Precious stones, also known as gemstones, are minerals or rocks that that turn into collectible when they are cut or faceted and polished. In addition, precious stones are used in jewels.

Precious stones can occur naturally, or they can be laboratory virtual. Natural precious stones come directly out of the ground or mine and are cut or faceted to the preferred shape and size. These precious stones are generally the most popular among collectors and consumers, as well as the most expensive. Laboratory fake precious stones are created in a lab. These manmade stones can still be considered precious stones, but are easier to come by and usually less cost than their natural counterparts.

There are also natural precious stones. Amber, which is made from fossilized tree resin, is an instance of an organic precious stone. Jet, which is a form of coal, is one more organic precious stone. There are some precious stones that are too soft or flimsy to be used in jewelry, such as single-crystal rhodochrosite. Though these precious stones cannot be used for jewelry, they are exhibited in museums and sought by collectors because of their beauty.


Gemologists use technical condition to differentiate precious stones. The foremost consideration when identifying precious stones is the chemical composition. Diamonds, for instance, are made of carbon, and rubies are made of aluminum oxide. Most precious stones are really crystals, which are classified by a crystal system as cubic, trigonal, or monoclinic.

Precious stones are also classified into different groups, class, and varieties. The ruby, for example, is the red mixture of the species corundum, which belongs to the spinel or hematite group. The emerald, aquamarine, bixbite, goshenite, heliodor, and morganite, in addition, are all varieties of the mineral species beryl.

Sorting out precious stones into these types of groups helps to identify their composition, their color, and their origin. Precious stones also have a refractive index, dispersion, exact gravity, hardness, cleavage, fracture, and lustre. Each of these features is significant when assessing the value of the stone.