Precious and Semi-Precious Gemstones

A gemstone is a precious or semi-precious stone used in jewelry. Gemologists identify gemstones. They label gems in the area of gemology using practical language and the stones features. A gemologist uses the gemstone’s chemical composition to classify it. For instance, diamonds are made of carbon. Many gems are categorized by a crystal system. Gemstones are classified into different varieties, species and groups. They are also characterized in terms of dispersion, hardness, specific gravity, refractive index, lustre, fracture and cleavage. Flaws in a stone are known as inclusions.

A semi-precious stone, also known as a gem or gemstone (also a jewel, a gem, or a precious stone), is a mineral which, in its refined and cut form, is used to create jewelry or other wonderful embellishments. There are also organic resources or precise rocks that are not minerals (for example, amber) that are also used for jewelry and would also be considered a gemstone.

In the West, precious stones are diamonds, sapphires, rubies and emeralds. All other stones are considered semi-precious stones. However, this is a commercial-based classification and was a distinction that marketers created years ago and gives the false impression that precious stones are more valuable than semi-precious stones, which is often not the case.