And my stone are BEAUTIFUL!  Thanks Salty!!!  This pyralspite deserves another bid.  Even if you have never owned any gemstone before, to start with a 2+ carat rare garnet is a great idea.  The garnet group is huge and you could spend a lifetime or two collecting only garnet.  Garnets come in so many magnificent colors and each has its own special character.  This pyralspite is very rare especially in this size. 

Don't hesitate to ask me a question if you have one!

This is a large stone at 2+ cts.  Not only is pyralspite not often seen in the marketplace but it is also not seen in large sizes when it is available. 

No, I put the wrong dimensions on the bitmit auction!  Let me correct that, and you get a gold star for pointing it out.  That trillian over on bitmit.net is 9.62 x 7.36 x 5.66mm deep.

Congratulations on the lead Koelen3!  And the strangest things can happen.  You never know unless you try.  I was once auctioning a 4 carat star ruby from Madagascar (if memory serves correctly) with an unbelievable star (NOT diffused- not treated at all) and it went on eBay for I think $200?  But the man who bought it turned out to be a close personal friend and he is just retired and is here in Bangkok for two months hanging out with me and gem shopping.  That ruby is worth $1,000 easily- so I'm down $800 but where can you buy a truly great friend and honorable, intelligent man for $800?  A friend like that has no price.  He's not a bitcoiner so I'm not worried about embarrassing him.

Shipping anywhere on the globe is free.  I don't ship within Thailand, to Africa, and any other place that is high-risk.  Don't order if you live in Detroit.  LOL- I'm funny, no?  You will get online tracking and registered mail.  There is now a 2.75 carat pyralspite garnet on Bitmit:

https://www.bitmit.net/en/trade/i/9544-very-rare-east-african-pyralspite-garnet-2-75cts-trillian

Koelen3, you have an active bid at 1.5.  On more than one occasion folks have bid more than the opening bid and it is accepted as valid.  I doubt any of this is relevant though- if it doesn't bring 10 bitcoins I will be shocked.  But I have been shocked before.  Rare colored stones are a funny animal.  The right set of bidders (or wrong set) can make the impossible possible. 

I guess bottom line is decide how much you want to bid before you bid, and I will state in the future that here shipping is free.  Or that is the case now.  It is included in the price.

Koelen3 is in the lead!  And this auction can not be extended- it already has a bid.  If it had no bids, then I can extend.  If I say "seven days only" and get a bid, to me that is a contract.  If there are no more bids Koelen3 will own this stone on Tuesday, November 20th.  Time will tell!!!!

Here are the dimensions by the way:  8.05 x 6.68 x 4.89mm deep.

This is a very unusual garnet because it is a combination of three different garnets in chemical composition and each adds it's own "slant" to the appearance.  The term pyralspite comes from the three root garnets- pyrope, almandite, and spessartite.  If you have ever see the cherry-red ant hill garnets you know how beautiful those can be.  The most popular garnet of all time, almandite, is generally sold as rhodolite in the trade.  Spessartite you may know from the tangerine or "fanta" colored gemstones that you have noticed for sale.  You may even have one or two  of these types of garnets in your collection or in a piece of jewelry.



The garnet group is called a "group" because it is extremely broad in chemical composition, color, and appearance.  You could easily collect only garnet and spend a lifetime acquiring examples of different garnets.  This color is very hard to describe but let me try.  In daylight the pyrope component pulls it toward red, but the slight orange keeps it a more "touch of copper" pink.  This stone has very good brilliance and the tone is medium to medium-dark.  Under incandescent (light-bulb light) it is bright cherry red.



For a little bit better understanding of gem garnets, please take a look at the following charts.  There is tons to learn in the garnet group!

http://gemstonemagnetism.com/garnet_magnetism_3.html

http://s17.postimage.org/m7y0dbfan/Hanneman_Garnet_Chart.jpg

It should be noted that if you are to learn about garnets you have to understand those two charts and you must first and foremost realize that the second chart- the one that Dr. Bill Hanneman gave the world (bless his heart) uses refractive index along the X-axis- going from left to right.  On the left are garnets that have a lower refractive index.  On the right they are higher RI, or refractive index.



