Disclosure is a huge problem because it just doesn't happen.
Thank you for the interesting disclosure on lead-glass “ruby”
marketing. I am amazed by what I read. The implications for
gemological marketing in general are great, and also somewhat
disturbing.
National Geographic TV last night treated us to an hour on the
unicorn in literature and art. The Danish aristocrats may be hosting
the biggest jewelry hoax in history. Their Middle Ages ancestors paid
more for the finely carved and polished unicorn ivory than they would
have paid for any other stone. Of course it was narwal tusk and now
it embarassingly decorates their palaces for all to see. OTOH, John
Lenon’s “ivory” sold with fair disclosure for $31,000 and all I can
say is we should start a class action suit to get our childrens’
teeth back from the Tooth Fairy in case they become famous some day.
Do you know a good lawyer?
I have no objection to anybody selling any stone product as long as
there is fair (not necessarily full) disclosure. I think all 12,000
or so Orchidians share a legitimate interest in stone work as
artistic expression. IMO the use of jewelry in fashion is a sub-set
of artistry and art history has much to teach us. I would recommend
“The Heartless Stone” by Tom Zoellner (St Martin’s Press, 2006) to
anyone. It is a factual story on the diamond industry but reads like
a novel. Zoellner keeps you wondering where his personal quest for an
understanding of the diamond, sparked by romantic loss, will lead, as
he travels the world for answers.
The general principles he presents are applicable to jade, rubies or
any fine work with stone. “There is nothing particularly attractive
about a rough diamond” he writes (p. 193). The Romans threw them away
because they could not work them. Glass was better. Personally though
I have never met a raw stone I did not like and maybe fellow
prospectors like Rock9 would agree.
I prefer to display field stones on shelves and if I had set the
course for diamond fashions the stones would all be mounted au
naturelle despite what Zoellner says. But how do we bring out the
best in a stone through artistic talents when fine art is both
subjective and objective? Those talents may include a talent for
marketing and Zoellner gives De Beers due credit along with fair
criticism.
So we learn from De Beers and we use clothing, hair styling, jewelry
etc. to present our social selves in an aesthetic way at a party and
launch the new gilded coprolite industry, mindful of Charles’ posting
that “Jewelry is governed by trends, and what some people consider a
polished turd today will be considered fine jewelry tomorrow”. Some
day GIA may have an opening for the specialization of
proctogemologist and Dr Anderson will apply.
To those who say stones used in jewelry at the party should not be
dyed or coloured or heat treated etc. because that is fakery I say,
Neither should wool or silk or cotton. But what is that.1 carat
amolite coprolite pinky stone REALLY worth? And is the lustre fake or
natural? After a few more martinis I may approach the fashion queen
of the party and say, “My that is a fine piece of snail ____ you are
wearing Miss Scarlet. But I have some really big dino _____ in my SUV
outside, imported from Canada’s Texas (Alberta). Would you like to
see it?”
The finery of our fine new gilded coprolite fashion pieces will be
set only in refined >24 carat aluminum because I inherited a warehouse
full of the stuff from ancestors who almost cornered the market when
aluminum was more precious than gold. We eagerly await the next
aluminum market up-cycle when gold crashes.
This week I saw the classic cameo of woman in profile at Walmart.
From across the isle it drew my attention because of the fine detail.
How much would the Danish Court have paid for such a piece in 1400 AD
if a space craft from the Far Side of the Moon had landed and
presented it to them? How much is it worth if it is carved in jade?
That fine Walmart piece costs $6 today. How much jade would the
Mexica court or Chinese court have paid for it at the end of the last
Ice Age mindful that to Stone Age and some post- Stone Age
civilizations jade was more precious than gold?
History past teaches us history future.
What is BC’s Future Jade worth on the Chinese market mindful that we
send them 90% of our present jade? There are 100 Chinese billionaires
(out of about 800 world wide) like Peter Ho who are invited to give
opinions in Canadian currency. NPV is the key concept in finance.
Black sheep, Nappy Ho, is our accountant. Net Present Value is
determined by an etheric concept which is EXPECTATION. It is the
expectation of future value which sets the price for every fine
security today on the Shanghai Stock Exchange.
Google ref - Jeffrey Hays - “Facts and Details: Chinese Jade”.