Gemstones DK Handbooks Paperback Cally Hall 9781405357975 Books
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A new edition of the clearest, most authoritative guide to gemstones you will find From Amber to Rubellite, discover over 130 varieties of cut and uncut stones, organic gemstones and precious metals. 800 incredible photos, precise annotations and detailed descriptions, including everything from gemstone shapes to their composition, will help you to identify different stones quickly and easily.Covers everything from what a gemstone is and where they occur to the natural properties they have and how they have been fashioned and imitated through the ages. Perfect for gemstone lovers - a comprehensive guide for collectors.
Gemstones DK Handbooks Paperback Cally Hall 9781405357975 Books
Showing a lot of photos of gems and stones. Of the clear ones, probably half have a "window" (cut too shallow). No wonder the online jewelry sellers get away with selling that kind of junk...One book I've read said that windowed stones are almost worthless...granted, they show the color well, but it's a shame to have them in a gemstone book.Been collecting rocks, gems and minerals for many years, and have several versions of Schumann which I think is of greater value, with more information.
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Gemstones DK Handbooks Paperback Cally Hall 9781405357975 Books Reviews
What a great book. Its small that it could fit in a purse, glove compartment or just about any where. Its a great book to have on you when you travel. It is full of pictures and tell everything you need to know and look for in a stone. I have been collecting for almost 20 years and I still every now and then buy a stone that I don't know to much on. This book will help me. I love it and I intend to have on me from now on.
This is a truly worthwhile reference for gem lovers. Excellent photographs and enough technical detail for the amateur gemologist. Even if you do not collect gemstones this book will satisfy you.
I bought this for my nephew and he can't put it down! He loves gemstones and things! We love how the book shows the rough gem and then the polished gem.
I fear that I am a bit of a magpie. I like shiny sparkly things, and the usual response is Ooooh! Shiny! And as a young one, when taken on various trips, I started to take an interest in rockhounding and geology. It was finding gemstones that were the real fun, seeing these little bits of glittery rock that turned out to be sapphires or amethysts or garnets. Life would take me in different directions, but the interest in pretty, glittery rocks has remained.
Smithsonian Handbooks Gemstones is one of those lovely little books that is crammed full of information and pictures, along some folklore and bits of trivia that add to the mystique of gemstones. Compiled by Cally Hall, it's a very readable book, filled with more than 800 photographs, with a text that while it is slanted towards scientific terms, is very readable and accessable.
The first section of the book is an extended introduction to what makes a gemstone different than say, a mineral, although they might be composed of the same chemicals. A brief history of how gemstones and precious metals (silver, gold and platinum) have been shaped, worn and coveted. One section that I found very intesting was the explaination of the Mohs scale used to determined hardness -- it ranges from 1 to 10, with talc at the bottom, and diamond at the top, and how a stone is determined to fit in along the scale. Another fascinating section is how light and crystallization help to determine gemstones, and what part they play in how a stone is shaped and graded. There is also a section on synthetic gemstones and how they have been created over the centuries, and how the colour of stones can be changed by irradiation, heating and staining the stones. Finally, the section closes with a colour key, ranging various stones by their hues, with plenty of vivid pictures and the name of each stone underneath along with the page that goes into more detail about it.
The next section deals with the gemstones and precious metals in particular. Each item is classified into Precious Metals, Cut Stones, and Organics -- and each item is given a page or two that goes into further detail. Stones are given their chemical composition, rating on the Mohs scale, crystal structure, some folklore and history, what sort of cuts that the stones are usually shaped into, and lots of photographs.
It here in the photographs that the book sells itself. They are unusually clear, and crisply printed, with each gemstone being shown in a variety of ways. There is jewelry, different colours that the stone can occur in, and a few shown in their 'matrix' or the surrounding stone and minerals that the gemstones are usually found in their natural state. One of the more intriguing sections is on what are known as Organic Gemstones -- stones that are created by natural, not chemical, occurances, such as pearls, jet, coral, ivory, shell and amber.
The final sections include a table of properties, glossary, index, and some useful addresses to contact if you find that you want to find out more.
The binding is very sturdy, the printing very clean and crisp with the design well-thought out that flows easily from page to page. It is designed to stand up to quite a bit of use, with a spine that will not crack, and heavier than usual paper stock, and the quality is top notch.
Packed into less than a 160 pages, this is a wonderfully priced little book that gives a quick, informative and lively look at gemstones. While it's certainly not a perfect book, and is mostly designed to help the reader figure out what a stone may or may not be -- only a trained gemologist can tell you what it really is -- it's a fun way to start learning. The price was extremely reasonable, less than 10$US, although the cover price is listed as 20$US. It would make a perfect book for adding to a home library, or as a gift to the budding rockhound in your family.
Five solid stars. Recommended.
I started my library of gemology with this Pockets Gemstones and Smithsonian Handbooks published by DK. However as a pocket size book, I found it difficult if not impossible to read without good lighting and my bifocals. When I got the book, I was confused by its organization and disappointed in the amount of information. Its introduction covers mining, organics, and artificial or laboratory made gems. Curiously the text is arranged by color of gems rather than chemical properties. If I was going through a tray of unidentified loose stones, it may be helpful. It has a separate section for organics as pearls and amber. It has an appendix for chemical properties, which is helpful as most books on gemology are based on these properties rather than color. It has a glossary and an index. I mention the index as I had to resort to it in order to find entries for gems I was aware of but were not pictured. Curiously it also has appendices on legendary gems, jewelry care, and jewelry making.
I taught science for 20 years on a secondary level and this book strikes me as being written on an 8th grade reading level.
Perhaps that is its intended audience.
This is a very good book. I have been reading through some of it and I like the scientific aspect of this. I use this book in conjunction with The Crystal Bible and it gives a good overview of the gemological process as well as the Stones themselves. I DO wish that there was a more basic section of the type of crystals (Cubic, etc...) as I feel that section was particularly short. But that's nothing Google cannot fix...All in all, a very safe purchase
Any D.K. book is a good buy. I need information on dealing with jewelry from a realtive's estate. I couldn't have chosen a more useful book. It is well illustrated, and the information is the best. If you are looking for a book helpful in doing projects, especially of a scientific nature. Look in to D. K. books. They have great books to help children learn,
Showing a lot of photos of gems and stones. Of the clear ones, probably half have a "window" (cut too shallow). No wonder the online jewelry sellers get away with selling that kind of junk...One book I've read said that windowed stones are almost worthless...granted, they show the color well, but it's a shame to have them in a gemstone book.
Been collecting rocks, gems and minerals for many years, and have several versions of Schumann which I think is of greater value, with more information.
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