DETAIL: Beware! The vast majority of alexandrite offered in the USA is synthetic. The American Gemological Institute estimates that less than 1 in every 100,000 Americans has ever even seen genuine, natural alexandrite. This is a stunning, brilliant, gorgeous, rare, natural green alexandrite gemstone from the Ural Mountains of Russia. The gemstone was hand crafted and faceted by a 19th century Russian artisan, part of an heritage renown for the production of the elaborate gemstones and jewelry of the Czars of Medieval, Renaissance, and Victorian Russia. As you can see in these photo enlargements, the gemstone is absolutely clean to the unaided eye. Even in these 600% photo enlargements it is exceedingly difficult to discern what blemishes that the gemstone possesses. It may be conservatively described as “eye clean”. 
The gemstone is green, when it is so inclined, at least. The color under most lighting conditions is the classic alexandrite green, reminiscent of both peridot and emerald. However under strong white light, the stone magically transforms itself into a hue ranging from rose-peach to blue-violet. No matter what light source we used to image this gemstone, whether scanner or camera, it turned color. In hand, under most lighting conditions, it is most assuredly green. But the charm of these remarkable gemstones, at least in the higher qualities, is the dramatic color change they are capable of. And true to its reputation, the light of the scanner turned this precious gemstone rose-peach, a decent digital camera showed the color as blue-violet. All of these pictures are of the same gemstone! The color depends upon the light source (color spectrum) and intensity/brightness. This remarkable gemstone is capable of all of those colors, a true chameleon, quite an extraordinary precious gemstone.
The green images were produced using a filter which suppresses the normal color change so as to produce an image of matching color (to show you the normal color of the gemstone). But the remaining images which were produced with a high definition scanner and a high quality Nikon digital camera give more detail and show you what the gemstone looks like when “fully illuminated”. This fascinating and sumptuous gemstone was hand crafted into this sparkling faceted oval in 19th century Russia, the fabled land of the incredibly sophisticated, sumptuous gemstones and jewelry of the Czars. It is a gorgeous gemstone, full of fire and sparkle, vibrant, and possessing good clarity and color. It is truly a special gemstone, quite rare, and genuine, natural Russian alexandrite are exceedingly difficult to obtain in sizes approaching 1 carat or more.
Under magnification the gemstone shows the unmistakable characteristics of having been hand crafted. The coarseness of the 19th century finish is considered appealing to most gemstone collectors, and is not considered a detriment, or detract from the value of a gemstone. These characteristics are not only expected of hand-finished gemstones, most serious collectors consider such gemstones more desirable, possessed of greater character and uniqueness when compared to today's cookie-cutter mass-produced machine-faceted gemstones. Unlike today’s computer controlled machine produced gemstones, the cut and finish of a gemstone such as this is the legacy of an artisan who lived two centuries ago.
For those who do not know, alexandrite was only produced for about fifteen years during Czarist (Imperial Russia), in the nineteenth century, before the only known mine of any significance played out. For over a hundred years the sole source of alexandrite was "recycled" Russian jewelry. Russian alexandrite is still considered to be the world's best, though very small deposits of inferior alexandrite have been found outside of the Ural Mountains in recent years. Given the rarity of the gemstone, and the enormous demand, reasonably good specimens are hard to find. Flawless or near flawless specimens of any significant size have almost resulted in duels between buyers vying for the privilege of being a selected purchaser.
This gemstone possesses superb luster and sparkle, and to the eye is completely transparent, but one cannot really say that it is absolutely flawless, as most gemstones which are “absolutely flawless” turn out to be synthetic. However whatever blemishes this gemstone might possess are not visible to the naked eye, or really even in these 600% photo enlargements, and the gemstone can be characterized at a minimum, to use trade jargon, as "eye clean", perhaps not too terribly far removed from “loupe clean”. To the eye it is indeed flawless; however magnified 600%, as it is here, or in a 10x scope, you might be able to just barely pick out one or two slight imperfections within the gemstone, barely perceptible even at such high magnification. Of course the same may said about almost any natural gemstone. Absolutely flawless gemstones simply are not the rule in nature. Most absolutely flawless gemstones will upon close examination be revealed to be synthetic. You might also notice under magnification occasional irregularities in the cut and finish.
Naturally these characteristics are not only expected of hand-finished gemstones, you must also consider that two centuries ago the mining techniques prevalent did not allow the ultra deep mining operations which are so common today. Keep in mind that two centuries ago mankind was more or less limited to surface deposits or near surface deposits of gemstones. Higher quality gemstones which today are routinely mined from beneath hundreds of meters, even kilometers beneath the earth's surface, were simply inaccessible then. For these reasons antique gemstones must be appreciated as antiques first, gemstones second. The relatively superlative quality of contemporary gemstones routinely mined from deep beneath the earth's surface today were simply not accessible two centuries ago, or at least, only rarely so. However for most, the unique nature and character of antique gemstones such as this more than makes up for a slightly irregular finish and minute blemishes, characteristics which by and large, are only visible under magnification.
HISTORY: Most sources credit the discovery of this very unique gemstone to the year 1830 on the birthday of Prince (and ultimately Czar) Alexander II in the Ural mountains in Russia. In celebration of Prince Alexander's coming-of-age, this remarkable gemstone was named after him. Alexandrite was popular in imperial Russia both with the royal family and the wealthy elite, both because of its association with the Czar, and because red and green were the colors of the Russian Empire. Alexandrite is known as a "color change" gemstone. It is emerald green in daylight, and a purplish red under artificial lights or twilight. It belongs to the chrysoberyl family of gems, and one of the most extraordinary types is a cats-eye variety of alexandrite, possessing a remarkably prominent "cat's eye".
