info about tanzanite??

I have bought an 18k gold ring with 5 AAA tanzanites totalling 2.5 carats. The authentification card tells me the clarity is SI, is this a poor qualtiy AAA gem and if so, how much will it devalue it by. Could someone also tell me what price would a such a ring of this grade command. I am not sure if i have bought it at a good price or not???

Hello and welcome to the forum

I'll see if I can help but I'm afraid without pictures it's very difficult to give you a guestimate as to how much you should have paid because this depends on the colour of the tanzanite, the cut and not just the clarity (SI). Also whether the gold is white or yellow plays a part, the gram weight of the ring and if there are any accent diamonds.

However, laying that aside here's some information that might help you:-

1. There is alot of Zoisite (Tanzanite) on the market. More often than not it's eye clean, or virtually eye clean.
2. SI is not actually a true grade. The GIA use SI1 and SI2 to distinguish between inclusions. Since there is no SI1 or 2 stated I would assume that some of your Tanzanites are SI1 and others SI2.
3. Should an AAA Tanzanite have an SI clarity? No.
4. What does AAA Tanzanite mean? It usually means THE FINEST quality Tanzanite. Would an SI1/2 Tanzanite meet that criteria? In my opinion, no. It should be eye clean or virtually eye clean with top colour and cut. Quite frankly, the AAA term seems to be applied to gemstones that should never ever be given that grading.
5. The colour of Tanzanite is a major factor in defining cost. A pale lilac colour is the cheapest of Tanzanite. A deep stone that you can't see through that literally radiates colour back and is predominately blue with purple/pink flashes is ideal.
6. How much is your ring worth? Well, without seeing it and knowing a bit more info, it's impossible to say. However, typically gemstones under 1ct are not worth as much as those that hit the 1ct mark or more. So the fact that you have 5 stones (presumably all of .5ct), even though it adds up to 2.5ct would NOT attract the same £ as a ring with a 2.5ct stone. A good quality 2.5ct ring (with just ONE gemstone) in 18k w/gold and no diamonds will sell for around £650700ish.
7. The cut of your Tanzanites is also very important. I won't comment on the general cutting of gemstones at Rocks and Co but do a search on this forum if you want more information.

What I would suggest is that you watch The Jewellery Channel and benchmark prices against what they have. Their Iliana and Rhapsody range usually feature very good quality Tanzanites and diamonds and a hefty goldweight. So you tend to get more for your £.

Hope that helps.

Just a thought, wouldn't the SI apply to any diamonds (if that is the case) within the ring? I can honestly say i don't think i've ever heard Tanzanite referred to as SI??

Tabs said:

Just a thought, wouldn't the SI apply to any diamonds (if that is the case) within the ring? I can honestly say i don't think i've ever heard Tanzanite referred to as SI??

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Zoisite (if certified), is graded in the normal way, i.e. internally flawless, eye clean, very very slight inclusions (VVSI 1 and 2) etc etc. Next time you're watching a loose gem show on TJC they sometimes show the IGI certs and you can see the grading on there.

Birmingham Assay Office

The gem was graded as SI (slightly included) by the Birmingham Assay Office if that helps.

gourangaoo said:

The gem was graded as SI (slightly included) by the Birmingham Assay Office if that helps.

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Sorry I'm confused - you say the gem (singular) is certified but you've said there are 5 stones?????? Is it a centre stone with 4 side stones?

appologies

I should have referred to 'gem' as in plural. It has 5 tanzanites, the centre being the largest, the next two slightly smaller and the outer two, the smallest in size.

Aaaaaah makes sense now!!!

Ok, .....

If your report was issued by the Birmingham Assay Office http://www.anchorcert.co.uk/tanzanite.html then you can safely say that it has been independently certified and therefore what it says on the certificate is what you've got. Interestingly, as you will see from the link, their A, AA, AAA, AAAA grading is somewhat different from the grading that has typically been used by jewellery channels. Their grading refers to saturation/intensity of the gemstone - jewellery channels used to use the AAA system to indicate quality not intensity of gemstones. So there is a difference in how the term is being applied.

