Jewelry Glossary

We have gathered one of the most comprehensive collections of english words that are related to the purchase and collecting of fine gemstone and diamond jewelry. We present this jewelry glossary to you in order to aid you in your collecting and knowledge of fine jewelry. Please feel free to bookmark this page and refer back to it as necessary when reviewing our site or other sites. If you have a word that you want to know more about and it is not on this list, please send an email to us and we will promptly ad it to this list.

Abalone: A univalve mollusc known for its iridescent natural pearls.

Adamas: Means unconquerable in Greek, referring to the hardness of diamond.

Adularesence: A blue-whitish form of opalescence.

Akoya: A pearl produced by the Japanese "Akoya" oyster..

Alamandine: Named from a town in Asia Minor, Garnet group.

Alexandrite: Named after Czar Alexander II, very desirable, green in daylight, red in artificial light.

Ama: The name given to the young women who originally dove for the oysters

Amethyst: A purple or violet form of transparent quartz used as a gemstone.

Amorphous: Lacking a definite form; shapeless.

Amulet: An object worn, especially around the neck, as a charm against evil or injury.

Aragonite: A form of calcium carbonate, which constitutes a large portion of the pearl.

Asterism: Star effect seen in some stones when cut en cabochon.

Aquamarine: Latin for Water of the Sea, Beryl group.

Australian Opal: Australian opal is classified into five main types: black opal, light opal, crystal opal, boulder opal, and common opal.

Baroque: A pearl with an irregular shape.

Bauble: A small, showy ornament of little value; a trinket.

Beryl: aluminium beryllium silicate, Group of minerals that includes; Emerald, and Aquamarine.

Birefraction: The difference between the lowest and highest refractive indices in doubly refractive gemstones.

Bivalve Mollusc: A mollusc with a pair of shells (valves) which open by a means of a hinge.

Biwa Pearl: A non-nucleated cultured pearl from Japan's largest lake, Lake Biwa.

Bixbite: Strawberry-red, Beryl group.

Black Opal: A dark colored opal with internal reflections of green or red.

Black Sapphire: Form of corundum with a black/green hue due to Fe and titanium impurities.

Blue Topaz: A type of quartz that is light brown to colorless when mined but turns a vivid blue when exposed to heat.

Boxchain: A chain in which the link is wide and square and resembles a box. Can be made of gold, silver, platinum or other non precious metals.

Braganza Gemstone: The braganza in a huge gemstone that may or may not be a diamond. This Portuguese stone is said to weigh 1680 carats (which would make it the largest-known diamond), but it has not been authenticated. It may acually be a clear topaz.

Brilliance: Relating to, or being a hue taht has a strong combination of lightness and strong saturation.

Brilliant-full Cut: This cut has at least 32 facets plus the table on the upper part, and 24 facets on the lower part. Usually refereed to as a brilliant cut when talking about diamonds.

Cabochon: Gem which is cut and polished to have a dome shaped upper surface. Such stones are said to be en cabochon.

Carbon: A naturally abundant element that occurs in many inorganic and in all organic compounds, exists freely as graphite and diamond.

Cameo: A design cut in low relief, around which the background has been cut away.

Carat: Unit of weight for gems. A carat is 1/5th of a gram.

Celtic Knotwork: Interconnection of life and humankind’s place within the universe.

Ceylon Cut: This has numerous facets and is cut to get maximum weight thus it is not always symmetrical.

Chatoyancy: the cat's-eye effect seen in some stones when cut en cabochon.

Christmas: the annual festival of the Christian church commemorating the birth of Jesus: celebrated on December 25 and now generally observed as a legal holiday and an occasion for exchanging gifts.

Chrysoberyl: beryllium aluminium oxide, Group of minerals including Alexandrite and Chrysoberyl cat's eye.

Chrysoberyl Cat's Eye: Greek meaning waving light.

Chrysolite: A brown or yellow-green olivine found in igneous and metamorphic rocks and used as a gemstone.

Citrine: A pale yellow variety cystalline quartz resembling topaz.

Clarity: Clearness of appearance.

Claudius: Roman emperor after his nephew Caligula was murdered.

Cleanliness: The absence of blemishes (spots, pimples, cracks) or discoloration on the pearl's surface.

Cleavage: The breaking of stones along lines of weakness related to the stones internal atomic structure.

Clouds: A dark region or blemish on a polished stone.

Color: One of the 4 c’s of diamond grading, the term color actually refers to the absence of color in a diamond.

Conchiolin: The first layer secreted by a mollusc to ease the discomfort caused when a foreign substance gets lodged in the mantle tissue. Very important as it binds the nacre to form the pearl.

