Recently I have had 2 Nigerian Paraiba tourmalines cut in the US.
They are good color, very lightly included, good color, and have a
GIA cert. Both are radiant emerald cut and match. One is 2.91 ct,
one is is 4.77 ct. My problem, I want to sell these privately and
have no clue how to price them. There is little literature anywhere
on how to price these, especially against the Brazilian stones.
Each stone has an appraisal done by a graduate gemologist, the
smaller stone at $15 K, the larger one at $25 K.
Thanks for your help!
Paraiba tourmalines cannot come from Nigeria. You could have
Nigerian stones that have a similar color to a Paraiba tourmaline,
but Paraiba is an actual source in Brazil so you cannot market these
stones as Paraiba.
Daniel R. Spirer, G.G.
1794 Massachusetts Ave.
Cambridge, MA 02140
617491-6000
www.spirersomes.com
@spirersomes
AFAIK, Paraiba is in Brazil, not Nigeria.
Is it accurate to describe Nigerian tourmaline as Paraiba? Is the
term being applied to any blue to blue-green tourmaline, or is it
only being applied to tourmaline which is colored by copper, as the
Paraiba material is said to be?
Lee Einer
Dos Manos Jewelry
http://www.dosmanosjewelry.com
Paraiba Tourmaline is mined in Brazil in the region for which it is
named, not Nigeria. It tends to have a “neon” quality to it’s color
and is unmistakable. If you market them as genuine Paraiba, you will
be doing the trade a huge disservice and setting yourself up for
possible legal action.
James in SoFl