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Monday, January 28, 2002
Gem and Mineral Show: Tough but Precious: Diamonds
It's Tucson gem showcase time again. The 48th annual Tucson Gem and Mineral Show runs Feb. 14-17 at the Tucson Convention Center, drawing dealers, enthusiasts and collectors from around the globe - and satellite shows that start in early February and continue until the main show closes. This year, the TCC event will feature world-class exhibits of African gems and minerals, including diamonds. Here's a preview. Stories by Bryn Bailer / Arizona Daily Star
Graphic: The many facets of diamonds
This year's show features African minerals and gems
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More glitter online
For expanded coverage
of the gem shows,
including maps, video footage and schedules, visit
www.azstarnet.com/gemshow
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The African continent is a major producer of highly desirable gems and minerals, including diamonds, platinum and gold.
The annual Tucson Gem and Mineral Show at the Tucson Convention Center will feature museum-quality exhibits from private collectors and respected institutions, including the American Museum of Natural History, the Smithsonian Institution, Harvard University, the Royal Ontario Museum, the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History and the Houston Museum of Natural Science. Look for these notable African-mined gemstones when you visit the show:
Tanzanite
This velvety blue, semiprecious gemstone shifts colors in different types of light. It was discovered in the 1960s in Tanzania, a country in East Africa.
Tsavorite
Pronounced "SAV-ohr-ite," this garnet varies in color from light to deep green. Darker specimens are the most valuable. Tsavorite is found mostly in Africa.
Ruby
A variety of the mineral corundum, rubies are actually red sapphires.
Fine rubies are rarer than diamonds, emeralds or sapphires and are found in Africa, as well as countries including Burma, Thailand and Sri Lanka.
Field trips for kids
2001 Star photo
Schoolboys look at pieces of malachite at a gem- show booth in the Tucson Convention Center.
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In addition to being a great place to buy intriguing minerals and gems, the main Tucson gem show is also a classroom.
Once again, the Tucson Gem and Mineral Society is inviting thousands of schoolchildren to take a field trip to the main show at the Tucson Convention Center. They'll be given an official tour and a chance to view international museums and impressive collectors' exhibits - all without having to leave town.
The society will offer three blocks of time when teachers and parents may bring kids to the show without charge. (Children 14 and under always are admitted free, but, during school tours, adult chaperones' regular $5.50 entry fee will be waived.)
Tours will be offered Feb. 14-15, mostly between 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. Elementary school students in particular are invited to attend Feb. 15 from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. A typical tour lasts two hours.
Registration for tours is required. To do so online, go to: www.tgms.org and follow the link to "school visits." Schools may also register by contacting "Bear" Pitts at 670-5511, or by sending
e-mail to bear@pittswebb.com
Graphic: The minerals of Arizona
Famous diamonds
Because of their value and rarity, diamonds have fascinated people throughout history. Here are a few of the world's most famous diamonds:
The Regent
After the French Revolution, this light-blue-tinged diamond - discovered in India - had several owners, including Napoleon Bonaparte.
It is now displayed at the Louvre in Paris.
The Hope Diamond
Many owners of this notorious deep-blue diamond have met with misfortune, and the Hope is popularly thought to be cursed.
Legend says that it was stolen from the eyes of the statue of a goddess in India.
Tragedy has befallen many of its owners: Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette were executed in the French Revolution. A Greek owner and his family plunged to their deaths over a cliff in an automobile accident.
Evalyn Walsh McLean, a wealthy and eccentric American social figure, bought the Hope in 1911. Her son was killed in an automobile crash, her husband died in a mental hospital and her daughter died from an overdose of sleeping pills.
The Hope is now displayed at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C.
The Star of Africa
This pear-shaped white diamond weighs more than 500 carats. It is reputed to be the largest cut diamond in the world.
It is now kept in the Tower of London with the British Crown Jewels.
The Taylor-Burton Diamond
This pear-shaped, South African gem was purchased in the late 1960s by actor Richard Burton for actress Elizabeth Taylor. In the late 1990s, it was sold for nearly $3 million to an anonymous buyer in Saudi Arabia.
Hortensia
This peach-colored diamond was named after Hortense de Beauharnais, queen of Holland, who was the step-daughter of Napoleon.
The Hortensia, part of the French Crown Jewels after Louis XIV bought it in 1669, is now on display at the Louvre in Paris.
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