Alexandrite is well known as an extremely scarce and very costly gem. The quality of color change with different illumination is the primary basis for its quality and price. No more than one person out of 100,000 has ever seen a real Alexandrite gemstone, although synthetic Alexandrite is common and widely available. It is likely that if you read the fine print of 99% of the Alexandrite offered at retail jeweler's, you will find it to be "laboratory produced" - synthetic. If there is a huge color change from a very intense green to a very intense purple, you can be 99.9% sure that both the color change and the gemstone itself is synthetic. The shift in color of natural gemstones is much more subtle. Kind of like the difference in taste between fruit juice and Kool-Aide. One is subtle and natural, the other brassy and synthetic.
However even as an artificially grown stone, alexandrite often commands a retail price of $300.00 to $500.00 per carat. Of course, alexandrite can be found in Russian jewelry of the imperial era, as it was well loved by the Russian master jewelers. Master gemologist George Kunz of Tiffany was a fan of alexandrite, and the company produced many rings featuring fine alexandrite in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, including some set in platinum from the twenties. Some Victorian jewelry from England features sets of small alexandrite. However the original source in Russia's Ural Mountains has long since closed after producing for only a few decades, and only a few stones can be found on the Russian market today.
In the past 15 years some very small deposits of Alexandrite have been discovered in Brazil, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, and Mozambique. However the Brazilian gemstones tend to have washed out colors when cut, and the African and Celanese sources produce very dark, not brightly colored gemstones. The cut Alexandrite originating from Russia is usually "harvested" from vintage jewelry. For over a century this source of "recycled" gemstones from Russia was the only source of Alexandrite, and for many years, alexandrite was almost impossible to find because there was so little available. Russian Alexandrite remains elusive. A few specimens are still found from time-to-time in the Ural Mountains of Russia, and are sometimes available as an unset stone, but it is extremely rare in fine qualities. Stones over 5 carats are almost unknown.
You might guess I travel extensively for a living. My profession is a purchasing agent for antique gemstones, which generally come from Russia, India, Ceylon, and Siam. I grew up in the Southern Urals of Russia, just miles away from some of the greatest gemstone producing regions in the world’s history. Alexandrite, diamond, emerald, sapphire, chrysoberyl, topaz, demantoid garnet, and many other rare and precious gemstones are produced from the mountains within mere minutes or a few hours from the city I once called home. My interest in the fabulous history of Russian gemstones and the fabulous jewelry of the Czar’s led to further education and contacts in India, Ceylon, and Siam, other ancient centers of gemstone production and finishing. Though perhaps difficult to find in the USA, antique gemstones are commonly unmounted from old, broken settings – the gold reused – the gemstones recut and reset.
Before this happens, before these gorgeous antique gemstones are recut, I try to acquire the best of them in their original, antique, hand-finished state – most of them centuries old. I believe that the work created by these long-gone master artisans is worth protecting and preserving rather than destroying this heritage of antique gemstones by recutting the original work out of existence. That by preserving their work, in a sense, we are preserving their lives and the legacy they left for modern times. Far better to appreciate their craft than to destroy it with modern cutting. Not everyone agrees – fully 95% or more of the antique gemstones which come into these marketplaces are recut, and the heritage of the past lost. But if you agree with me that the past is worth protecting, and that past lives and the produce of those lives still matters today, consider buying an antique, hand cut, natural gemstone rather than one of the mass-produced machine cut (often synthetic or “lab produced”) gemstones which dominate the market today.
In my travels back and forth between the USA, Asia, and Eastern Europe I also tend to accumulate a lot of books, CD’s, and audio recordings. So I oftentimes have lightly used CD’s, once-read books, audio recordings, and even some antique books I buy in Europe for sale as well. And occasionally I will find such a good buy on contemporary jewelry for my clients that I will purchase a few extra pieces to offer on eBay. These are always offered clearly labeled as contemporary, and not antiques – just to avoid confusion. I also end up with boatloads of jewelry and gemstone samples which were not fully distributed to the retailers I purchase on behalf of. Some really great pieces, including antiques, pearls, as well as some pieces of antique Russian jewelry.
I have always been fascinated with jewelry and gemstones. Bangkok, Taipei, Hong Kong, Moscow, and Bombay are great places to find incredible deals on both gemstones and jewelry, and over the years I have made many friends within the trade in these five cities. So you can look for a steady flow of little treasures I discover in my travels, and I will be happy to share with you the best deals I can find through my industry acquaintances in these far-off Asian lands. Though I spend a good part of each year in Europe and Asia, most of the year I am here in the United States, and that's where all of my little treasures are. So you can count on quick shipping and careful packaging. And if I am not home - I have someone who does it for me!
Domestic shipping is $3.99 for first class mail or $6.99 for Priority Mail. Domestic rates include USPS Delivery Confirmation (you might be able to update the status of your shipment on-line at the USPS Web Site
). Canadian shipments are $3.99 for Air Mail; International shipments are $4.99 for Air Mail (and generally are NOT tracked; trackable shipments are EXTRA). I can add most other items I sell to the shipment for only $0.99 each. Your purchase will ordinarily be shipped within 48 hours of payment. We package as well as anyone in the business, with lots of protective padding and containers. 
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