Conch Pearls: Not truly a "pearl" but a lovely, rare and valuable product of the giant conch, a univalve mollusc. Pink is the most desirable colour.

Corundum: Group of minerals that includes Rubies and Sapphires.

Crown: The top part of a cut stone, above the girdle.

Crystals: A mineral, especially a ttransparent form of quartz, having a crystalline form of structure, often characterized by external planar faces.

Cullinan I Diamond: 530.20 carats. Cut from the largest diamond ever found (3106 carats) also called the "Star of Africa". Named after the chairman of the Premier mine in South Africa at the time, Sir Thomas Cullinan. It was cut, along with 104 other stones by the firm of Asscher in Amsterdam in 1908. It now adorns the scepter of King Edward VII and is kept in the Tower of London. It is a truly magnificent pear shaped wonder.

Cullinan IV Diamond: 63.60 carats, one of the 105 stones from the largest diamond ever found. It is in the crown of Queen Mary and can be removed to be worn as a brooch. Also kept in the Tower of London.

Cultivated Pearl: Another term used to indicate "cultured pearl".

Cut: A term used to describe how a stone is faceted or shaped. The most popular shapes are Round brilliant, Marguise, Pear, Emerald, Princess and Oval.

Diamond: Crystallized Carbon. Probably the most recognized Gemstone in the world.

Dichroic: Refers to a gem that appears two different colors or shades when viewed from different directions

Dispersion: The splitting of white light into its constituent spectral colors, the rainbow colors, when it passes through inclined surfaces, such as those on a prism or faceted gem. Dispersion in gemstones is called fire.

Dome Pearl: A solid blister pearl grown around a mother-of-pearl nucleus on the inside of the mollusc shell.

Double Refraction: The phenomenon in which each ray of light is split in tow as it enters a noncubic mineral. Each ray travels at different speeds and has its own refractive index.

Doublet: Composite stone made of two pieces cemented or glued together.

Dresden Diamond: 41 carats, most likely from India. This pear shaped green diamond's early history is not known. In around 1700 it was in the possession of August the Strong, Duke of Saxony. Kept in the Green Hall in Dresden, hence it's name.

ebayer: A species of human who is registered to buy and or sell on eBay.

ebayitous: A disease of the human species where one tends to spend all of his or her money on items purchased at eBay.

E. G. L. - European Gemological Labratory: EGL is one of the world's premier independent gemological laboratories. For over 25 years it has offered the fine jewelry trade and consumers accurate, reliable gemstone identification and professional certification to validate their gemstone purchases.

Eight Cut: This has 8 facets on the upper and lower parts as well, plus the table. It is used for small stones.

Emerald: Greek Smaragdos (Green Stone), Beryl group.

Emerald Cut: Step cut with an octagon shape, especially used with emeralds, but also longer diamonds.

Faces: Flat surfaces that make up the external shape of a crystal.

Facet: Surface of a cut and polished gem.

Faceting: Cutting and polishing of the surfaces of a gemstone into facets.

Fancy Cut: Name applied to a gemstone when given an unconventional shape when faceted.

Feathers: A feather-shaped flaw, as in a precious stone.

Fire: See dispersion

Flourentine Diamond: 137.27 carats, was held by the Medici family of Florentine in 1657. During the 18th century is was in the Habsburg crown, then it was used as a brooch. After the First World War it's whereabouts are unknown.

Fluorescence: Normally invisible wavelengths of light that become "visible" when exposed to ultraviolet radiation. Gems or pearls that exhibit colour under ultraviolet light, colour not normally seen in normal light, are exhibiting "fluorescence".

Fracture: Chipping or breaking of a stone in a way unrelated to it's internal atomic structure. Because of this fractured surfaces are often uneven.

Freshwater Pearl: Pearls produced by freshwater molluscs.

P. Fucata: Oyster used to produce Japanese and Chinese cultured pearls.

Garnet: Group of differently coloured minerals with similar chemical composition. Usually a red orangish tone when found in jewelry.

Gemstone: A decorative material, usually a mineral, prized for some or all of the qualities of beauty, durability, and rarity.

G. I. A. - Gemological Institute of America: Established in 1931, GIA is the world’s largest and most respected nonprofit institute of gemological research and learning. Conceived 75 years ago in the august tradition of Europe’s most venerated institutes, GIA discovers (through GIA Research), imparts (through GIA Education), and applies (through the GIA Gem Laboratory and GIA Gem Instruments) gemological knowledge to ensure the public trust in gems and jewelry.

Girdle: The band around the widest part of a cut stone, where the crown meets the pavilion.