But Dave!  I have no idea about refractive index!  Well, it's like clothes on a clothes line.  The harder the wind blows, the more that clothes line bends.  The higher a stone's refractive index, the further it bends the light that passes through it.  Too easy.  Here is an example of what I see when I take a refractive index:



Anyone can buy a refractometer and learn to use it.  It's easy (once you get the hang of it- like riding a bike) and it makes you a much, much more knowledgeable gemstone consumer.  To me, it is the holy grail of gemstone instruments.  It was once said that "Junior Kimbrough is the beginning and end of all music."  This is what the refractometer is to me.  Once you have bounced the stone on you palm to get an idea of how dense it is- its specific gravity or SG (done by weighing in air and water) might tell you it is a heavy or light stone relative to its size.  But the very next procedure, after looking at the color and feeling the "heft" or weight of the stone is to take an RI.  When light passes through a stone it bends the light to a certain degree.  Some bend it more, and some less.  Some turn a single ray of light into two, some let a single line pass through without "splitting" the light.  But they all have an RI.  They have a refractive index.  They bend light- some a ton (natural zircond) and some not so much (opal). 

If you look at th x-axis of Bill Hanneman's chart, that's the one along the bottom remember, you see the readout you will get with different garnets.  Follow the line up, and everything on that line will be that RI.  Look at the 1.80 line and move your eyes up.  You should land on 8 different possibilities of garnet that could be 1.80.  Always remember that garnet can be in many different colors, and the refractive index can vary.  I bought several of these stones- some will stay in my personal collection and some will be sold- and they varied from 1.748 to 1.749 to 1.750.  This "three in one" hybrid garnet is extraordinarily rare, and even more rare in such a fine color.  Under a cloudy sky or under candle light or incandescent light it will dazzle you!




The starting bid is 1BTC and the increment is .5 bitcoins.  This auction will expire at GMT 8:00 AM on Tuesday the 20th of November. 


This stone was mined in Tanzania's Umba River Valley and is a great example of one of the most exotic stones to come from East Africa.  It is 100% UNTREATED.  No heat, no chemicals, no diffusion, no dye, no quench-crackling, no treatment at all.  It was mined from the earth and it was cut and polished ONLY.  This is an untreated stone.

Please bid with confidence.  I am a Graduate Gemologist (GIA) and I understand my obligations to describe stones accurately and to disclose any treatments.  I always offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee.  Bid now!

Friday November 23rd is the last day to bid!  Ask me a question if you would like.

Whether you are a collector or looking for that very special and highly exclusive gemstone for your beloved this holiday season, Tip Top Gem is extremely proud to present a stunning Burmese ruby with perfect medium tone and superb cutting for outstanding sparkle.  This is a very clean gemstone and ranks a high VS+ in clarity.  The saturation is top-rate and can easily be called vivid red.  This type of top-rate ruby- truly fine quality- was far, far more common when I started in the trade eight years ago.  Now it seems we see fewer and fewer truly outstanding Burmese rubies.  There is word on the street that as Burma opens up to the West, Gemfields (http://www.gemfields.co.uk/) is attempting to gain control of the major mining areas and this does not bode well for those of us dealing them but for long-term value it will be good for the consumers who already own them.  This is not an investment and I am not representing it as such, and I urge you to beware of anyone selling a colored gemstone as an investment.  I am not an investment advisor.


As you might know from reading our auctions or if you know us from our eBay time years ago, my wife and I literally hand-select every gemstone that we sell.  This is a lot of work for us- I would guess we looked through several million dollars worth of inventory at a Burmese ruby specialist's office before finding this dazzling, compelling stone that has an urgent presence.  It literally grabs your attention with its charms.



As a GIA Graduate Gemologist, I understand my obligation to disclose any treatments that a stone has.  As with virtually all ruby coming from the Mong Hsu mining area in Burma, this ruby has been flux-healed.  This is NOT glass-filling!  This treatment did not change the color of the stone and the stone is natural.  A while back a highly respected gemologist Richard Hughes did an article on this treatment.  It is permanent and requires no special care.  Indeed, ruby is one of the hardest and toughest gemstones on the planet.
 
http://www.ruby-sapphire.com/flux_healing_mong_hsu_ruby.htm

Ruby has always been associated with love, passion, and desire.  Whether you want to rekindle an old flame or throw some petrol on the current fire, this magnificent ruby will happily oblige.  How many gifts have you given that have become outdated, old-fashioned, or cliche?  This gift will last your lifetime and hers, and will become an heirloom for the next generations.


