More than century ago Mark Twain quipped that “It is every man’s secret ambition to be able to outsmart fish and women.” In acknowledging that men and women, though sharing a common language, are often separated by (for men, anyway) a gulf in understanding, his wording was classic; but the idea was far from original, as demonstrated by Donizetti’s 1832 opera, “L’Elisir D’Amore” (currently running at the Lyric through February 22). In brief, Nemorino was smitten by Adina (wonderfully played, respectively, by Giuseppe Filianoti and Nicole Cabell) to the point of seeming the simpleton. Coquette that she was, she ignored him (women will probably understand why, but I don’t); so when “Doctor Dulcamara” came to town with his medicine show, Nemorino saw him as a godsend. The old con-artist claimed the nostrum he was hawking would cure a multitude of illnesses, improve complexions, remove wrinkles and more; but that’s not what Nemorino sought. He wanted a love potion so that he might win the distant Adina; and with a sucker on the line, Dulcamara provided one. The story developed from there. Nemorino remained gullible; a rival complicated his problem; and the alcoholic nature of the nostrum didn’t make it any better. Adina, however, got the point of Nemorino’s antics, decided she loved the twit, anyway, and all ended happily. As Kathy and I watched the opera unfold the other night, it was clear that both genders loved it, but I wondered. I know from experience that sometimes the elixir of love isn’t so exotic that it need be provided by a charlatan; sometimes it can be as simple as ice-cream.

A few years ago Kathy and I were driving along; and as we passed a strip mall she asked (out of a clear blue sky), “Do you want an ice cream cone?” In complete innocence, I replied, “No,” and continued driving. To my fulsome bewilderment, within a very few moments her face clouded over and it was clear to me that she was put out. Naturally, I asked what might be bothering her. “Nothing! (the exclamation point is illustrative)” she replied. To be honest, I was so obtuse (my Nemorino to her Adina) that she had to explain (after she’d settled down a bit) that she had espied an ice cream store in the mall we had driven by and SHE wanted an ice cream cone. In this case, the ice-cream cone (ignored) may well have been the elixir of love; but in my defense, a guy would have said, “Hey! How about an ice cream cone?” ‘Hey!’ while neither ladylike nor gentile, would have gotten my Chicago born and bred masculine attention, thus setting me up for the all important question, “How about an ice cream cone.” I confess that even with the question brought to my attention, I might have failed in the communication; but I’d have had, at least, a fighting chance at understanding the real demand for an ice cream cone. Needless to say, therefore, it is my conviction that both Donizetti and Twain had found themselves in similar circumstances - and one wrote a comic opera. Others, men and women, have entered (on line at hurstsberwynjewelers.com) our February love story contest. If you check them out, you’ll see that even there gender differences in communication are obvious.

One entry, in particular, is a paradigm of masculinity. In brief, “The Story: So before we were married my wife dated the founder of” (an on-line match making service). “As a joke he put her profile online; they used to joke about the losers that would email her. Then I came along, wrote romantic and clever emails. She dumped him and married me!” Forty words or so and that was it. Needless to say, other stories in our contest have been much longer and some have struggled to meet to meet our 200 word limit. In varying degrees, however, they reflect our times and are worth a read (on our website) and, after Valentine’s Day, a vote. The voter’s favorite (at the end of February) will win a $500 gift certificate and each story submitted will reward the writer (only 1 to a person!) with a $50 gift certificate. So tell us your love story.

While not the elixir of love, the happy statement punctuating many a love story is an eternal diamond in an engagement or a diamond anniversary ring; and in its perfect beauty, Hearts On Fire is the perfect diamond to make that punctuation. While other diamonds merit only a “.” (reflected in her saying, “that’s nice”), Hearts On Fire always earns a “!” (reflected in her gasp of pleasure and tears of joy). No other diamond is cut to the perfection of the Hearts On Fire, the source of its blinding beauty; so no other diamond can say, “I love you” as beautifully and completely as the Hearts On Fire - and you won’t have to speak a word. Check out our Hearts On Fire collection on line at hurstsberwynjewelers.com; then phone us at 708.788.0880 for an appointment to select the very best diamond there is for the perfect person in your life. We’re Hursts’ Berwyn Jewelers and we have the stuff of dreams waiting here for you.

