The gemologist is a specialist in gemology. Most of the time, a gemologist has another profession, such as jeweler, lapidary, trader, auctioneer, etc.
The area of knowledge of a gemologist is very vast. It includes gems, of course, but also ornamental stones and organic materials. He must be able not only to identify these materials, but also the treatments, syntheses, confusions, imitations and composites. These elements are constantly evolving, it is essential to stay informed of the latest treatments, deposits, studies, etc. For example, the most prized sapphire is Kashmir sapphire. It is very particular and difficult to imitate. Nowadays, some sapphires from new deposits in Madagascar are very similar to sapphires from Kashmir. For equal quality, the price of a sapphire from Kashmir is several tens of times higher than that of a sapphire from Madagascar. An error of evaluation of the gemologist on the origin would be dramatic.
We must also distinguish the gemologist in the laboratory from the gemologist in the field. Both have a similar initial training, however, the field gemologist travels the world in search of samples which will then serve as references for laboratories. To do this, he must be as close as possible to the mines, in often precarious health and safety situations. However, this work is essential because we must be certain of the origin of the sample. And in this case, what could be better than going to collect them directly at the source?
We often associate the gemologist with the merchant. However, these are two very different jobs. The gemologist identifies the stones, while the trader buys them for resale. Certainly a trader will find it advantageous to also be a gemologist, but this is in no way obligatory, especially in the case of systematic recourse to a gemological laboratory.
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