Despite the printing errors G.I.A. is adamant that they don't certify anything, or any one. They issue reports , Diplomas when titles are earned, and Certificates of completion for each component class completed successfully. This is a subtle but significant distinction.
I know it was a mistake, but I operate on a strict "no backsies" policy here I agree that doesn't look to be canary tourmaline, just (still nice and uncommon) golden material. I would think it would be defined by color rather than chemical content though.
Post subject: Re: Canary tourmaline and Zambian emeralds
Posted: Mon Nov 16, 2020 11:43 pm
Gold Member
Joined: Tue Apr 05, 2016 7:58 pm Posts: 1424 Location: San Marcos, CA
All my wife's diplomas are from SM campus, I am not sure what they depict as far as this conversation is concerned. Will take a look and see. Back then the classes were all separated. I was going to enroll in the CAD classes several years back, but $$$$$ were tight.
Post subject: Re: Canary tourmaline and Zambian emeralds
Posted: Mon Nov 16, 2020 11:44 pm
Site Admin
Joined: Sun Oct 16, 2005 12:22 pm Posts: 21602 Location: San Francisco
Stephen Challener wrote:
Barbra Voltaire, FGG wrote:
Random neural firing: To begin with, it annoys me when someone refers to a GIA educated gemologist as "certified". The GIA does not "certify" anything. In addition, they do not offer "certificates", they provide identification reports.
Oh really?
They sent a replacement, pictured above and told me to destroy the original but I didn't.
Post subject: Re: Canary tourmaline and Zambian emeralds
Posted: Tue Nov 17, 2020 4:31 pm
Valued Contributor
Joined: Wed May 27, 2020 4:20 am Posts: 128
Thank you all for the very detailed discussion about certification and issues surrounding such certifications from GIA. Its good to be on a forum where there are experienced individuals who know this craft, unlike me who is just learning. I registered myself on this forum just a few months ago, but its been a good learning experience.
The crux of the argument is: get a certificate! Right. I will, and then share it here. Perhaps I'd give Barbara's recommended labs a try and see what comes up.
No, joking aside reputable labs generally don't give 'certificates' anymore because of legal issues that come along with that language. They issue lab reports giving their best opinion of what's going on with the stone based on the data they collected. I don't know if there are any notable exceptions to this.
Post subject: Re: Canary tourmaline and Zambian emeralds
Posted: Tue Nov 17, 2020 10:15 pm
Site Admin
Joined: Sun Oct 16, 2005 12:22 pm Posts: 21602 Location: San Francisco
Let's start by getting an identification report..........cough cough. As Stephen said, there are NO reputable labs who issue "certificates".
Also , tourmaline is strongly dichroic. If you are using a laptop give it a spin on a white background. Should show 2 colors easily. Cell phones won't work. Laptops display with plane polarized light and cell phones use circular polarization.
And, tourmaline is pyroelectric. If you rub the stone with a natural fiber like wool or silk, it will heat and will pick up small ashes or tiny bits of cut paper.
ICA wrote:
As tourmaline cools off, it releases a positive charge at one end and a negative one at the other, which causes it to oscillate. This is known as 'pyro-electricity', derived from the Greek word 'pyr', meaning fire. The Dutch, who were the first to bring tourmaline to Europe, were familiar with this effect a long time before it was given a scientific explanation. They used a heated tourmaline to draw up the ash from their meerschaum pipes, and called the gemstone “aschentrekker.”
Post subject: Re: Canary tourmaline and Zambian emeralds
Posted: Fri Nov 20, 2020 10:16 pm
New to the Forum or The Quiet Type
Joined: Sat Jul 18, 2020 11:56 am Posts: 1
Could you please tell me a little more about this test?
Also , tourmaline is strongly dichroic. If you are using a laptop give it a spin on a white background. Should show 2 colors easily. Cell phones won't work. Laptops display with plane polarized light and cell phones use circular polarization.
I have what I think is a yellow tourmaline and when I hold it up against laptop screen (looking through the culet), it looks like there are two colors - red on one side and almost a while on the other. Does this make sense? Is this what I should be looking for?
Post subject: Re: Canary tourmaline and Zambian emeralds
Posted: Thu Nov 26, 2020 8:18 am
Valued Contributor
Joined: Wed May 27, 2020 4:20 am Posts: 128
@Barbara No I haven't done the laptop test b/c I don't have one. Using a desktop. Not sure if the test you mentioned can be performed on desktop. Anyway, I am gonna get a report from the lab you pointed out and share it here. I guess that'll clear up everything.
Post subject: Re: Canary tourmaline and Zambian emeralds
Posted: Thu Nov 26, 2020 12:20 pm
Gemology Online Veteran
Joined: Sat May 22, 2010 2:51 am Posts: 755 Location: South Africa
Yes, you can test for pleochroism with a desktop computer. The screen produces plane polarized light. Rotate the stone in front of the screen showing a white page. Rotate it in various different orientations. If it is pleochroic you will see different colors or different shades of the same color in different orientations.
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