What are rare gems?

Hi everyone,

Have you ever wondered at the definition of rare gems?  I have.  Are they rare because they are scarce?  Are they rare because they are valuable?  Are they considered rare because there are very few places in the world that produce them?  There are alot of questions one can raise in regards to rare gems.  To find out about rare gems and stones one should probably look up the definition of what a rare gem means.

   The Gemological Institute of America has taught students that "gems are specimens of minerals or organic materials used for personal adornment that possess the attributes of beauty, rarity, durability and portability."  In the simplest sense you could say that a rare gemstone is one that is found in limited quantity. In this case we define the term rare to mean, restricted availability of a gem as defined by Kiasilver on their website under the description "Rare gemstones, What Defines A Rare Gem Stone. 

   They also go on to use other defining factors to relate to rareness in gems.  Some of the more popular ways to determine the rareness of a gem is the type of gem.  Some examples of the this type of rarity would be Chrome Diopside which is only found in Russia or Ammolite Gems which can only be found in Southern Alberta, Canada. One other way to determine rarity is through the size of the gem.  The larger the gem the more rare it will be.  Another way to look at what a rare gem could be is through color.  The more saturated or darker the color typically the more rare it would be.  An example of this would be the dark purple blue with flashes of red Tanzanite.  It is easier to find lighter blue Tanzanite but harder to find the darker color so therefore the darker color would be considered more rare and also more valuable.  There is also the definition of the gem as natural.  This would almost be a given based on the fact that lab created gems would not be considered rare at all.  There is also one more definition on the website but even they are hesitant to use it as it based on the shape of the gem.  There are many types of shapes out there and some gems are almost always cut in a certain type shape or shapes.  Some people could say that just because the gem has a different or exotic cut or shape that it is rare.  I personally would not be one of those people.  There are so many skilled gemstone cutters out there that if you had the money and patience you could have a rare cut for almost any type of gem out there.

   On the website Geology 115 basic Terms there is a brief description on what makes a rare gem.  They have written
A gem is rare. There are two types of rarity involved: relative and inherent.

Relative: Many gem minerals occur in various locales and, often, in large deposits, but the vast majority of the material does not approach "gem quality".
Inherent: Other minerals occur in only a few locations or in very small deposits. Inherently rare gems are doubly rare as the fraction of an already small amount of ore which is gem quality is very, very, small indeed. 

   So by looking at all the different definitions out there the reason a gem might be considered rare is scarcity of the gem.  Which is how little of the gem is produced or the quality desired is limited.  There is not alot of the gem material around.  The color, size and type are also used to determine rarity.  I hope this helped everyone out there reading this.  If you have any questions or would just like to comment on the material please leave a comment and I will get back to you.  I hoped it was enjoyable and enlightening.  If you learned anything new then my job is done.  I enjoyed writing this blog and I look forward to hearing from all the people out there who are interested in gems.