Speaking of heirlooms, my wife Melanie and I are very experienced in making heirloom quality jewelry.  If you visit our blog at tiptopgem.com and click on the gallery you can see some of the jewelry that we have made.  We are not a stocking jeweler an we don't need a huge mark-up to make your ring, pendant, or earrings.  When we make a piece of heirloom quality jewelry, it is yours and yours alone.

Many of our clients see a design that they love online.  A Google image search is your friend and it can open your eyes to the possibilities.  Try "ruby pendant" or "sapphire halo ring" and you will see amazing possibilities.  But make sure to stop by tiptopgem.com because you will get a feel for how we do things on this end.  We work with some top artisans to create a dream.  All you need is the dream, our job is to make it happen.



As a GIA Graduate Gemologist living and working exclusively in the gem trade and being surrounded by the largest wholesale gemstone markets in the world, I can offer a unique service.  Generally a fine gemstone like this one is sold to a wholesaler who then sells to a wholesaler in a consuming ("wealthy") country like Switzerland or Germany or Canada or the United States (never mind that 17 trillion in debt...smoke and mirrors always fixes those things, right?).

Finally, after many stone dealers have fed their families from the mark-up it makes it's way to the end consumer.  But unless you live in a very wealthy part of a large city you will never, ever see a ruby like this one in your local store.  The wholesaler needs cash and the jeweler wants to buy with credit.  Unless your local jeweler can demonstrate that he has the ability to sell extremely high-end goods, the wholesaler will never "memo" (loan) a stone like this to him.

You don't have to pay for everyone to eat along the way.  That is why my wife and I are here- not in a consuming nation, but in a cutting center and wholesale stone center.  You and I work together to short-circuit the system.  We cut out everyone in the middle so you get a very fine gemstone at a fraction of the cost of walking into a Hatton Garden jewelry store in London, or a boutique jewelry store in New York City or Zurich or Beijing.  There is just no need to pay for their electricity, for their rent or mortgage, or for their exclusive fancy displays and burled wooden stands and their polished, well-paid salespeople.  I admire and respect all of these things and whenever my wife and I travel we enjoy visiting these places.  But I can't do business with them.  They want a stone on credit.  In essence I am his bank- but my desire has always been stones.  Since I was a very small child I would sift through the stone in our driveway looking for gems- small cavities with tiny crystals inside.  Ohio has little in the way of real gemstones- look in any rock and mineral book like I did in my youth.  Oh to live in Arizona!!!  What a list of stones!!!  Or California.  Ohio has calcite, shale, stuff that just has no appeal.  I was crushed.

I am blessed to be here in Bangkok- and why blather on about this?  My point is that you can give me a call on the phone or you can e-mail me and I will be eager to help you.  I enjoy everything about gemstones and I am thrilled to be a gemologist.  This is my work, my hobby, and my passion.  There isn't a question that you have that I would not be happy to field and try to answer.  Give me a try.

dave@tiptopgem.com




The specifications or details of a stone is what everyone wants to know, but it's not what makes a stone special.  I remember long ago my father was selling a business that he had built over many years.  An enquiry came and the potential buyer wanted to know how he came up with the price.  As is par for the course he listed the inventory, land, building, latest improvements, and then "the business".  Those of you who are familiar with real estate know what this is.  It is a type of good-will that you have created with your clients over the years, and what keeps them coming back.  The buyer gave the retort that "you are talking about blue sky.  I won't pay a dime for blue sky."  My father explained in return that "you can't finance blue sky.  The banks just won't do that for you.  But it's the difference between a business that makes money and one that does not."

I can say that this stone has a perfect medium tone, that is has been expertly cut by a ruby specialist for outstanding brilliance, and that it weighs 1.19 carats.  I can say the dimensions are 7.01 x 5.42 x 4.24mm deep.  I can tell you that the hue is very precisely slightly purplish-Red to very slightly purplish-Red.  I can tell you that the clarity is very high at VS, or very slightly included.  But none of these things tell you what you want to know.  If you have ever heard a seller's description of his automobile and then gone to see it you know what I mean.  An automobile that is garage-kept, never driven in the winter, owned by non-smokers who are neat as a pin will have exactly the same description and the same pictures as a 20-year-old heavy metal band bass guitar player.  The presence of the first car is different than the second.  It has amazing presence.  It has alluring presence.  Stones are not any different.  My wife Melanie and I selected this gemstone out of hundreds of them for its presence.  It's what you feel when you see it.  It's what draws your eyes and your heart in.