Gold: A soft yellow corrosion resistant element, the most malleable and ductile metal, occuring in veins and alluvial deposites and recovered by mining or by panning or sluicing.

Gold-lip Oyster: A large oyster used in some countries to produce South Sea cultured pearls. It is called a "yellow" or "gold" lip oyster because it produces a yellowish nacre and the pearls tend to range in colour from off-white to deep gold.

Goshenite: Colorless, Beryl group.

Grain: The standard unit of weight once used for natural pearls. Four grains are equal to one carat.

Great Deal!: Anything purchased from a "GEMaffair".

Green Amethyst: Green quartz also known as prasiolite, vermarine, lime citrine, or green quartz.

Green Quartz: Also known as green amethyst, vermarine, lime citrine, or by its gemological name, prasiolite.

Green Sapphire: Fairly common greenish variety of corundum.

Habit: The shape in which a crystal naturally occurs.

Half-drilled: Pearls which have only been partly drilled, as for rings or earrings.

Hardness: See Mohs Scale of Hardness

Harlequin Pearls: Untreated round Chinese freshwater cultured pearls in a variety of natural colors strung together.

Heat Treatment: The application of heat to a gem with the purpose of enhancing the gems colour and or clarity.

Heliodor: Lemon yellow to gold colour, meaning "Present of the Sun", Beryl group.

Hope Diamond: 44.51carats. This beautiful blue diamond appeared in the trade in 1830 and was bought by the banker H.T. Hope of London. It was probably re-cut from a stone stolen during the French Revolution. It has changed hands frequently and has resided in the Smithsonian Institute, Washington, since 1958.

HTML code: Extremely frustrating computer code developed by some total idiot with two much time on his hands. Cousin of pig latin.

Hydrothermal: Refers to a process that involves the alteration or deposition of minerals by water water heated by igneous activity.

Idiochromatic: Describes gems whose colour is due to elements that are an essential part of the chemical composition.

Idiot: Someone who thinks they have all the HTML code figured out!

I. G. I. - International Gemological Institute: The International Gemological Institute (IGI) is the largest independent gem grading and appraisal institute in the world, renowned for their expertise and extensive experience in serving the diamond and jewelry industry for over 25 years.

Igneous Rock: Rocks formed from erupted volcanic lava or solidified magma.

Imitation Gemstone: Material that has the outward appearance of the gem it is intended to imitate, but which has different physical properties.

Imperial Topaz: A type of quartz that is lustrous orange-yellow to orange-brown in color.

Inclusions: Markings or foreign bodies found within the stone.

Intaglio: A design in which the subject is cut lower than the background.

Iolite: A silicate of alumina, iron, and magnesia having a bright blue color and vitreous luster.

Iridescence: Reflection of light off internal features in a gem, giving rise to a rainbow like play of colors.

Iridescent Brilliant, lustrous, or colorful in effect or appearance.

Ironstone: A rock containing enough iron to permit commercial extraction; an iron ore.

Jewelry Steamer: Used to clean jewelry with steam.

Kan: A Japanese commercial unit of weight; equals 1000 momme.

Keshi: Japanese word meaning something as tiny as you can imagine, such as a grain of sand; used originally for very small pearls; now used to refer to all-nacre baroque pearls produced when something goes wrong during the production of the pearl.

Koh-i-Noor Diamond: 108.92 carats, was originally a round stone of 186 carats belonging to the Indian Raj. It was bought in 1739 by the Shah of Persia, who called it "Mountain of Light" (Koh-i-Noor). It came into the possession of the East India Company in 1850, who represented Queen Victoria, was re-cut and was set in the Crown of Queen Mary, wife of George V. It was then remounted in the crown of Queen Elizabeth, and is now kept in the tower of London.

Labradoresence: Play of colour in metallic hues.

Lapidary: A craftsperson who cuts and polishes gemstones.

Lime Citrine:Green quartz also known as green amethyst, vermarine, or by its gemological name, prasiolite.

Luster: A) Shine or "look" of a gemstone due to reflection of light off the surface. B) The unique, internally emanating glow that distinguishes pearls from all other gems.

Mabe Pearl: An assembled pearl created by filling a hollow blister and then applying a mother-of-pearl back to complete the pearl.

Margaritifera: The Margaritifera mussels is used to produce freshwater pearls.

Minerals: Inorganic, naturally occurring materials with a constant chemical composition and regular internal atomic structure.

Mixed Cut: A cut in which the facets above and below the girdle are styled in different ways.

Mohs Scale of Hardness: The measure of a mineral's hardness in relation to other minerals, based on it's ability to resist scratching.

Momme: Japanese weight measurement used for pearls. One momme equals 3.75 grams, or 18.75 carats.

