Gem Notes
Learn the stone before you buy it
Straight answers on identifying, pricing, choosing and caring for natural gemstones — written for buyers in Pakistan, with the Urdu names you already know.
Natural colour, inner glow and finish: the three things that matter What Sets the Price of Yellow Agate (Zard Aqeeq) in Pakistan
Yellow agate, which we sell as zard aqeeq, is one of the gentler aqeeq stones on the pocket. Even so, two stones that look similar in a phot…
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How peridot rates are decided What Sets the Price of Zabarjad: Colour, Clarity and Kohistan
Zabarjad has a special standing in our market, because some of the finest peridot in the world has come out of the mountains of northern Pak…
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How to keep a colourless topaz sparkling White Topaz Care: Beating Grease, Guarding Against Chips
Many people buy white topaz as a colourless gem that does not cost the earth, and a good one looks lovely. What catches owners off guard is…
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The real reasons yellow sapphire prices differ Why One Pukhraj Is Worth More Than the Next
Few stones sold in Pakistan swing in price as much as yellow sapphire, or pukhraj. Two stones that look almost the same on your phone can be…
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Colour, treatment and the custom of trying it first Your First Neelam: A Straightforward Guide to Buying Blue Sapphire
Neelam is one of the most bought and most talked-about stones in Pakistan. It is also a stone where first-time buyers easily get lost in tal…
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Natural colour, dye and the checks that matter Your First Surkh Aqeeq: A Red Agate Buying Guide
Surkh aqeeq, as red agate is sold in our bazaars, is one of the cheapest ways to own a genuine stone from the earth. It is also one of the e…
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What to look at, what to ask, and how to tell a fair price from a story Buying a Real Gemstone in Pakistan: A Dealer's Step-by-Step Guide
The quick version: know what the stone is for before you start. Judge it on colour first, then clarity, cut and weight. Ask plainly whether…
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A dealer's guide to the red corundum Yaqoot (Ruby): How to Judge Colour, Clarity, Origin and Treatment
In one line: ruby is red corundum, coloured by traces of chromium, and almost all of its value sits in the colour. What you are hoping to se…
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All twelve months, what each stone is, and how to pick one that lasts Birthstones by Month: Find Yours, With Urdu Names
The quick list: garnet for January, amethyst for February, aquamarine for March, diamond for April, emerald for May, pearl or moonstone for…
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Reading inclusions, treatments and warning signs Zamurd (Emerald): How to Tell a Natural Stone From the Rest
The quick version: put a natural emerald under a 10x loupe and you will almost always find something inside it: wispy healed fractures, smal…
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What a sapphire's birthplace really tells you, and what it doesn't Neelam Origins Explained: Ceylon, Burma, Kashmir, Madagascar and Pakistan
The quick version: most good blue sapphire on the market today is mined in Sri Lanka (Ceylon) and Madagascar. Myanmar (Burma) adds smaller n…
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What you can test at home, and when only a lab will do Real or Fake Gemstone? Simple Checks Before You Pay
The short version: a 10x loupe, a window and a bit of common sense will weed out most fakes. Natural stones usually have small inclusions an…
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A dealer's walk through all twelve months, with buying notes for each Birthstones by Month: Where They Come From and How to Pick One
In brief: the modern birthstone list assigns every calendar month at least one gemstone, starting with garnet in January and ending with tur…
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