This auction will last for 14 days.  This stone will be sold for the highest bid.  The auction will end Friday, November 23rd at 11:45PM GMT.  Here is your time reference:

http://wwp.greenwichmeantime.com/

The opening bid is $4,990 and the bid increment is $10.  Bitcoin is accepted.  Bank wire is also accepted.  Escrow is no problem.  You can choose the laboratory to examine this stone and issue a report.  The winning auction price does not include shipping via secure courier service nor insurance.  Please feel free to contact me about any of these expenses or about import tax.  Of course, contact me with any questions you have at all and I will do my best to answer them!

-Dave

Whether you are a collector or looking for that very special and highly exclusive gemstone for your beloved this holiday season, Tip Top Gem is extremely proud to present a stunning Burmese ruby with perfect medium tone and superb cutting for outstanding sparkle.  This is a very clean gemstone and ranks a high VS+ in clarity.  The saturation is top-rate and can easily be called vivid red.  This type of top-rate ruby- truly fine quality- was far, far more common when I started in the trade eight years ago.  Now it seems we see fewer and fewer truly outstanding Burmese rubies.  There is word on the street that as Burma opens up to the West, Gemfields (http://www.gemfields.co.uk/) is attempting to gain control of the major mining areas and this does not bode well for those of us dealing them but for long-term value it will be good for the consumers who already own them.  This is not an investment and I am not representing it as such, and I urge you to beware of anyone selling a colored gemstone as an investment.  I am not an investment advisor.

http://s10.postimage.org/qu2egl6mx/stoplight_red_119a_burma.jpg

As you might know from reading our auctions or if you know us from our eBay time years ago, my wife and I literally hand-select every gemstone that we sell.  This is a lot of work for us- I would guess we looked through several million dollars worth of inventory at a Burmese ruby specialist's office before finding this dazzling, compelling stone that has an urgent presence.  It literally grabs your attention with its charms.

http://s11.postimage.org/6qv6nn3z7/stoplight_red_119b_burma.jpg

As a GIA Graduate Gemologist, I understand my obligation to disclose any treatments that a stone has.  As with virtually all ruby coming from the Mong Hsu mining area in Burma, this ruby has been flux-healed.  This is NOT glass-filling!  This treatment did not change the color of the stone and the stone is natural.  A while back a highly respected gemologist Richard Hughes did an article on this treatment.  It is permanent and requires no special care.  Indeed, ruby is one of the hardest and toughest gemstones on the planet.
 
http://www.ruby-sapphire.com/flux_healing_mong_hsu_ruby.htm

Ruby has always been associated with love, passion, and desire.  Whether you want to rekindle an old flame or throw some petrol on the current fire, this magnificent ruby will happily oblige.  How many gifts have you given that have become outdated, old-fashioned, or cliche?  This gift will last your lifetime and hers, and will become an heirloom for the next generations.

http://postimage.org/image/yedrqc1sb/29fdc6a3/

Speaking of heirlooms, my wife Melanie and I are very experienced in making heirloom quality jewelry.  If you visit our blog at tiptopgem.com and click on the gallery you can see some of the jewelry that we have made.  We are not a stocking jeweler an we don't need a huge mark-up to make your ring, pendant, or earrings.  When we make a piece of heirloom quality jewelry, it is yours and yours alone. 

Many of our clients see a design that they love online.  A Google image search is your friend and it can open your eyes to the possibilities.  Try "ruby pendant" or "sapphire halo ring" and you will see amazing possibilities.  But make sure to stop by tiptopgem.com because you will get a feel for how we do things on this end.  We work with some top artisans to create a dream.  All you need is the dream, our job is to make it happen.

http://s7.postimage.org/a46bmwhgr/stoplight_red_119d.jpg

As a GIA Graduate Gemologist living and working exclusively in the gem trade and being surrounded by the largest wholesale gemstone markets in the world, I can offer a unique service.  Generally a fine gemstone like this one is sold to a wholesaler who then sells to a wholesaler in a consuming ("wealthy") country like Switzerland or Germany or Canada or the United States (never mind that 17 trillion in debt...smoke and mirrors always fixes those things, right?). 

