GO 340 Gemstones & Gemology

Emporia State University, Emporia, Kansas USA
Susan Ward Aber

www.emporia.edu/earthsci/amber/go340/wkspeak.htm
Gem Syllabus: www.emporia.edu/earthsci/amber/go340/syllabus.htm.

GO 340 Gemstone Announcements

May 16, 2009...

Another semester has come to a close and grades have been assigned and posted. Tests, assignments, and projects were completed and turned in by nearly all students in the course. Final projects are graded and edited for publication. View these works at www.emporia.edu/earthsci/amber/go340/students/stupages.htm. THANKS for a great semester!

April 27, 2009...

I know everyone is putting the finishing touches on the final project, and I look forward to receiving them. Thanks to all who have sent them in already! Your final test, test3, is coming to your today via email. It will be due May 5 and as always, if any questions, concerns, comments, please email me (saber@emporia.edu), call, or drop in to see me.

After grading final projects, I will place them online at www.emporia.edu/earthsci/amber/go340/students/stupages.htm. Campus students will finish appraisals and string beads this Tuesday. Below are some bead creations from the last class! Click on the image to see it bigger.


The image to the left is a mixture of moonstone and pietersite beads. Pietersite was discovered by Sid Pieters in Namibia (www.winfalcon.com/Crystals/pietersite.htm) and it is crocidolite fibers with quartz intergrowths that is often referred to as tiger eye. Pietersite is set apart from tiger eye because the outcrop has been folded and faulted, which creates a silky and fibrous habit; also, it usually has more of the blue asbestos mineral preserved than the golden tiger eye. The second and fourth images moving from the left, are beads of gneiss, agate, and Peruvian pink opal. This type of opal is also referred to as Angelskin or Andean Opal tradenames (www.luckygemstones.com/peruvian-pink-opal-jewelry.htm). The third image from the left was created with rose quartz and garnet beads.

As you all know, your teacher went to Washington, DC for a special map librarian council meeting. Representatives of professional map library groups met with federal agencies for a report on their map and geospatial related resources, services, and systems. I was there representing the Special Libraries Association, Geography and Map section. I took this opportunity to photograph in the Mall area of Washington DC and to visit the Smithsonian Natural History Museum. Some images are shown below and all taken from April 22-24, 2009. For more information on these tourist sights, visit:


The Smithsonian National Museum
of Natural History (NMNH)
www.mnh.si.edu/
www.mnh.si.edu/earth/text/2_1_3_0.html
www.mnh.si.edu/earth/text/2_1_2_0.html
www.mnh.si.edu/earth/text/2_1_1_0.html
www.mnh.si.edu/explore/earth/index.html
The Hope Diamond
45.52 carats, India. Recut from the
French Blue of the French Crown Jewels
mineralsciences.si.edu/hope.htm
www.pbs.org/treasuresoftheworld/
a_nav/hope_nav/main_hopfrm.html

Logan Sapphire
423 carats, Sri Lanka. Among
largest-known faceted blue
sapphires; it was worn as a brooch.
Indian Emerald Necklace
Colombia, 24 emerald drops adjoined
with smaller emerald beads and diamonds.
Set in platinum by Cartier in 1928.

Hazen Diamond Necklace
Designed by Harry Winston. Set in
platinum, 325 diamonds, 131.4 tcw.
Ruby and Diamond Bracelet
Design by Harry Winston, 1950s.
Burmese rubies with pigeon blood
color; 31 matched rubies with 60 tcw

Marie-Louise Diadem
Original from 1810 with emeralds
replaced with 79 Persian turquoise
stones, 1006 mine-cut diamonds
set in silver and gold.
Navajo silver and turquoise
cuff bracelet by Ondelacy height
11 cm (4.3 in) from AZ, NM, VA.

Quartz Cameos from Brazil
Carved from layered chalcedony,
a variety of quartz. These cameos
are white chalcedony and black chert
called onyx, as well as red and white
banded chalcedony called sardonyx.
Malachite, D.R. Congo
Layered tiny crystals of copper
carbonate; small crystals form light
green bands, large crystals, dark green.