As a reader of this column you are unquestionably alert to the fact that our English language is constantly in flux. Nonetheless, I was somewhat taken aback the other day to hear “redact” (an anglicization of the past participle, “redactus”, of the Latin verb “redigere” - meaning to collect or drive back) used in place of the English “edit”. Of course this may be excused, as edit is a relatively new word in English dating from the early 1700s, a back formation from “editor”. The origin of “editor”, however, poses a problem or two as well. It dates from 1649 as a description of someone who manages (including making policy) a publication of some form - at the time, usually a periodical. Like the more contemporary in jargon, “redact”, its origin is Latin as well; and in some sense, a more “poetic” word, being derived from the Latin “editus” meaning of places lofty or elevated. Can’t you just see the editor of a 17th century publication sitting at a high desk overlooking the desks of those lesser mortals, the writers? With that said, I don’t know whether it is better to say that I’m about to give you an edited or a redacted view of Valentine’s Day; but for better or worse (that’s not an original locution on my part), here it is.

The good news, if you’re religious, is that our February 14th recognition of Valentine’s Day was initiated as the Feast of St. Valentine. This commemorates the Saint Valentine (in Latin, Valentius) who was buried north of Rome next to the Via Flaminia, the most important route from Rome to the north; but that’s all we know about him. In fact, we’re not even sure whether the feast is in honor of one man or many. Saint Valentine did not appear in the A.D. 354 list of Roman martyrs usually known as the “Chronography of 354” or the “Calendar of 354”, but interestingly enough, the list was written for a well to do Christian Roman named Valentius. Whether or not there is a connection between the Chronography’s patron and the saint is unknowable since the feast was not established until A.D. 496. In that year Pope Gelasius I, somewhat ambiguously, proclaimed the feast citing Valentine to be among those “… whose names are justly reverenced among men, but whose acts are known only to God.” That ambiguity led to some problems for Saint Valentine.

In the Catholic Church’s 1969 revision of the calendar of saints, Valentine was omitted from liturgical commemoration, though he remained among the list of saints proposed for veneration. It would seem that the ambiguity of Gelasius’s proclamation made it likely that he knew nothing about Valentine, not even whether the name applied to one martyr or many. Retrospectively, Gelasius’s ambiguity stemmed from the lack of a clear and unequivocal written record and from the fact that there was a super abundance of men named “Valentius” (it was derivative of “valens”, meaning worthy) in the late Roman Empire. So how did Saint Valentine become associated with Romance? A vigorous redaction follows.

In 1382, to commemorate the first anniversary of Richard II’s engagement to Anne of Bohemia, Geoffrey Chaucer wrote (in Middle English) “Parlement of Foules”; and in it he cited “Volantynys Day”, a day “ Whan euery bryd comyth there to chese his make”, as the engagement’s date. Obviously, this established “Valentine’s” connection to romantic love; but since the engagement was May 2, not without a problem for February 14 as Valentine’s Day. An explanation may be found in the fact that May 2 was the feast day for Valentine of Genoa, an early bishop of Genoa who died around A.D. 307. The conflation is both understandable and obvious, a Valentine is still a Valentine; and maybe Pope Gelasius deliberately helped establish the connection between romance and Valentine in his choice of February 14 for the Feast of St. Valentine. The date coincided with ancient Rome’s Lupercalia, a very popular festival devoted to fertility; and Pope Gelasius abolished it. Whether it was his intent to supplant a celebration of the physical with a celebration of the spiritual or to co-opt the celebration as it was in the hope of “Christianizing” it is unknowable; but between Gelasius, Chaucer and the romantic 19th century we have Valentine’s Day as we now know it. One last word.
We’re putting together a love story contest; so keep checking our website, hurstsberwynjewelers.com, and our Facebook account for details to appear.

Diamonds are so ancient (more than 3 billion years old!) that their very existence is a statement of durability. They’re the “forever” gift; so shouldn’t it be perfect? Think about it. There is no better way to say “I love you” than with the most beautiful diamond there is - the perfectly cut Hearts On Fire. So this Valentine’s Day, or for a birthday or anniversary, or just because, there can only be Hearts On Fire. Check out our Hearts On Fire collection on line at hurstsberwynjewelers.com; then phone us at 708.788.0880 for an appointment to select the perfect gift. We’re Hursts’ Berwyn Jewelers; and we have the stuff of dreams waiting here for you.