IF your gemstones have been rated as AAA and an SI then that's a reasonable quality but as you can see from the link, it's not top in terms of colour intensity and clarity. So if you want to find out if you've paid a fair price you need to take that into consideration and compare like for like.

IF your report isn't an Anchorcert then the above may not apply! Sorry to be so "if" and "buts" but I'm trying to give you as much information as I can for you to benchmark against.

mmmm

I paid £439 for it, is that good value. I wanted it as an investment really, but not sure if the clarity will let it down?? Thanks for all your help, it is really interesteing to hear the comments of someone who obviously knows what they are talking about.Yes i do have the Anchorcert

gourangaoo said:

I have bought an 18k gold ring with 5 AAA tanzanites totalling 2.5 carats. The authentification card tells me the clarity is SI, is this a poor qualtiy AAA gem and if so, how much will it devalue it by. Could someone also tell me what price would a such a ring of this grade command. I am not sure if i have bought it at a good price or not???

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gourangaoo said:

I paid £439 for it, is that good value. I wanted it as an investment really, but not sure if the clarity will let it down?? Thanks for all your help, it is really interesteing to hear the comments of someone who obviously knows what they are talking about.Yes i do have the Anchorcert

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:hi: Hi Gourangaoo.......phew that's a bit awkward to spell! mysmilie_1436
Welcome to the forum. Hope you don't mind me quoting two of your above posts, but I am a tad
confused here about the carat weight of your ring and the price you paid for it. Can you confirm
that you did buy it from Rocks&Co? Seems a remarkably low price for one of their pieces.....

2.5 carats

the ring has 5 gems, one large, two smaller and two smaller still. The total carat weight is 2.5 and its an 18kt gold band. The ring is AAA si graded by Birmingham Assay.Is it still a good price??

gourangaoo said:

I paid £439 for it, is that good value. I wanted it as an investment really, but not sure if the clarity will let it down?? Thanks for all your help, it is really interesteing to hear the comments of someone who obviously knows what they are talking about.Yes i do have the Anchorcert

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Hi Gourangaoo and welcome to the forum. Buying jewellery for an investment is a risky business. I'm sure Meeshoo will be along soon to explain how you very seldom make a profit from selling second hand jewellery. If you love the ring and will wear it then if I were you I'd forget the "investment" and just keep the ring and enjoy it. Just my opinion of course, but I wouldn't be taken in by all the "Tanzanite hype" because there's plenty of Tanzanite available just now and it'll be a very very long time before you can't get it.

gourangaoo said:

the ring has 5 gems, one large, two smaller and two smaller still. The total carat weight is 2.5 and its an 18kt gold band. The ring is AAA si graded by Birmingham Assay.Is it still a good price??

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Do you have the item number and we can try to have a look at your ring?

numbers

There are two numbers on the card, not sure which you require, so I will give you both. Report number 1/14392-093 and a 4 digit number which is 1773. I know i would be holding on to the gems for a long time to ever see any profit, but it would be just nice to know i havent paid over the odds.
:thinking2:

gourangaoo said:

There are two numbers on the card, not sure which you require, so I will give you both. Report number 1/14392-093 and a 4 digit number which is 1773. I know i would be holding on to the gems for a long time to ever see any profit, but it would be just nice to know i havent paid over the odds.
:thinking2:

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Those numbers are from the Anchorcert - do you have the item number from Rocks and Co? I've personally never seen Rocks and Co sell anything with an Anchorcert. Did you buy it from them or elsewhere?

I've got to second what Klos has said about jewellery and an investment. NEVER buy jewellery for investment purposes UNLESS it's an incredibly rare stone. Tanzanite doesn't qualify I'm afraid. I'm going to be blunt and say that if you were to try to sell your ring, you'd probably only get about £100 ish for it.

The second hand market for jewellery is fierce. Tanzanite is in abundance (certified and uncertified) and your ring probably won't increase in price in your lifetime significantly enough for you to make a decent profit. However, if your objective is to pass the ring to your children and for them to pass it on to theirs, then you're investing in their future - but there are NO guarantees.