World's largest flawless Quartz
Crystal Ball. Crystal from
Burma, cut-polished in China
1923-4. Weight 48.4 kg (106.7 lb),
diameter 32.8 com (12.9 in).
Natural Topaz Crystals
Minas Gerais, Brazil
Weight 69.5 kg and 50.4 kg
(153 lb and 111 lb).

Smithsonian Institution Building
the Castle, completed in 1855.
Constructed of red sandstone from
Seneca Creek, MD. See www.si.edu/
visit/infocenter/sicastle.htm

Library of Congress, Thomas
Jefferson Building. It housed
Jefferson's personal library. See
www.loc.gov/index.html
Building from 1897, stocked
with the Jefferson library, 6,487
books purchased 1815 by Congress.


Terrestrial Globe - Version of Father Coronelli's
2nd ed. globe; 3.5 feet in diameter

Waldseemuller's Map:
World 1507. First map to label
America-country's birth certificate.
www.loc.gov/today/pr/2003/03-110.html
www.loc.gov/today/pr/2009/09-054.html
US Supreme Court Building
Built 1932-35; first session
held 1790. See www.nps.gov/
nr/travel/wash/dc78.htm

US Capitol
View from the east.
www.aoc.gov/aoc/frequently-
asked-questions.cfm
US Capitol
View from the west.
Capitol Complex Overview
www.aoc.gov/cc/index.cfm

US Botanical Garden
Est. 1820, continuous operation
and open to public since 1850.
The Jungle from the Canopy Walk.
US Botanical Garden
Garden Court

Lincoln Memorial.
Completed in 1922; statue is 19 ft
tall, 19 ft wide from 28 blocks of
Colorado Yule marble.
Washington Monument as seen
from Lincoln Memorial.

Washington Monument as seen
from the National WW II Memorial.
WA Monument, www.nps.gov/wamo/
National World War II Memorial
Open to the public April 29, 2004
www.wwiimemorial.com/

Hurshhorn Sculpture Garden
hirshhorn.si.edu/
Coast to Coast US Highway 50
running along Constitution Ave,
Washington DC, goes from Ocean City,
MD to San Francisco, CA; it passes
through Emporia, KS, and hits a midway
point in Kinsley, KS-1561 miles to either
coast! See www.route50.com

US Capitol
See visitiing the Capitol
www.aoc.gov/cc/visit/index.cfm
The photographer and tour bus
passing along the east side of the
National Gallery of Art, see
www.nga.gov/onlinetours/archtours.shtm

...and for a little more spice in the life of this course, read on and learn more about gems!

Weekly Gem Tidbits. . .

April 13, 2009...

I know it has been a busy semester for you and me both, but I hope you have found the time to enjoy the many lectures on diamonds and colored stones. Thanks to all of you who are current with all assignments! If you have any comments, concerns, or questions about lectures or assignments, please email, call, or visit me.

Keep those final project drafts coming! I will be sending comments back as soon as possible, so you can continue to make progress. Keep those book reports coming in too! The reports received to date are online and others will be added as received. I will be putting gem briefs online too. However, I am missing a few longer versions of the gem briefs... most of you have turned in the mini-briefs and the longer version... yet, some of you have turned in a few of the eight and some, none of the eight longer versions! There are not many assignments or weeks left in the semester, so get all past assignments to me as soon as possible so you can focus on the final project.

Regarding the final project, remember that you should have a variety of reference types for your final project such as book, journal, and website. As for books and jourals, see some of the campus library resources at ESU Library Gemstone and Jewelry Resources or go directly to the library and search, www.emporia.edu/libsv/index.htm. Also for campus students, I have many journals and books in my office and our classroom, which I can bring to class and share. Journals from 1996-2004 were reviewed by former students and can be searched at our course Journal Indexing Project. We discontinued this project when the editor of JCK emailed me and expressed concerns about our brief summaries of their articles?! In addition they increased their web presence, and you can find links to JCK and other great gem and jewelry journals online. Some have limited full text articles and check these out from the gemlinks course webpage, www.emporia.edu/earthsci/amber/go340/gemlinks.htm#journals. Rare, classic books and other resources can be found online at Farlang... from ancient texts to modern masters... www.farlang.com/gemstones-diamonds-books. For those of you focusing on a specific mineral found in the US, check out this government website minerals.usgs.gov/minerals/pubs/commodity/gemstones/sp14-95/contents.html.