Finally, after many stone dealers have fed their families from the mark-up it makes it's way to the end consumer.  But unless you live in a very wealthy part of a large city you will never, ever see a ruby like this one in your local store.  The wholesaler needs cash and the jeweler wants to buy with credit.  Unless your local jeweler can demonstrate that he has the ability to sell extremely high-end goods, the wholesaler will never "memo" (loan) a stone like this to him. 

You don't have to pay for everyone to eat along the way.  That is why my wife and I are here- not in a consuming nation, but in a cutting center and wholesale stone center.  You and I work together to short-circuit the system.  We cut out everyone in the middle so you get a very fine gemstone at a fraction of the cost of walking into a Hatton Garden jewelry store in London, or a boutique jewelry store in New York City or Zurich or Beijing.  There is just no need to pay for their electricity, for their rent or mortgage, or for their exclusive fancy displays and burled wooden stands and their polished, well-paid salespeople.  I admire and respect all of these things and whenever my wife and I travel we enjoy visiting these places.  But I can't do business with them.  They want a stone on credit.  In essence I am his bank- but my desire has always been stones.  Since I was a very small child I would sift through the stone in our driveway looking for gems- small cavities with tiny crystals inside.  Ohio has little in the way of real gemstones- look in any rock and mineral book like I did in my youth.  Oh to live in Arizona!!!  What a list of stones!!!  Or California.  Ohio has calcite, shale, stuff that just has no appeal.  I was crushed.

I am blessed to be here in Bangkok- and why blather on about this?  My point is that you can give me a call on the phone or you can e-mail me and I will be eager to help you.  I enjoy everything about gemstones and I am thrilled to be a gemologist.  This is my work, my hobby, and my passion.  There isn't a question that you have that I would not be happy to field and try to answer.  Give me a try.

dave@tiptopgem.com


http://postimage.org/image/qf6fj7tyf/4a5836df/

The specifications or details of a stone is what everyone wants to know, but it's not what makes a stone special.  I remember long ago my father was selling a business that he had built over many years.  An enquiry came and the potential buyer wanted to know how he came up with the price.  As is par for the course he listed the inventory, land, building, latest improvements, and then "the business".  Those of you who are familiar with real estate know what this is.  It is a type of good-will that you have created with your clients over the years, and what keeps them coming back.  The buyer gave the retort that "you are talking about blue sky.  I won't pay a dime for blue sky."  My father explained in return that "you can't finance blue sky.  The banks just won't do that for you.  But it's the difference between a business that makes money and one that does not."

I can say that this stone has a perfect medium tone, that is has been expertly cut by a ruby specialist for outstanding brilliance, and that it weighs 1.19 carats.  I can say the dimensions are 7.01 x 5.42 x 4.24mm deep.  I can tell you that the hue is very precisely slightly purplish-Red to very slightly purplish-Red.  I can tell you that the clarity is very high at VS, or very slightly included.  But none of these things tell you what you want to know.  If you have ever heard a seller's description of his automobile and then gone to see it you know what I mean.  An automobile that is garage-kept, never driven in the winter, owned by non-smokers who are neat as a pin will have exactly the same description and the same pictures as a 20-year-old heavy metal band bass guitar player.  The presence of the first car is different than the second.  It has amazing presence.  It has alluring presence.  Stones are not any different.  My wife Melanie and I selected this gemstone out of hundreds of them for its presence.  It's what you feel when you see it.  It's what draws your eyes and your heart in.

This auction will last for 14 days.  This stone will be sold for the highest bid.  The auction will end Friday, November 23rd at 5:00 PM GMT.  Here is your time reference:

http://wwp.greenwichmeantime.com/

The opening bid is $4,990 and the bid increment is $10.  Bitcoin is accepted.  Bank wire is also accepted.  Escrow is no problem.  You can choose the laboratory to examine this stone and issue a report.  The winning auction price does not include shipping via secure courier service nor insurance.  Please feel free to contact me about any of these expenses or about import tax.  Of course, contact me with any questions you have at all and I will do my best to answer them!