Most people who have speculated in gold have done so out of a fear that the U.S. dollar will collapse in value. Their conviction is that as the dollar is fiat currency backed only by the promises of our government, government spending in the current economic crisis must dilute the value of the dollar. This may well be so; but it brings to mind the story of a gambler in the old west who stormed out of a gambling house raging, “The game is fixed!”. Fixed or not, however, two nights later a friend spied him back in the gambling house. Curious, the friend approached the gambler and asked, “Don’t you think the game is rigged?” The gambler shrugged his shoulders and replied, “Oh, it is; but it’s the only game in town.” The Chinese, of course, know that the size of the American economy makes the U.S. China’s most valuable trading partner; so their government ignores the price of gold and pegs their currency to the U.S. dollar - and China happily continues to export to us.

Ours is the world’s largest economy; and while the dollar may not be the only game in town, it is so important a part of the world’s economy (not just in trade, but in widely held U.S. money, bonds, stocks and other assets) that if the dollar tumbles in value all other currencies (they’re fiat currencies as well) must also fall in value. In these circumstances, the most holding gold as an asset can do for its owner is to maintain his wealth; but what if there is no catastrophic failure of the dollar? Certainly, it is in the profound interest of the Government to guard against this to preserve its credit; and current debate in Congress over the future of the Federal Reserve system gives clear evidence that our usually inept and lackadaisical legislature wants to protect the value of the dollar. Here’s where the gold speculator is at risk. Gold is a non-performing asset. Unlike dividend paying shares of stock in a corporation, gold’s value is locked into its sale. You can make no money, if money is to be made, until you sell it; which brings us to the crux of the problem for those speculating in gold. The speculator needs to know when to fold his hand.

In normal times 80% of the world’s gold supply goes into either jewelry or (mostly east of Suez) is hoarded; and in normal times India consumes close to a fifth of the world’s gold supply. But these are not normal times. Speculation in gold has driven gold prices so high that world wide demand for gold jewelry has virtually collapsed. In India, where traditionally 1 out of every 9 ounces of gold produced world wide has gone into bridal jewelry, gold purchases in the first half of this year slumped by about 57%. Chinese demand for gold bullion and jewelry (their mines, incidentally, produce more than half of the world’s gold) has - so far - increased enough to take up most of the slack in Indian consumption; but of course, their ability to buy gold rests on their trade with the U.S. and the American dollar. Hence, a collapse of the dollar would certainly be contrary to China’s general interests. So who does benefit from the current run-up in gold prices? Obviously, those who are smart enough, or lucky enough, to sell before the price of gold collapses. That is, it is clear we are witnessing a “bubble” in the price of gold - prices fueled not by any real use for the metal but fueled, only, by speculative demand. When speculative demand collapses, the price of gold must collapse to some value that gold users can accept; and those who have not unloaded their high priced gold must suffer. What, then, is the answer for those who wish to guard against the devaluation of their gold? Pasta!

Speculators arise! Pasta is your future! Unlike gold, pasta can be consumed and yield some nutritional benefit to the consumer. What is more, wheat harvested and stored in the ancient Middle East (but discovered in our own time) has been found to be “alive”; so in as much as pasta (carefully stored) can easily outlive any one of us, it has lasting value at least as great as that of gold. Not only that, pasta has world wide acceptance that is, in the ultimate, greater than that of gold (Ask a starving man anywhere on Earth if he wants a bar of gold or a bowl of pasta). In fact, in a world with shrinking water resources, it is clear to me that in the foreseeable future pasta must out perform gold as an investment. You heard it here first.

There is nothing speculative about the Hearts On Fire diamond. Its price hasn’t “ballooned” through speculation and its superior beauty remains unquestioned. It will say “I love you” better than any other diamond there is; and that is solid emotional value. Each is cut by a master craftsman using the most technologically advanced tools in the industry; and like a perfect rose, everyone who sees it knows at once that he or she is seeing the best, most beautiful diamond there is. Make your statement this Christmas with the gift that will last forever, Hearts On Fire! Start your shopping now at our website, hurstsberwynjewelers.com; then phone us at 708.788.0880 for an appointment to select your gift of Hearts On Fire. We’re Hursts’ Berwyn Jewelers, and we have the stuff of her dreams waiting here just for you.

