Huge, Rare Emerald Up For Auction
A massive 1,040 carat emerald heads to auction this weekend on August 29 at LiveAuctioneers.com. The Polly Emerald will be offered for sale by GovernmentAuction.com. The gemstone has been appraised for $454,000 by a GIA certified appraiser. LiveAuctioneers will provide Internet live bidding for this special auction, which will consist of the lone lot selling at 6 p.m. Pacific, 9 p.m. Eastern Time. There is no reserve, the stone goes to the highest bidder. For this auction they are accepting phone bids and absentee bids with a $50,000 deposit.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Tom Aug 27th 2010 10:44AM
What a joke- These emeralds are known in the trade as "de classe" I have one on my desk as a paperweignt- it weighs 2246 carats ,dyed green and cost me $88.00 including shipping from India- Want to see these stones by the ton? Go to Ebay India > Jewelry> loose stones> emerald- Oh, and GIA doesn't "certify" appraisers
mandmjlrscvca Aug 27th 2010 11:38AM
The emerald appears so opaque, I hope whomever buyes it does not feel robbed or mis led by the use and statement of value by a so called "GIA Certified Appraiser". It is one thing to be a certified gemologist which is only certified by GIA and not any other legal body. It is recognized as what it is. "Certification", a certificate received when successfully having passed the course at GIA. To say certified appraiser is a joke. You can have a stone identified by a GIA grad, but valued, not in a verifiable way. I sent a one carat diamond to GIA in New York and the same diamond to the GIA when it was in Santa Monica. The certs came back off two grades from each other. Not good and what is worse, appraisers do not have a specific guideline of pricing. Appraisers at a high line store will appraise based on their mark up and not the reality. You could take a one carat fine Sapphire to two different stores and have up to a 300% difference in Appraised Value...... That is the reality. I have appraised Gems and jewelry for 30 years and have seen it on a regular basis. So baloney to GIA.
Rick Aug 27th 2010 11:40AM
Whew, thought I was losing my mind for a moment there, have a few of these ugly 'crap' emeralds in a display cabinet. They're smaller, but bigger than a quarter.
don paeglow Aug 27th 2010 12:06PM
don't know about others, but I'm concerned that people who appraised my wife's
things are not who they say they are and if there is a loss, will the insurance company have a recourse to deny a claim. Through comments made, I have learned that GIA isn't in a position to certify anything or anyone. Sure makes one
wonder about a whole lot of things in todays markets.
Thanks to all.
D Aug 27th 2010 12:30PM
When I saw this emerald photo, at first I too thought that it was a bit opaque. However, looking at it again, it does seemed to be backlit, and appears to be more translucent. Again, I too still feel it's a bit clouded and lacks transparency.
Here's my question. Why is this emerald facetted when emeralds do not have luster or radiance, especially this one? Is there added value in the faceting? I do know that the faceting would allow more light to enter at certain angles. I'm just asking because I don't know, but I wonder if this emerald would have had been better off shaped into a highly polished cabochon instead?
Duane Aug 27th 2010 12:48PM
Unique but worthless in it's current size as I see it. The only way to make any money off it is to cut it up.
Don Oberloh Aug 27th 2010 1:15PM
I have 'twin' australian black opals, 8mm, not treated, not ruined by man in any way. Impossible to get twins this size, it seems, one GIA idiot said that they were not real because they were in silver settings, I took them out and sent them to two other appraisers, one in NY one in So Cal. both came back over 30 for both.
I went back and got my 25 bucks back from the first idiot.
what a scam industry.
iviethodaurum Aug 27th 2010 1:13PM
Its big and its ugly........Im a jeweler/goldsmith and I have family in colombia and I can getting them for great prices.....saw a pear shaped 4ct last time I was down there,this thing was clean and clear,deep green and 200 dollars.....I wouldnt have the one in the photo.
ted leutz Aug 27th 2010 2:55PM
looks big for 1.040 carats....was the decimal in the wrong spot?
Allan Aug 27th 2010 3:06PM
wont see this on ebay....LoL
Tom Aug 27th 2010 4:13PM
Yeah you will- Ebay India>jewelry>loose stones>emerald-
offlinej Aug 27th 2010 3:48PM
If you are taking this seriously, I have better use for your couple hundred thou, this bridge I own..........