Weekly Gem Tidbits . . .
Some fun websites that might help you out with final projects are listed below. Do you see your topic? If not, maybe I do not know your topic - so email and remind me of it today!

April 6, 2009...

Test 2 is history for most students. If you have not turned it in or gotten feedback, email me immediately and get this straightened out! I try to respond to you within 24 hours of receiving email from you and if you get no response, then you can assume I did not receive your correspondence. Contact me now if you have not received a graded test 2 in your email box.

Also, your final project first draft is due to me in a couple of days. How is it coming along? You should submit a working title, introductory paragraph and organization scheme of what your paper will coverr, and 3-4 references. I expect a variety of references such as book, journal, and webpage sources. Regardless of your final format for presenting this electronic paper, submit the first draft in a text (.txt) or rich text format (.rtf) - NOT Word. You can go to programs, accessories, and WordPad for composing the first draft.

I expect you to keep up the online and textbook lecture readings. Diamonds, sapphires, rubies, and emeralds are now familiar to you! You will begin reading this week on topaz, amber, garnet, tourmaline, and peridot. I have not sent a homework assignment since you had multiple assignments to accomplish these past weeks including the mini and long gem briefs, final project topic, and test 2. However, distance students have a few more homework assignments coming and campus students will be presenting on 2 more gem briefs this week. Campus students - please email me with your 2 choices so I can have samples ready for you.

Weekly Gem Tidbits . . .
General information of interest to you may include...

More specifically, April born babies have diamond as their lucky birthstone! Read on for external websites of interest for diamonds and more...

March 18, 2009...

The spring season and the vernal equinox are coming soon! Spring Break is in full swing this week, and St. Patrick's Day is history. I am sitting in the La Veta, Colorado public regional library, so test 2 is in your email queue! It is due on or before April 1; although extra points for completion by March 30.

We are nine weeks into the semester, and you are deciding on the direction for your final course project topic, which is due to me by March 26. The first draft of this project, including a working title, overall outline and some references, is due on or before April 9, three weeks from now. The project format needs to be one that can go online, which I will help you with in April. A nearly complete project is due on or before April 16, and a ready for online publication version is due on or before April 30 for campus students and May 6, for distance students. Deductions will occur if these four deadlines are missed. More details are available at www.emporia.edu/earthsci/amber/go340/webpage.htm, and if you want to create a simple webpage, www.emporia.edu/earthsci/amber/go340/htm.htm. Questions, concerns? Email me, saber@emporia.edu.

This coming Tuesday is the second live demonstration for campus students. Silver casting and chain making will be explained by Ernie Herrick, and wire wrap jewelry, by Ruby Herrick. We appreciate all of our local artists and are pleased they take their time to share their experiences and knowledge with us. Be ready to leave Science Hall by 5:45 - thanks! Also on that Tuesday, I am expecting gem show reports via email from campus students who attended the KC Gem and Mineral Show on March 13. You collected the treasure hunt data and need to write up a report!

Weekly Gem Tidbits . . .
Need some ideas for a final project topic? You could expand on one of the gem briefs you were assigned or maybe some of the websites from past entries or the ones just below will help...

March 13, 2009...

Today was the KC Gem and Mineral Show field trip! We had a great time at the show and for the campus students, I look forward to reading your reports. Thanks to all who took the time out to attend.

Next week is Spring Break, and I hope you will find time to catch up on things of meaning to you! During this week we have no formal class meetings so continue to move along at your own pace. I will be out of town and email range from the 14th-22nd, and it would be best to slow email communication as I will likely not respond until the 23rd!

Wow, a special thanks goes to Jack Greer for the enlightening evening on cutting and faceting gems! He is a remarkable person, string instrument maker, and terrific lapidary. Our next campus class meeting, March 24, will be an evening with Ernie and Ruby, who will demonstrate lost wax casting, chain fabrication, and wire wrap jewelry design. Please arrive at Science Hall by 5:45 p.m. and we will drive together to the house by 6:00 p.m.