Morganite: Soft Pink to Violet in colour, Beryl group.

Multicolored: Used to describe a single crystal made of different coloured parts.

Mystic Fire Topaz: Designer gemstone created by by Azotic Coating Technology Inc. The gemstone is created by applying a tiny layer of titanium to the underside of a natural white topaz. The light passing through the natural gemstone and the thin layer of titanium creates a beautiful array of blue, purple and green. Azotic named this particular treatment "mystic Fire Topaz". Learn more by visiting our Mystic Fire Jewelry web page.

Nacre: The usually whitish crystalline substance which the mollusc secretes around a foreign "intruder" and which forms what we know as the pearl. Layers build up over time.

Nassak Diamond: 43.38 carats, was originally over 90 carats and in a Temple of Shiva near Nassak, in India. It was looted in 1818 by the English, then re-cut in New York in 1927. Today it is held in a private collection somewhere in the United States.

Opal: A mineral, an amorphous form of silica, SiO2 with some water of hydration, found in many varieties and colors, including a form that is milky white.

Opalescence: Milky blue form of iridescence.

Opaque: Not transparent or translucent; impenetrable to light; not allowing light to pass through.

Organic Gem: Gem made or derived from living organisms.

Orient: The shimmering, iridescent play-of-colour seen on or just below the surface of the pearl.

Oriental Pearl: A natural pearl.

P. Margaritifera: A pearl-producing oyster with black, white, or golden coloured "lips". The black variety is used to create Tahitian black pearls.

P. Martensii: A pearl=producing oyster used in Japan and China, smaller than Maxima and capable of producing pearls up to a maximum of about 10+ mm.

P. Maxima: A large oyster used to produce South Sea cultured pearls.

Paste: Glass made to imitate gems.

Pavilion: A lower surface of a brilliant-cut gem slanting outward from the culet to the girdle.

Pearl: A smooth, rounded bead formed within the shells of certain mollusks and composed of the mineral aragonite or calcite in a matrix, deposited in concentric layers as a protective coating around an irritating foreign object: valued as a gem when lustrous and finely colored.

Peridot: A yellowish-green variety of olivine used as a gem.

Physical Vapor Deposition: A thin-film deposition process in which a material (metal, alloy, compound, cermet, or composite) is either evaporated or sputtered onto a substrate in a vacuum.

Pinctada: Refers to a pearl-producing oyster genus.

Pink Sapphire: Corundum with a pink hue colored by Chromium.

Pink Topaz: A type of quartz with a pink color.

Platinum: A heavy precious metallic element; grey-white and resistant to corroding; occurs in some nick and copper ores and is also found native in some deposits.

Pleochroic: Term used to describe a gem that appears two or more different colors or shades when viewed from different directions.

Polishing Cloth: cloth used to clean and polish jewelry safely.

Potch: Black background used to give contrast made usually from quartz, glass, resin, or ironstone.

Prasiolite: A green-colored form of quartz also known as vermarine, lime citrine, green quartz, or green amethyst.

Precious Metals: Valuable metals often used to make coins or jewelry.

Prong: Jewelry. a tapering metal projection, usually heavier than a claw, rising from the base of a jewelry setting and used to hold a stone in position as needed.

Prophetic: Foretelling events as if by devine inspiration.

Pteria Penguin: Mollusc used to produce Mabe pearls.

Pyrope: Greek meaning "fiery", Garnet group, Hardness 7-7.5, S.G. 3.65-3.80, R.I. 1.730-1.760.

Quartz: A very hard mineral composed of silica, found worldwide in many different types of rocks, including sandstone and granite.

Red Topaz: A type of quartz with a red color.

Refraction: Bending of light as it passes from air into a different medium.

Refractive Index: Measures the slowing down and bending of light rays as they enter a gemstone. Maybe used to identify gem species.

Refractometer: Apparatus used to measure the refractive indices of gems.

Rhodolite: A rose-red or pink variety of garnet, a silicat mineral used as a gem.

Rough: Term used to describe a rock or crystal still in its natural state, before faceting or polishing.

Rose Cut: A facet cut without table or pavilion. Does not produce much brilliance.

Ruby: Name in Latin, Rubeus (Red), Corundum group, aluminum oxide.

Sancy Diamond: 55 carats, is said to have been worn by Charles the Brave around 1470. It was bought by Signeur de Sancy in 1570 from the French ambassador to Turkey. Since 1906 is has belonged to the Astor family of London.

Sapphire: Name in Greek, (Blue), Corundum group, aluminum oxide.

Schiller / Sheen: Form of iridescence.

Scissors Cut: A type of step cut.