-Dave

https://www.bitmit.net/en/trade/i/9174-stoplight-red-burmese-ruby-you-choose-the-lab-that-certifies-it

Give her a splash of love and passion this year.  Eye-opening, jaw-dropping beauty is always in style and always says "You are special to me in a way no other person ever has been or ever will be."

The peaks and valleys of a relationship don't define it; love, passion, and commitment do.  Tell her she is a treasure with a world-class ruby that will be certified by the laboratory of your choice. 

Feel free to call or email if you have any questions.  I am 12 hours ahead of EST.  Our toll free number has always been 800-607-1425 and rings to my cell phone in Bangkok or wherever I happen to be.  If you get voicemail just leave me a number to call you back as I am happy to do so.  Or e-mail me at dave@tiptopgem.com.  I don't just sell stones but am also a Graduate Gemologist from GIA, the most recognized gemology school in the world.

Yes, of course we also specialize in blue sapphire and have access to the widest possible inventory of precious gemstones on the planet here in Bangkok and Chanthaburi, the cutting and market town a few hours away. 

I deal regularly with clients who are well-versed in gemstone buzzwords, and I also form relationships with amateurs who really didn't know that ruby and sapphire are the same mineral (corundum) with different elements to give them color.  No need to be shy- ask a question if you have one.  Gemology is not just my business but it is my life, my hobby, and my passion.

That's a great question.  There are a great many respected gem labs here in Bangkok, and you choose the lab that does the report.  World-leading gemologists at AIGS, GIT, GRS Swisslab, or GIA could examine this stone and issue an independent report demonstrating that it is natural and free of treatments, although some of the more economical choices like Tokyo Gem Lab (renowned for excellence with corundum), or the very competent Hallmark in the Jewelry Trade Center are all fine choices.

Although the price of laboratory report is not included in the price, it can cost as little as $25 with Hallmark.  GIA will charge perhaps $350, GRS 300, and I don't remember the others but it seems Tokyo Gem Lab is around $50.

By the way, you are welcome to order an independent report from the lab of your choice with any stone I sell.  There sure are a lot of people in the gemstone trade, but very few make an offer like this. 

Thank you Aghori!  I really like the idea behind investing more in training and quality machinery in source countries so they can produce fabulous gems.  Very often a large, rare stone like this would move out of Madagascar as rough at a very low price.  By the time it gets to the cutter it has been marked up by several businesses along the way, at which time it is cut on a precision, high-quality machine to exacting standards.

Well, by golly- guess what?  The simple folk living in Madagascar can produce just as fine a stone if given an opportunity to learn and supplied with exceptional equipment.  This means that instead of 99% of the profit being made on the consumer side of the gemstone market- in Europe and America and China for example- a lot more of the profit stays in Madagascar.  Gemstones are like any other natural resource in a way.  If an autocratic or military government wants to let a profiteer come in and cut down all the trees to line the fat cat's pockets, it's hard to prevent.  A lot of charges like this have been leveled against the government and the powerful business people there to gain control of land, sell precious hard wood, and also the northeastern province of the country has some magnificent zircon mines.  Of course the raw materials that are stolen from the people and sold for raw-material prices give nothing back to the economy, they just make the thieves rich. 

At times gemstones seem an even more poignant example because a sapphire discovered by a poor, independent miner armed only with a shovel is extremely likely to sell it to an Indian, Thai, or Sri Lankan rough dealer who moves it down the line- but of course at that juncture it can be purchased for a tiny bit of cash.  A fine sapphire in a consumer market like Germany or Singapore can bring a sum of money that stretches to the stratosphere, but the miner who found it is still digging each day to find the next stone to pay for the next meal and try to keep his children in school.

Even if this stone never sells, I will enjoy it for its beauty and for what it represents, which to me is a step in the right direction for the colored gemstone trade.
 

I will accept 90BTC.  This price includes Federal Express delivery and 5,000 USD insurance on the parcel.  It also includes the Hallmark Report.

50BTC includes registered air mail with tracking!

sold.

The Mozambican ruby is sold.

The Mozambican ruby is now $550.  This includes registered air mail with online tracking.  A report from any highly respected gemological laboratory can be included for a very modest fee- as low as $50.  Please inquire for details.

5BTC includes registered air mail with tracking

70BTC includes registered air mail with tracking

99BTC and same terms on FedEx and insurance