Spring break could be a time to put your gray cells to work on your final course project. Remember that your project format can be a webpage, power point presentation, electronic scrapbook, or the like. To learn more about the expectations, opportunities, and past student work, visit

Get the ball rolling and juggling this week! Read on for some interesting websites to visit.

Weekly Gem Tidbits . . .

March 8, 2009...

Mid-term grades are available online, and you should have heard from me via email with grading details by then as well. If there are any questions or concerns about the grade please contact me. Thanks for all the hard work, and I hope you are enjoying your course on gemstones and the profession!

Tuesday, the 10th, is our first live demonstration, an evening with Jack Greer, who will demonstrate gem cutting and fashioning. We will leave from Science Hall at 5:45 - be there for a ride! Distance students are all welcome but certainly not required to attend. Email me for details if you can attend.

If you have not already done so, please send the mini Gem Brief information - all 8 gems that were assigned to you - by Friday the 13th... Well actually I would prefer to receive the mini gem brief information before Friday, so I can make up the cards for our field trip. You can send the longer versions after spring break on the deadline schedule I sent with the original assignment.

Yes, I said the field trip this Friday! The 48th Annual Gem and Mineral Show is coming up fast, and I hope you have made arrangements with work and classes so that you can attend. There is a $4.00 admission fee and we will travel together in the university van to the MCC-BTC Exhibit Hall, 1775 Universal Avenue, KC, MO (Front Street exit 57 off I 435).

Weekly Gem Tidbits . . .

March 2, 2009...

Homework 5 and 6 are soon to be history, and homework 7 is on the way to you now. As promised at the beginning of the semester, the first live demonstration will be March 10 from 6:00 until 9:00 pm at the home of a local gemstone artist. The theme of this session will be gemstone fashioning - lapidary work. This event is open to distance students as well as campus students. If you are not in the campus class and could attend, please contact me as soon as possible so I can provide you with details.

Additionally, it is time to begin thinking about your final project assignment. If interested in trying your hand at a webpage for the online format, there is a tutorial for you at http://www.emporia.edu/earthsci/amber/go340/htm.htm, which uses html code and word pad (found in your accessories file on the computer). I am available for one-on-one sessions as well for webpage construction and if you do the tutorial, send your webpage template product to me as an attachment to an email with a subject line of go340 html.

If you have not decided on a topic, I have recently updated the Gemlink webpage so visit www.emporia.edu/earthsci/amber/go340/gemlinks.htm for some ideas. I want to hear from you now if you have any questions or concerns about this project! Do not wait until it is too late ... March 25 is when the topic is due but this is followed by just over 30 days to complete the project. It might be best to arrive at the topic sooner than later.

Another opportunity is the 48th Annual Gem and Mineral Show, which is March 13 (9am - 8pm), 14 (10am - 7 pm), and 15(10 am - 5 pm) and located at the MCC-BTC Exhibit Hall, 1775 Universal Avenue, KC, MO (take the Front Street exit 57 off I 435). The campus class will attend Friday the 13th and we can meet distance students there or pick you up on the way? The special exhibit will be sunken treasure artifacts from 30 shipwrecks around the world - you can read online about the show at http://www.kcgemshow.org/.

February 22, 2009...

Test One has arrived in my mail box from almost everyone. I will be returning graded tests in the coming days if not by now for some of you.
The next portion of the course will be on optical properties and testing equipment, as well as working with metals, fashioning gemstones, and gemstone enhancements. Homework 5 and 6 will be arriving in your mail box quite soon. In March we will begin Emporia demonstrations by local artists and the Kansas City Gem and Mineral Show. Distance learning students in the area are encouraged to attend any of these fun events when possible. I will email you the specifics in the upcoming weeks.

It is not too soon for you to begin serious thought on your final project . I would like to receive your topic or a couple of serious ideas by March 22. Maybe a topic will come by browsing the links in the Weekly Gem Tidbits. If you are interested in history, maybe exploring the impact of the Tiffany standardized setting on the jewelry industry would be of interest, which is one of the tidbits for this week. Also, you should visit Gem Briefs; these are gemstone descriptions created by previous students enrolled in the campus version of this course, and Gem Links, an index of online gemstone resources. All of the extra readings provide additional information over what is in the book, make you aware of stones you might not otherwise have noticed, and may spark your thoughts on a webpage topic that is right for you!

