of tourmalines.

I will come back to that later.

But first, I just want to point out something about the photo above. That stone had really nice color and flash, a lot of life, but the cutting could have been better, and the stone could have had more depth, which brings me to its window. The windowing wasn't the worst that I have ever seen, but notice how most of it has been hidden by a convenient reflection covering at least a third of the table. (Whenever looking at oval cut stones, notice the windows! More altura usually means less of a window if the cutting is done properly.)

Convenient (NOT!) -- I took the photo like that on purpose!

more later...

Baaack! OK, why was Natasha thinking of buying this particular stone? Answer: she wants to resell it to a jeweler in Moscow.

Sound of loud warning buzzer going off...

Look, if she had wanted to buy it for herself because of the yummy color and because the price was low, then that would be all right.

But, she wanted to resell it.

We were in Teófilo Otoni for only two days, running around like crazy, so Natasha did a smart thing -- she made a deal with the seller to take the stone home and come back in two weeks and pay for it.

Whaaat!?!

Yeah, sure, the dealers in TO know Natasha, and they have this thing they do, which always makes me feel funny when they try to do it to me -- they say, "Take them with you!" and they try to put the stones right into your hands.

They want to close the deal, and if they think they can count on you to pay and if at the same time they think they can afford to risk losing the merchandise, they just put it in your hands, then, yes, you can go home with the stones and pay later (within the month, or then you have to pay interest charges of 5% per month -- not per year).

To make a long story short (because I need to finish up this post), we came back home with this stone, I had a real good look at it with a loupe, and, having seen at least two major problems, I borrowed it from Natasha to take photos just to post on this blog, because the stone has such great examples of typical tourmaline problems.

First, click on the photo below so it will enlarge to show you the real deal.


Do you see the two major problems (although there are others)?

OK, obviously the big black inclusion coming up from the bottom, at the girdle (which is called a rodízio in Portuguese), but notice also the gray spot up on the top.

Both of these are likely to be the result of the polishing material entering the stone via a fissure (like the black one) or a tiny hole (growth tube?) (like the gray one). Well, they are both the result of tiny holes, but let's leave that aside for the moment.

I have to try to get my hands on that stone, again, to see if I can take photos of the entrances.

To be updated...

UPDATE: well, I didn't take any more photos of the stone, but Natasha printed out the one just above so that she could show it to the seller when she returned the stone (because I finally managed to talk her out of buying it).

Personally, the only thing that I could think of doing with this particular stone was to have it recut, but even if the price were right, there would still be a good chance that the same thing might happen again -- polishing material going into tiny growth tube holes and ruining it. So, why bother? Skip it! Keep looking. Don't imagine that this will be the only yummy-colored rubilite you will ever see in your life. If you have money to burn -- whatever. But if not, give this stone a pass if you are looking for top quality rubilite tourmaline in Brazil -- there is better available (but naturally it will be more expensive).

Copyright © 2009 N. Tenney Naumer -- All rights reserved.

Natasha being swamped by gemstone sellers at the entrance to 22 Rua Minervino de Castro Pinto, Teófilo Otoni, Minas Gerais

OK, first let me just say that Natasha is not really being "swamped" -- she is a relatively experienced buyer, well known there, and the stone sellers on this, the most important of the streets where gems are sold in Teófilo Otoni, are a very polite bunch. Times are rough, business is down, they are an anxious lot.

The sellers on the street or in the praça are there because they never made it big or got that lucky break or they couldn't manage success when they had it or maybe they are there trying to sell someone else's stones on commission. In any case, one needs to respect the fact that they are there trying to make a living just like the next person. Unfortunately, over 90% of the time, they will show you inferior stones.

On that street, there are two unassuming but very important buildings where gem dealers have their offices.

More later...

Morganite and kunzite, treated and untreated, Teófilo Otoni, March 2009

Morganite and kunzite are just really special stones -- especially if you like a real purdy light pink or violet. [Please click on the photo to enlarge it.]

The big trillion (ca. 54 cts.) morganite on the left has been irradiated. Notice it has been cut without a table. Personally, for morganite, which has an extra special brilliance compared to a beryl like aquamarine, I love this type of cut. It throws out flashes of light all over the place. On this trip, I didn't see treated morganite with horrible greyish tones. I was told (OK, time for a GOS -- grain of salt) that there is a new morganite treatment and that the stones were being sent to Germany for it, but who knows. This trillion had a very slight orangy tone to it, especially in low light or artificial light.

The second, smaller trillion is also morganite. I was told that it had not been treated (GOS). Its color is still very decent considering that its depth is so much less than the larger stone. Morganite is one of those stones that opens up when it is cut and can turn out a lot lighter than the rough appears to be. Notice that this stone's table gives it more of a window than the larger trillion.

The two trillions were most likely cut in Teófilo Otoni. A couple of years ago, I had some morganite rough cut just like the stone on the left, right across the street from where this photo was taken. It was over 40 carats when finished and was nearly completely branco ("white") or colorless, as we would say in English, although the rough was a light salmon pink.

[In Brazilian Portuguese, the color of transparent, colorless stones is referred to as branco. Although the words for "stone" (pedra) and "gem" (gema) are feminine in Portuguese, the word for "color" (cor) is masculine (or maybe just neutral), and since, in this case, branco is the adjective for cor, it ends in an "o" instead of an "a."]

The fat pear is a kunzite. I was told (GOS) that it was an untreated Brazilian kunzite. Kunzite is a really weird stone for cutters. It can be in the final polishing stage and just suddenly split in two. All that work for nothing. Nevertheless, they are cutting gobs of it in Governador Valadares (and I was also told that they mine it right around GV -- GOS alert), about 2 hours from Teófilo Otoni. And the cuts are so sparkly and beautiful that you could just drool over them.

Some years back, most of the kunzite I came across was emerald cut or a mixture of the emerald and scissors cut (as it is known here -- if anyone can tell me what the proper name is, please leave a comment). Those two cuts certainly do show off the strong concentration of color at the end of the crystals (oops, another vocabulary deficiency I hope to fix in the near future -- isn't it nice the way you can go back and change anything you want in a blog!), but they do not show off the brilliance and flashes. Let's just put it this way -- these fancy oval and pear cuts put a lot of life in kunzite that will never show up in an emerald cut.

Of course, my wimpy little amateur camera can't begin to show the beauty of these stones.
more later. . .

OK, so if you click on the photos, they will enlarge dramatically and show lots of details -- the flaws! Take a good look at the kunzite in the top photo. Rotate the photo 90° (or turn your head or whatever). Look at that little fissure on the bottom right, almost exactly where a prong might press if the stone is set.

For me, since this stone is a kunzite, I would have to reject it without another thought. I could be wrong (and I am often wrong, so feel free to comment if you think so), but since kunzite has that peculiar tendency to snap in two, I would not buy one with a fissure right in that spot (where a jeweler is going to have to apply some pressure with a prong) or maybe any spot at all -- why take the chance?

Copyright © 2009 N. Tenney Naumer -- All rights reserved.