tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-298619932026-10-08T07:35:21.547-04:00Gonzo journalism for gem and jewelry lovers: Moved:http://www.rwwise.com/blogRichard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.comBlogger76125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-45404115564294239862009-10-13T17:49:00.000-04:002009-10-13T17:49:08.878-04:00

That's All She Read: The French Blue, by Richard W. Wise

Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-37277908261041559442009-07-16T17:18:00.004-04:002009-07-19T14:19:21.512-04:00

You will find us on our website; www.rwwise.com/blog. Visit GemWise at our new address:

Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-82407206898339097472009-06-13T16:11:00.022-04:002009-06-15T18:26:59.020-04:00

by Richard W. WiseThe subtitle of Ronald Ringsrud's new book, A Passionate Guide, The Emeralds, The People, their Secrets has been well selected. The book is not just about emerald, most specifically Colombian emerald, it is about a country, its people and one man's love affair with it all.I first met Ron Ringsrud about a year and a half ago. I had never been to Colombia and as is my custom

Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-74399149138183598892009-06-01T16:54:00.008-04:002009-06-02T10:36:12.524-04:00

Tuesday, June 9th I will be delivering a lecture entitled: The Four C's of Connoisseurship, Quality Grading Colored Gemstones at the Gemological Institute of America's Washington D.C. Alumni Association.This is a very active organization. The meeting will be held at the Holiday Inn, Rosslyn-Key Bridge, 1900 North Fort Myer Drive in Arlington, Va. The meeting begins at 7:00pm.If you are in the

Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-89474773764631609132009-05-19T13:32:00.007-04:002009-05-19T13:57:27.772-04:00

An Open Letter to David Federman, Editor-in-chief, Colored Stone.By Richard W. Wise, G.G.©2009David Federman, I just finished reading Joel Arem’s article Ending Diffusion Confusion in the current issue of Colored Stone together with your editorial titled Some Badly Needed Science. You have written so many open letters to the gemstone industry I thought I would try my hand at writing one to you.

Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com72tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-31341714071776334322009-04-10T07:54:00.001-04:002009-04-11T15:33:16.133-04:00

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Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-13395973027783649052009-03-22T15:02:00.007-04:002009-03-22T16:35:20.923-04:00

by Richard W. Wise, G.G.© 2009Bye, Bye Bling:Perhaps it’s the tenor of the times. Increasingly I find myself fielding questions about gems as an investment. With government printing presses working 24/7, many people are concerned that deficit spending, coupled with Government stimulation of the credit markets in the U. S., Europe, China and Japan, will eventually lead to hyperinflation. With

Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-22151590141874201392009-02-28T12:13:00.029-05:002009-03-04T11:21:27.922-05:00

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Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-56075613313437158852009-02-11T12:51:00.006-05:002009-02-28T16:59:13.066-05:00

Drama In The Desert: ISG Seminar--A Dry Hole:by Richard W. Wise, G.G.The much ballyhooed "Epochal Crisis" never quite materialized at the International School of Gemology's "Let the Science Speak" seminar held February 6th at the Arizona Hotel. In a rambling presentation, ISG President Robert James back-pedaled on some of his previous statements and presented the results of advanced tests that

Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-84427429298580814612009-02-08T10:21:00.023-05:002009-02-09T20:27:03.937-05:00

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Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-25281007737842738922009-02-03T11:53:00.016-05:002009-02-03T12:56:43.748-05:00

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Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-10783355715576794432009-02-01T22:24:00.017-05:002009-02-02T10:13:08.861-05:00

by Richard W. Wise©2009The first Saguaro emerges from predawn darkness, looming above me like a giant being from another planet. The sun rises over Gates Pass. Last night we sat on the porch of our adobe, deep in the Sonoran Desert, with Orion twinkling overhead, listening to a coyote chorus. Today the show opens at the old Pueblo Inn, the traditional first day of jumpstart at the 2009

Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-15041459712461300292009-01-02T21:10:00.045-05:002009-01-22T12:07:58.782-05:00

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Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-2450781954589366772008-11-26T09:48:00.015-05:002009-01-05T08:34:32.172-05:00

A PORTRAIT: EDWARDIAN ELEGANCE AND ARTISTRYby Rebekah V. WiseWhen Edward VII ascended the throne in 1901, he and Alexandra set the tone for a wealthy new era known as La Belle Epoque. This new era saw England as a dominant global force, greatly influencing the rest of the civilized world. Based on wealth and not on lineage, this new prosperity was preoccupied with status and luxury and chose

Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-22001312391803237392008-10-22T14:09:00.025-04:002008-10-22T15:04:22.525-04:00