Internet is a wonderful resource but it is difficult to judge credibility of websites and key issues associated with gems. One credible group, Jewelers of America, www.jewelers.org, has a consumer confidence section that is worth viewing and reading, www.jewelers.org/publicaffairs/confidence.html. In addition to ethics and conduct among jewelers, issues addressed include conflict diamonds, Burmese colored gemstones, responsible gold mining, and synthetic diamonds. As you begin looking for topics and answers online watch for the suspect websites and emotional propaganda associated with gemstone information.

February 11, 2009...

For me, the Tucson Gem and Mineral Shows have come and gone. It was sunny and warm in Arizona with gems, minerals, and fossils everywhere. This was my second year at this remarkable event, and I saw new cuts and jewelry creations that were anything but dull! I will place 2009 pictures online in the coming weeks but in the meantime, to get an idea of this continuing educational opportunity for your instructor, visit my 2008 webpages at www.emporia.edu/earthsci/amber/go340/tucson/tucson08.htm.

For distance students, you should have submitted homeworks 1 through 4. For campus students, you should have completed 2 homework assignments, a DVD summary, a blog posting, and 3 class activites. After receiving feedback on these assignments, test 1 should arrive in your email box giving you an opportunity to show me what you have learned to date.

Keep thinking and synthesizing what you read. Please remember that if you are stuck or confused, then you can email or call and ask me for help. Enjoy the class and stay in touch!

January 30, 2009...

Yikes - I wrote an announcement last week and forgot to post it! In any case, I am pleased to be in contact with you all via email since we met through my initial email message sent before the January 14th start of classes. You should be receiving feedback regarding your first and second assignments, which we exchanged via email attachments. It was great to meet campus students face to face on Tuesday and we investigated the power of gem observations with and without magnification.

I was pleased to see some postings on the course blog webpage. Where is everyone else? Let me hear from you with the posting of your summary from homework 1 and just feel free to comment as well. For those of you who have posted the first assignment, would you please post again with comments on how you actually did the posting successfully and any tips you would like to pass along to your fellow students. We are in this class together and you need to communicate with me and each other!

Unfortunately, I have some mystery students... I know that at the beginning of week two, ESU had some web server problems that likely hurt our communication channels. However, beginning January 12th I have emailed students from Banners, from my campus GroupWise account, and from an alternative to campus options...my gmail account. Thus, if you have not heard from me via email, then call me immediately so we can discuss the problems. My contact information is located on the course syllabus at www.emporia.edu/earthsci/amber/go340/syllabus.htm. Also, you may have more than one email account and please send me an alternative email address if you have not already done so. Thanks!

January 14, 2009...

Welcome to GO 340 Gemstones and Gemology! I look forward to seeing you this semester via email and in person when possible. The campus version of this class meets Tuesday evenings, 6-9 pm, and everyone -campus and distance student alike- is welcome to attend local and regional field trips. Obtain the textbook and begin lecture and text readings shown in the syllabus. Take the fun introductory quiz, gemquiz.htm, to test your knowledge and show some of what to expect during the semester.

If you are enrolled in this course for university credit, please email me, saber@emporia.edu, introduce yourself and give me your preferred email address. The subject line should read GO340 checking in. If your email address changes during the semester, notify me immediately. You can view the schedule for the semester at www.emporia.edu/earthsci/amber/go340/syllabus.htm#schedule. I will send exact instructions via email directly to you on how to access course lectures and assignments.

Check this page often during the semester for course announcements and additional lecture information. I am looking forward to getting to know you and hope you will enjoy the course!

Hold the presses... I have created another method for communicating with you! Visit the GO 340 blog at http://go340gemstones.blogspot.com/. You can interact directly with me and with fellow classmates in the course using the blog. Postings may be useful websites or references to print materials - news stories or videos... make your postings interesting and do it often for more participation points, which figure into your final course grade!

Return to the syllabus.

This page originates from the Earth Science department for the use and benefit of students enrolled at Emporia State University. For more information contact the course instructor, S. W. Aber, e-mail: saber@emporia.edu Thanks for visiting! Webpage created: 1999; last update: May 16, 2009.

Copyright 1999-2009 Susan Ward Aber. All rights reserved.