WHAT IS A GEMSTONE? A G emstone is a collective term for all ornamental stones that possess the following attributes: Beauty Rarity Durability Demand Tradition Portability GEMSTONES HAVE THREE BASIC ORIGINS: Inorganic: minerals. Organic: formed from living organisms. Man-made: formed in a laboratory environment. WHAT IS A MINERAL? A mineral can be defined as being of inorganic origin with a definite chemical composition, physical properties which are relatively constant and a crystalline structure. In mineralogy , there are several thousand minerals listed, but only about 100 have been cut as gemstones with fewer than 50 having the necessary qualities to be truly classed as “Gemstones”. WHAT IS A ROCK? A rock can be defined as any mineral or mixture of minerals that make up an important part of the earth’s crust. Examples: Granite (Feldspar, Quartz and Mica) Lapis Lazuli: (Lazurite, Sodalite, Calcite and Pyrite) THERE ARE THREE MAIN GROUPS OF ROCKS, NAMELY: Ign...