The price you paid is ok for a 5 gemstone piece (presuming it's in 18k w/gold with no accent diamonds and a reasonable gram weight) BUT BUT BUT without seeing photos, knowing the exact carat weight of each stone blah blah blah you're asking the impossible as to whether you've paid a fair price. If you want an opinion perhaps you should go to a Safeguard Valuation Day. They charge about £45 but for that you get a written value (i.e. if the item were lost how much would it be to replace - IT'S NOT AN INDICATION OF WORTH THOUGH). If you go to the Safeguard website www.safeguard.co.uk you can see when they're in your area. They're part of the Birmingham Assay Office and totally independent.

thankyou for the advise

So if I was wanting to buy a ring for £500 as an ivestment, do you have any reccommendations of gems to choose?

gourangaoo said:

So if I was wanting to buy a ring for £500 as an ivestment, do you have any reccommendations of gems to choose?

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No because there are too many variables when buying gemstones. Unless you are experienced and know what you're looking for it's a minefield.

In any case, I wouldn't recommend buying gemstones or jewellery for investment full stop.

Meeshoo said:

Aaaaaah makes sense now!!!

Ok, .....

If your report was issued by the Birmingham Assay Office http://www.anchorcert.co.uk/tanzanite.html then you can safely say that it has been independently certified and therefore what it says on the certificate is what you've got. Interestingly, as you will see from the link, their A, AA, AAA, AAAA grading is somewhat different from the grading that has typically been used by jewellery channels. Their grading refers to saturation/intensity of the gemstone - jewellery channels used to use the AAA system to indicate quality not intensity of gemstones. So there is a difference in how the term is being applied.

IF your gemstones have been rated as AAA and an SI then that's a reasonable quality but as you can see from the link, it's not top in terms of colour intensity and clarity. So if you want to find out if you've paid a fair price you need to take that into consideration and compare like for like.

IF your report isn't an Anchorcert then the above may not apply! Sorry to be so "if" and "buts" but I'm trying to give you as much information as I can for you to benchmark against.

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Hi Meeshoo thanks for putting this info on, i bought a tanzanite ring - and i notice under the grading system, it is A. I didnt buy my ring as an investment, (and I didnt get it from gems or R&C) its 5 x 3mm stones (round) set in 9ct white gold. I paid £81.00. The stones are very pale almost a light lilac colour A grade stone - but then in different types of light the stones seem to lighten/darken. Is it the lighter/pale tanzanite a cheap stone? have i been had - is it over priced ? I would be grateful for your comments and knowledge. thank you :flower::flower: xxx

Just my opinion here..but i don't think any Tanzanite is a "cheap stone". Obviously there are different grades of Tanzy, just like diamonds, but if you want what has been affectionately termed on the forum.."Cadburys colour Tanzy" (deep purple) your not going to pick that up cheaply.

I agree, Tabs, tanzanite is rarely 'cheap' is it? £81 is about the going rate I think, for lighter colours (and taking the gold into account)- I paid £84 for a cluster totalling 2.5 cts of light tanzanite and I don't THINK (hope) I've paid over the odds. My Cadbury tanzies cost a fortune (in my budget) but they give me a ridiculous amount of pleasure and were therefore worth it.

I don't actually know anything much about worth / value etc but do know if it gives you pleasure, it's a good deal!

N x

NikkiS said:

I agree, Tabs, tanzanite is rarely 'cheap' is it? £81 is about the going rate I think, for lighter colours (and taking the gold into account)- I paid £84 for a cluster totalling 2.5 cts of light tanzanite and I don't THINK (hope) I've paid over the odds. My Cadbury tanzies cost a fortune (in my budget) but they give me a ridiculous amount of pleasure and were therefore worth it.

I don't actually know anything much about worth / value etc but do know if it gives you pleasure, it's a good deal!

N x

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Hi - i do love my ring, its just that the jewellery channels dont seem to sell a lot of the paler tanzy, well not from what i have seen. but thank you to you and Tabs, for your feed back, it is gratefully received xxxxxxx