Roberto Aug 27th 2010 5:04PM
IT'S SIMPLE........FRAUD...
al schrader Aug 27th 2010 5:13PM
I'm actually the number two jeweler, Palerma Picasso is number one (Pablo's daughter). I get my raw stones in New York and have them cut in Thailand.
Color is critical for emeralds. A cloudy pale stone may be worth a few dollars, but the same stone only dark & clear is worth thousands or millions. Emerald is a beryl and softer than glass unlike diamond which will cut glass....Al-
Gene Aug 27th 2010 6:52PM
mandmjlrscvca: {Aug 27th 2010 11:38AM}; It might be better to not speak and be thought uneducated, rather than opening one's mouth and removing all doubt.
The G. I. A. :(Gemological Instiute of America): is one of only TWO FULLY ACCREDITED Jewelry and Gemology instiutes in the U. S. A.
I graduated with a double major in Jewelry Technologies and Gemology from The Texas Instiute of Jewelry Technologies at Paris Texas.
After finishing with 68 credit hours in 5 semesters; with National Dean's List and Phi Theta Kappa Honors, all the while raising my child alone and working part time to pay for it; I believe that I was not dreaming the whole time!
RESEARCH.... Just do it!
And by the way, Just because ithe mineral is beryl, and green in color, DOES NOT ALWAYS EQUATE TO BIG MONEY! Go online and get yourself a few pounds for CHEEP!
willi149s Aug 27th 2010 7:51PM
Gosh golly Gene, with all that intelligence and all those letters after your name you still managed to dazzle me with that single parent crap too. The greatest single parents aren't the ones bragging about it to the world...their children's achievements as a result of good and loving parenting speak volumes more than braggarts, chances are, everyone who comes in contact with you think you are an educaated pomp-ass bombastic bore. Crawl back into your little bag of "gems". No one is paying the least bit of attention to your comment.
Wayne Deputy Sr. Aug 27th 2010 7:22PM
It stinks on this board.........I guess that's because most of the people posting on it are full of $hit. I read these post and you people have no ideal what you are even talking about and then to try to pass yourselfs off as experts.........HA HA What a joke.
mandmjlrscvca Aug 27th 2010 9:01PM
Well Gene..... thanks for the laughs. When in the military working on nukes. Yes.. Missile electronics systems analyst.. TSC clearance too.. That and $5.00 might get me a cup of coffee at Sambo's.. Right? And over 180 college units ( equivalent of hours to + six years of university education) and grossly over educated. Also the whole gammut of GIA crap. A political hole in the wall where you have to virtually kiss the Hebes asses to get anywhere and it is known that with the right amount of $$$ you can get a cert to be a bit fudged too based on people I know who claim to have worked there. I have an appraisal on a 1.89 carat Marquise where a GIA Grad Gemologist.... with honors have you.... lol.. he had it written on his appraisal form that he graduated with honors. Well he graded the diamond sent to GIA as a SI-1 J color and it came back from GIA with the cert stating.... VVS-2, I color. That is a big difference and shows how the eyes can fool you. They have no less than three at GIA to grade a diamond and three must agree for a cert to be made. Get it? Three people. How can you depend on one jerk... and your texas education? Most people I know in the industry or 90% in any area of the jewelry business are dishonest. Period ! Gosh... almost like lawyers or used car dealers...... and GIA is not the ivory tower of Gem analysis or grading. But it is a good stepping stone for the uneducated and then about 10 years of intense work in the industry with honest people and then maybe you can pat your self on the back. That emerald is a good specimen and as the one person said.... maybe a good paper weight...... Still, the so called GIA appraiser should give the money back he or she charged for the appraisal. Or try this.. See if this persons acreditation is acceptable to the Federal Government and let them donate the stone to a museum and see if they can write that amount off on their taxes...... Not even a crook like Obama would try that.... Unless he was in Chicago...... Naw... them crooks are too smart for that.... have a great weekend.
dann Aug 27th 2010 9:23PM
What THE REAL JOKE Is the number of "experts" who come on this web site and look at a picture and pronounce that this is a "fake" or worth $200.00 or something just as stupid. Do you really think that this emerald could make it to a big auction and then draw people to pay big big bucks for it as a stone worth $2oo.oo?
I do not profess to be the expert all these "pawn show experts" are, but I have only once seen an untreated emerald of any size that did not have some of the same interior as this stone - do NOT ever think that a large emerald that is "green glass clear" is worth your money - most likely it is fake or a treated stone.