Pricelist of natural Ceylon gemstones on the internet

Here are our prices ($/carat) for manually mined, individually cut, certified and untreated Ceylon gemstones:

Remarks:

Dollar per carat based on average (multi-carat) stones depending on variety (e.g. rubies are generally much smaller than, say zircon)

Rule: bigger is expensive, smaller is cheaper, matched pairs are higher

Prices exclusively for untreated and certified Ceylon gems in 2008 (if you find stones in our stock that are cheaper they may have been graded in 2007)

Dark stones and bargains are not considered

Price span within one group reflects smaller quality issues and differences in size

Presumption: international single item retail (not wholesale)

Some varieties like topaz, ruby or sapphire cost only a fraction when treated.
Lately we have been adding other countries to our portfolio, but have not yet established a separate price list (as a rule Burmese stones are significantly more, African stones less expensive than Sri Lankan)
Please ask for prices of specialties such as color changers, chrome tourmaline or cats eye alexandrite (these stones are too rare and complicated for a general price lists)
Subject to the development of the US Dollar vs. Asian currencies

Blue/Violet Poor Fair Good Very Good Excellent

Sapphire <150 150-400 400-1200 1200-2500 2500+

Aquamarine <80 80-200 200-400 400-600 600+

Spinel <60 60-200 200-500 500-700 700+

Zircon no value <50 50-150 150-300 300+

Topaz no value <50 50-150 150-250 250+

Red/Pink Poor Fair Good Very Good Excellent

Padparadscha <150 150-500 500-1500 1500-3000 3000+

Ruby <300 300-1000 1k-2500 2500-5000 5000+

Pink Sapphire <100 100-300 300-900 900-1800 1800+

Spinel <80 80-250 250-500 500-1000 1000+

Topaz <50 50-150 150-300 300-500 500+

Tourmaline <60 60-150 150-300 300-500 500+

Zircon no value <100 100-200 200-400 400+

Hessonite no value <100 100-200 200-400 400+

Almadine no value <50 50-100 100-200 200+

Rasberry no value <100 100-200 200-300 300+

Rhodolite no value <70 70-150 150-250 250+

Pyrope no value no value <50 50-100 100+

Yellow/Brown Poor Fair Good Very Good Excellent

Sapphire <100 100-200 200-350 350-600 600+

Chrys. Cat's <50 50-150 150-300 300-500 500+

Chrysoberyl <50 50-100 100-250 250-400 400+

Hessonite no value <50 50-120 120-200 200+

Sinhalite no value <50 50-100 100-200 200+

Zircon no value <80 80-150 150-300
300+

Grossular <50 50-100 100-200 200-300 300+

Tourmaline no value <50 30-80 80-120 120+

Scapolite no value <50 50-100 100-200 200+

Purple Poor Fair Good Very Good Excellent

Sapphire <100 100-250 250-600 600-1000 1000+

Spinel <50 50-100 100-250 250-400 400+

Tourmaline <50 50-100 100-200 200-30 300+

Rhodolite no value <50 50-100 100-150 150+

Amethyst no value no value <50 50-100 100+

Green Poor Fair Good Very Good
Excellent

Chrys. Cat's
<50 50-100 100-250 250-500 500+

Sapphire <80 80-150 150-300 300-500 500+

Alexandrite
Chrysoberyl <150
<50 150-500
50-100 500-1500
100-200 1500-5000
200-300 5000+
300+

Tourmaline no value <80 80-200 200-500 500+

Zircon no value <30 30-60 60-150 150+

Diopside no value <50 50-100 100-200 200+

Kornerupine no value <50 50-90 90-160 160+

White Poor Fair Good Very Good Excellent

Sapphire <100 100-200 200-400 400-800 800+

Tourmaline no value <20 20-40 40-80 80+

Topaz no value <10 30-10 30-80 80+

Moonstone no value <10 20-10 20-40 40+

Learn about grading

Ask about pricing

Gemstones on the Web

If you are new to buying stones on the web, you might wonder why apparently similar looking stones are marked with completely different prices.

Compared within one company, the reason will most likely be that the gem photo does not show the stone's true beauty or else hides its flaws.

An honest web dealer will set his price based on the stone and not its photo.

However, a price will also be influenced by the sellers future expectations of the stone's value, his personal taste and the current demand for a particular variety.

If you compare prices between companies, especially on an international basis, the differences might be even bigger.

Here are possible reasons:

The cost structure on Fifth Avenue NY is different from that of a suburb of Bangkok (which does not mean NY traders sell too high but they offer a completely different service level).
Some old time traders have discovered the web as a channel to sell off their bad leftovers.
Some are said to use sample photos instead of actual ones.
You are looking at lowest quality sold at cutting costs (read below: The $2.99 question)

As a rule, never buy without certificates (third-party, not self-made, mind you) and sufficient inspection time.

When you compare carat prices, make you sure you compare on the same level:

Some companies charge extra for transport, insurance, certificates, listing etc. and you might end up paying double prices per carat before the stone is finally at your door. See our "No Extra Fees" policy.

Auction:

EBay is notorious for $10 offers on stones that the sellers claim have a declared market value of $1000. Why should someone sell a $1000 stone for ten dollars, unless he is really desperate - which wouldn't give him time for EBay anyway?

You might sometimes find an undervalued bargain on EBay (if you know more than the seller), but you will definitely not get a fine sapphire for $10. If that were so, nobody would be working anymore, let alone mining.

Nobody will sell significantly under value. In the gem trade as much as (or even more than) anywhere else the old rule applies: You only get what you pay for!

The $2.99 question:

We are frequently asked:

"People sell gems for $2.99 on the Internet! What is wrong with them?"

That depends on how you look at it. These are gems of lowest quality sold at "cutting costs". That means they were produced at bottom rock cost:

These stones are mined by day-laborers who risk their lives for a buck a day without any support what-so-ever. They get injured? They get fired. They become too old? They get fired. The mine closes? etc.

Then, the stone is either machine cut or faceted by some Thai girls who work their backs and eyes sick in 7/14 shifts, sitting in a dimly lit room on wooden benches. They get sick? They get fired. They ruin their eyes? They get fired. etc.

The Karma of these stones is as bad as it gets. The only people who are happy that you buy it, are the factory owner and the trader who makes 5 cent each stone (and Ebay of course), but nature and people are wasted on the way.

If you care about these things here is the rule:

Any hand cut stone below 15$ does not leave enough for the cutter or miner. (Add 20$ transport, $20 certificate, $5 insurances, $5 taxes, $4 packaging, $4 handling, some margin and you arrive out at our cheapest stones.)

A precious gemstone for $2.99 is a contradiction in itself. Sure, one can buy cheapest industrial sapphire for $15 a kilo, but what for?

Those who try the cheap-cheap offers have no fun at all, soon lose interest in gems and drop out. Then, after people have risked their lives and nature has been ruined for them, the $2.99 stones get lost in the "drawer-with-the-useless-cheap-stuff".

So, yes, we think there is something wrong.

Gem Photos on the web:

Today there are more good gem photos than good gems on the market.

We don't color enhance or brighten or darken our photos. Our photos are made with a "normal" Nikon 5400 and every stone is shot individually. We never re-use old photos.