Pursuit of a PassionA Personal Adventure into the World of Gemology | |
| Several years ago I loaded all of my instruments, gemological books, journals and my Maxilab into the back of my car and bid goodbye to my family and friends for six long months. I drove more than 3,000 miles to a place most distant from my home, but still in this country, in order to formally pursue a growing passion for the study of gemology. That was to the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) in Carlsbad, California. Not only did my car axles survive, the superlative resources and training at the GIA far exceeded my dreams, sparking an intense desire to continue the adventure. Upon my completion of the Graduate Gemologist (GG) program, the renowned Scottish gemologist and author of Visual Optics, Alan Hodgkinson, sent me a congratulatory note (with the attached cat) encouraging me to continue my education by studying for the FGA. Dick Hughes seconded that, urged me to go to Thailand and made an introduction on my behalf to Dr. Pornsawat Wathanakul of Kasetsart University. Soon I was living in Bangkok - a divergence in a path which profoundly changed my life and the direction of my studies. |
 Cat's Eye Emeralds. Image courtesy of Alan Hodgkinson |
| Not only did I come to meet and become friends with some of the leading gemologists and researchers from around the world, but also entered the completely different realm of Thai literati - a Thai Buddhist scholar and one of Thailand's most revered poet laureates became some of my guides to learning to live in a world very different than the one to which I was accustomed (and I took the cat with me for good luck) | |
 A three phase inclusion in an emerald consisting of an angular crystal and a rounded gas bubble residing together in a liquid. Photo courtesy of John Huff |
A Fascination with Innerworlds "If we stop and think about it, the microscope is the only instrument that we regularly use in day-to-day gemology that does not give us any specific answers.....(it) is the one instrument in gemology that continually stimulates our minds. If we have not educated ourselves in its proper application and use by studying the available gemological literature and by examining a variety of gem materials then we are wasting our time when we attempt to use it, forced by some gem identification situation to do so." John Koivula, 1982  Hello Photo courtesy of John Huff |
| I was gently admonished no less than three times in three days by Dick Hughes for working too slowly due to my lengthy observations with the microscope - probably trying to see the backside of some interesting inclusion in just the right bath of light. A production gemologist I will never be; the microworld has fascinated me from Dr. Seuss onward through microbiology and the fascinatingly similar innerworld to be found in minerals. That world lures me in to study its secrets and to explore its landscape. Often, by the time I emerge, the larger world has moved on without me. Along with Gübelin and Koivula, Dick himself has brought this innerworld of gems to not just people's appreciation of the incredible beauty, but also its prime importance to gem identification and characterization, including origin and treatments. Dick's publications and those of the Koivula's microWorld of Gems, in addition to peer reviewed journals, are essential guides into this world. | |
 Negative crystals in cobalt spinel. Photo courtesy of John Huff |
 Negative crystals in cobalt spinel. Photo courtesy of John Huff |
Color, Phenomenon and Other Optical Properties: the Irresistible Journey into How and Why | |
 Photo courtesy of Asbjørn Halvorsen |
In the same way in which I view the innerscape of gem inclusions, following the path of light through a gem becomes a fantastic voyage at an even smaller scale. As light travels through the crystal lattice "stuff happens!" Whether it be the interaction of light with the particular combination of tetrahedra, octahedra and cubic arrangements of elements forming its lattice or something else entirely - or even a combination of factors - the study of light and gems provides a vast territory to be explored: color, phenomenon such as color change and asterism, pleochroism, dispersion, brilliance... it is all part of what makes a gem a wonder to behold. The Usambara Effect seen in the tourmalines at left embodies many concepts of color which I find fascinating. Thanks to the graciousness of Asbjørn Halvorsen, I am humbled to have the opportunity to study the very crystals myself - a great honor given that Dr. Kurt Nassau studied these same crystals, so taken was he with Asbjørn's findings. As I look at these small wonders resting in the palm of my hand, there is little question in my mind that that I have chosen the right path - one which has brought me this incredible opportunity among many others. |
| Which brings us to another of my greatest inspirations: the writing of Dr. Nassau. Among his books and publications, two which are oft studied and dog-eared in my library are the second edition of his book The Physics and Chemistry of Color: The Fifteen Causes of Color and his earlier paper The Origins of Color in Minerals published in the American Mineralogist in 1978. Dr. Nassau is a gifted writer who has an enviable ability to make very complex scientific concepts accessible and pertinent to many levels of study. | |
What Comes Next? What started as self-study of gemology with the inspiration of the writings of Dick Hughes, John Koivula, Kurt Nassau, Richard Wise and others, now after a long haul of formal gemological study, has led me to the backdoor of mineralogy and graduate studies; a heavy door that. There are many more questions to answer and paths to follow therein. Perhaps the most valued part of this whole adventure has been the people along the way who have generously enriched the journey in priceless ways. A final note: Dick wrote me of one of his most profound convictions: "A good friend of mine (John Emmett) taught me an important lesson, that if one takes the path of a scientist, then one must necessarily also take the vow that knowledge is not owned by anyone, but is part of the public commons, something to be shared and spread around the world." (Richard W. Hughes, personal communication, 2008). He passed on the following enlightening Lawrence Lessig presentation. It is a large video file and takes a few moments to load, but is well worth the wait. As I reflect on the true nature of the sharing of scientific knowledge, how fortunate I am to have such people to expand that knowledge with and the inherent compelling requisite to continue through education and writing. References and Resources | |