Alexandrite ring

I have seen an alexandrite and diamond ring in a local jewellers. Inside the shop and in the window, it displays as an olive browny golden colour but in the daylight it turns a deep bluey green. The alex is 3.3 carats and is flanked by two 0.25 carat diamonds. It is set into 18ct white gold. There is a EGL report dated 2007 for the alex which says it's a natural colour change. I was told it's a new ring and there is no mention of the diamond grading on the EGL report, so I guess it's been made up at a later date and the report was just on the alex. Bearing in mind the colour change is not from green to purple, is the price of nearly £4,000 too much? I appreciate that jewellers have a high mark up but also know that alexandrites are rare. I can't stop thinking about it and am seriously considering saving up for it as I think it is absolutely stunning, but would value your opinions as much as possible without being able to see the ring or the stones.

Your description bothers me greatly because it indicates a really poor quality Alex (sorry).

First of all, don't trust EGL. They are NOT good and NOT known for coloured gemstones. I wouldn't use them or trust them. AGL, Gubelin, GRS (maybe) and AIGS (maybe) are the ones to use.

Because of the colour change, this is NOT a good Alexandrite. Don't forget the "value" of an Alex is in the colour change and colour. The colours you're describing can be found very easily and I'd be more inclined to call this a Chrysoberyl rather than an Alex.

Have a look at www.multicolour.com for some comparitors. David, who runs the site, is one of the worlds foremost experts (not to mention a nice guy). He prices accordingly to "value" so if something is relatively cheap (if you know what I mean) then it's because it's not as good as the others.

Alex prices have risen expotentially in the past couple of years - more so than any other gem I think - but David has left his pricing alone because some of his stones he's had for a while and purchased them when they were easier/cheaper to buy.

One other thing you need to bear in mind ............ you mention it's a new ring. What's to say that the Alex is the one in the report? Okay, measurements will help but if a gem is set it's very difficult to be precise. It's not unknown for people to have a gem with a report taken out of a setting and a lesser gem or synthetic put back in but being sold with the lab report.

I'm sorry but there are too many warning bells going off on this one.


EDIT: Sorry, I forgot to say ...........here's a 3ct not good Alex and you can see it's just under £1k. http://www.multicolour.com/detail/?245428434 the reason for this price is the colour way. Here's a better colourway and look at the price now! http://www.multicolour.com/detail/?807488068 and that's for a poorly cut and not excellent example!

Hi Meeshoo, fantastic reply. Many thanks. I was also doubting the EGL report somewhat as I believe they can be faked and particularly as it didn't say anything about the diamonds, only the alex. I was going to go back and try the ring under incandescent light to see if it showed any purple/red tones. I attach a photo of the ring taken from the jewellers website. The colour in the photo is very similar to what the colour was in the shop. It was only when it was put into daylight out of the way of the shop lights that it turned teal dark green. What do you reckon from the photo?

I'm so sorry Greenie but if that picture represents what you're seeing then it's not good. Those olive tones are really not desired. I suspect that the jeweller has daylight bulbs in his shop which is why you're seeing different colours BUT even accounting for that, none of mine have ever shown that olive colour. It's really not desirable. Even if it looks like an amethyst in incandescent lighting I would still give it a miss.

I honestly think you can get better for your money. Please don't settle for second best.

Just a note on the EGL report - is it for the ring OR just for the Alex? If it's just for the Alex then it wouldn't mention the diamonds. EGL really isn't good for this though. AGL are the people to go to.

Hi Meeshoo, I went to look at the ring again yesterday and took an incandescent torch with me. This time, I took the ring right outside the shop (the assistant came with me!) but this time it didn't change to the teal green I saw last time when I held it by the door inside the shop. It stayed the same olivey green outside as what I saw inside the shop. I also shone the torch on it (whilst shielding it from the daylight) and it didn't change colour at all. Not even a different shade of green, and certainly no purple/pink. It looks like you are right - it is a chrysoberyl rather than a true Alexandrite.

The EGL report was not for the whole ring, just the Alex. It says the size of the stone, the fact that it's a colour change, and it's natural untreated, and other stuff which I can't remember.

I still think it's a stunning ring and I would love to own it, but at the end of the day it's a ring with a green stone (not a true Alex) and not worth what they're asking for it so I won't be buying it. Thank you so much for your advice and for saving me £4,000!