Seed Pearls: Tiny natural pearls weighing under 1/4 grain, usually less than 2 mm in diameter.

Shah Diamond: 88.70 carats, came from India and is only partially polished. It has three inscriptions of monarchs' names. In 1829 it was given to Tsar Nicholas I, and is now kept in the Kremlin in Moscow.

Silk:> Small inclusions on a gemstone.

Skilled Grader: A person who has advanced knowledge and experience on grading gemstones.

Smokey Topaz: A type of brownish quartz that has a smoky look.

South Sea Pearls: Pearls produced by the large oyster (Pinctada maxima) in white, silver, and gold. South Sea Pearls tend to be the largest, rarest, and priciest of all the pearls.

Species: Used in gemology to refer to individual gems that have distinct characteristics which may be defined and verified.

Specific Gravity: Density, measured as the weight of the material compared with that of an equal volume of water.

Spectroscope: Instrument used to view the absorption spectra of gemstones.

Spessartite: Garnet group, Hardness 7-7.5, S.G. 4.12-4.20, R.I. 1.795-1.815.

Spinel: magnesium aluminium oxide, may mean "spark" in Greek.

St. Patrick: Patron saint of Ireland and one of Christianity’s most widely known figures.

St. Valentine: Roman Christian who, according to tradition, was martyred during the persecution of Christians in the third century by Emperor Claudius II.

Star Sapphire: Sapphire that when cut shows a star-like figure in reflected light because of its crystalline structure.

Step Cut: Cut shaped by a rectangular table facet and girdle, with rectangular facets parallel to these.

Sterling Silver: An alloy of 92.5% silver and copper or another material.

Stone: Term used for any gemstone.

Symmetry, Axis Of: Imaginary line through a crystal. If the crystal were rotated about its axis it would present an identical aspect tow or more times in a rotation of 360 degrees.

Synthetic Gemstone: A laboratory-made stone whose chemical composition and optical properties are similar to those of it's natural equivalent.

Table: The upper horizontal surface of a faceted gem.

Table Cut: The simplest type of step cut which is very flat with a large table. Often used for seals or for men's rings.

Table Facet: Central facet on a gem's crown.

Talisman: A trinket or piece of jewelry thought to be a protection against evil.

Tanzania: A country of east-central Africa on the Indian Ocean.

Tanzanite: A transparent vaiety of zoisite, used as a gem.

Tennis Bracelet: A bracelet containing many small gemstones, such as diamonds, that are set one after the other into a narrow chain.

Tiffany Diamond: 128.51 carats, found in the Kimberly mine of South Africa, in 1878. It weighed 287.42 carats as a rough diamond. It was bought by the jewelers Tiffany in New York and cut in Paris with 90 facets.

Titanium: A strong, low-density, highly corrosion-resistant, lustrous white metallic element that occurs widely in igneous rocks and is used to alloy aircraft metals for low weight, strength, and high-temperature stability.

Topaz: Name from island in Red Sea, Topazos.

Tourmaline: A complex crytalline silicate containing aluminum, boron, and other elements.

Trained Grader: A person who has a basic understanding of gem grading, but does not have the advanced experience of a skilled grader.

Translucent: Clear; permitting the passage of light.

Transparency: The quality or state of being transparent.

Trichroic: Refers to a gem that appears three different colors or shades when viewed from different directions.

Twilight Mystic Topaz: Type of mystic fire topaz that is warm and vibrant with flashes of orange and pink and gold fire on a orange base gem.

Tsavorite: Can be considered a "new" gemstone since it was unknown before its discovery in Kenya in the 1960s. It is a member of the garnet family group in which trace amounts of vanadium and chromium provide the green color.

Ultrasonic Cleaner: Used to clean jewelry by using energy released from the collapse of millions of microscopic cavitation bubbles, which are formed when ultrasound passes through the cleaning liquid.

Valentine's Day: February 14, observed in honor of St. Valentine as a day for the exchange of valentines and other tokens of affection.

Vermarine: Green quartz also know lime citrine, green amethyst, vermarine, or prasiolite, which is its gemological name.

Vitreous: Glasslike (used to describe luster).

White Gold: An alloy of gold and nickel, sometimes also containing palladium or zinc, having a pale platinum like color.

White Topaz: A colorless aluminum silicate mineral, often found in association with granite rocks and valued as a gemstone.

Yellow Gold: Gold that has been alloyed with a mix of 50% copper and 50% silver.

Yellow Sapphire: Corundum with a yellow hue.

Zircon: A brown to colorless mineral, which is heated, cut, and polished to form a brilliant blue-white gem.

Zoisite: A grey, brown, or pink mineral, used in ornamental stonework.