Spinels

Spinels are well worth a look! Often mistaken for other better known gems, the Black Prince's "Ruby" in the crown jewels , the oldest gem in that collection, is actually a spinel! It's history goes back to the 14th century, but was not classified as a spinel until the 18th. valuable in their own right, spinels are often overlooked by gem buyers allowing great buys if you know what to look for. I pass on special pricing to you.. Spinels are 7.5 to 8 on the moh's scale.

Spinels values vary wildly depending on colour.  Red wholesale to the trade today for approx. $25 for a 1 cwt stone of very low grade quality to approx. $4,000 for a one carat example of extra fine quality green. 1cwt fine quality blues fetch about $800, pinks $2,000! Larger spinels can fetch upwards of $7,000 per carat The retail price will be several times that, depending on the retailers markup.