An exceptional emerald crystal:This month’s feature on the R. W. Wise website is an exceptional Colombian emerald crystal. It was found at the La Pita Mine, part of a complex of mines of the same name that I visited during my last buying trip to Colombia.Historically gems of this quality were found at the old mines like Muzo and El Chivor. Chivor was appropriated by Spanish conquistadors in 1550;

Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com49tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-49822600951682741242008-09-24T10:00:00.005-04:002008-12-10T06:58:37.954-05:00

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Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com38tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-89241722427376929132008-09-09T13:44:00.015-04:002008-12-10T06:58:38.213-05:00

What is the finest color in blue sapphire? Actually there are two standards. For the first, think of the sky at midnight in the light of a full moon. The color is a dark, but not inky, it is a rich vibrant blue with perhaps a touch of purple that imparts a velvety hue. It is a color that teeters on the edge of darkness. Gems of this description are most often found in Burma and Sri Lanka and

Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-44912885171550408052008-08-10T10:50:00.044-04:002008-12-10T06:58:38.684-05:00

I enjoy these occasional run-ups in precious metal prices. Despite the odd foul-up, such as the time a Paul Revere spoon was sold for scrap, high metals prices help to clear away the detritus. Just as record high oil prices stimulate conservation and research into sustainable energy, high gold, silver and platinum prices also serve the public good.Ninety Five percent of the "fine" jewelry sold

Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-32819327579387964872008-08-03T15:11:00.024-04:002008-12-10T06:58:39.304-05:00

by Richard W. Wise, G.G. © 2008 From Our Antique Jewelry Gallery:ANTIQUE SALAMANDER BROOCH.by Rebekah V. Wise Okay, she may actually be a newt, but this winsome girl is mostly prized for the bright green racing stripe of Russian demantoid garnets down her back. Originally from a pre-revolutionary source in the Ural Mountains of Russia, demantoid is the green gemstone variety of

Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-91503202070574073642008-07-26T09:45:00.041-04:002008-12-10T06:58:39.599-05:00

Hughes Resigns from AGTARichard W. Hughes the peripatetic gemologist/author and sometime journalist has handed in his resignation as Gemological Administrator at the AGTA Gemological Testing Center . As of September Hughes will be heading back to Bangkok where he worked for 15 years before moving back to the U. S. For the past several years Hughes has been a lab gemologist with the

Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-43392290058363889082008-07-11T14:18:00.041-04:002008-12-10T06:58:41.509-05:00

by Richard W. Wise, G.G. © 2008Part of the genius of a true artist consists in his ability to transform the mundane into the beautiful. Gem sculptor Tom Munsteiner did just that with this 29.73 carat chunk of citrine quartz. I fell in love with the design and purchased the stone from Tom two years ago. Not having a plan, it sat in m<!--[if gte vml 1]> <![if !mso]> <

Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-79070932303744758312008-06-12T13:54:00.024-04:002009-06-25T14:44:14.230-04:00

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Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-10225094061948558042008-05-27T12:39:00.018-04:002008-12-10T06:58:43.033-05:00

By Richard W. Wise, G.G. ©2008 At a Sotheby’s Magnificent Jewels auction held in New York on April 17th, a 24.42 carat D color Internally Flawless diamond sold for 3.6 million or better than $148,443 per carat. One day earlier at Christies another rectangular step cut diamond weighing 27.91 carats (pictured above left) sold for 4.04 Million or $145,933 per carat. In this case the early bird

Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-1412030826800296372008-05-03T10:48:00.035-04:002008-12-10T06:58:43.508-05:00

Had an interesting conversation with Josh Humbert, Josh is the proprietor of the Kamoka Pearl Farm in the Tuamotu Islands www.kamokapearls.com , a far-flung windswept archipelago about 300 miles north of the capital island of Tahiti. Josh’s farm is located on the atoll of Ahe located 350 miles north east of Tahiti in the Tuamotu Islands. Unlike Tahiti, which is a volcanic island, the

Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29861993.post-87506262442346582322008-04-30T12:48:00.014-04:002008-12-10T06:58:43.992-05:00

GIA Weighs In: The Spring 2008 issue of GIA's Gems &amp; Gemology features a full length article on Mozambique cuprian tourmaline. Under the heading “Nomenclature Issues” the authors, there are eight of them, four work for GIA, make the point that the now infamous Laboratory Manual Harmonization Committee (LMHC) has made it optional for its member to use the term Paraiba as either a variety

Richard W. Wisehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02088702432299414336noreply@blogger.com7