Back when “J. Lo” received a pink diamond engagement ring many consumers were jolted into an awareness that diamonds are sometimes found in attractive colors other than “white” or colorless. Needless to say, awareness sparked a demand; but as “bubble-gum” pink diamonds are quite rare (the annual production of “pinks” that could be cut into a diamond weighing a couple of carats or more would fit in the palm of your hand), price made demand short lived. Nonetheless, demand encouraged fraud artists, both polished and bumbling.

One of the bumblers offered a large “pink” diamond to a U.S. jeweler at a “too good to be true” price; and he bit on it. After the sale had been concluded and the seller long gone, the jeweler began to fear that he might have been bamboozled; so he sent the diamond to the Gemological Institute of America’s Gem Lab. It took but a few minutes in the lab to establish that the back of the diamond had been carefully painted with pink nail polish. To the jeweler’s dismay, he was compelled to recognize that his greed had triumphed over good sense. Of course, more sophisticated jewelers have received the attention of more polished con artists.

A few years back an American gem dealer was offered a parcel of fancy yellow diamonds at so low a price that it put him immediately on guard. He insisted that he would only purchase the parcel if the GIA’s lab identified their color as natural. The over-confident seller agreed and off to the GIA they went. On first examination there was nothing unusual about them; but careful microscopic inspection revealed some pitted and frosted surfaces at the junctions of their crown facets (the ones on top). This is a phenomenon usually associated with a cut diamond’s exposure to high heat; and it is technically possible to heat treat inexpensive brown diamonds in such as fashion as to change their color to a desirable yellow. Spectroscopic analysis would establish the truth. If the diamonds had been heat treated, there would be an anomalous component to the diamonds’ color - a line at 985 nanometers that has never appeared in any natural colored diamond. The line was there and the deal did not go through. As the fraud was “high tech” in character, however, it did raise the question of the origin of the diamonds; and the finger pointed east.

In the last years of the Soviet Union, there had been intensive research into the manufacture of synthetic diamonds (to be used as the base for military grade microcircutry). After its collapse, some of the laboratories that had been involved in the work continued it in the hope that they might successfully produce gem quality diamonds; and they have enjoyed some success. Most of their diamonds are small and in varying degrees, included, off color and somewhat magnetic; but they can be treated using heat, pressure, controlled atmosphere and sometimes radiation to produce a whole array of colors. Almost ironically, market prices seem to indicate (to me, anyway) that it is less costly to “treat” (and thus tint) inexpensive natural diamonds using the same technology. As a result, if you want small colored diamonds as accents to a design, and aren’t picky about their origins, they can easily be found in the market. Larger laboratory “colored” diamonds up to one carat in weight are also regularly on the market, but their acceptance in the market has been relatively poor. Larger laboratory enhanced “colorless” diamonds are another matter.

When a diamond is brown, its color is usually the result of a “twisted” crystalline structure; and it is possible to “straighten” the crystal using heat and pressure. The process is not inexpensive and diamonds so treated are a bit more brittle than untreated diamonds; so it is most commonly used to treat larger (more than 1 carat) diamonds that are also quite free of internal inclusions. When successfully undertaken, however, brown diamonds become “cinderella” colorless diamonds - beautiful gems that usually sell for considerably less than comparable untreated diamonds. Of course con artists have taken note of all of the technology that has recently gone into diamonds; so, “Caveat emptor.” Unless you have a high tech gem lab at your disposal, it is more important than ever to know your jeweler.

We’re Hursts’ Berwyn Jewelers, and we offer you Hearts On Fire diamonds. The only thing “unnatural” about them is their rare beauty. Each is cut to standards of proportion, symmetry and polish that far exceed even the pickiest gem lab’s standards for perfection. The result is blazing beauty that will set the woman who owns one (or many!) apart from all her friends. Check out our Hearts On Fire collection on line at hurstsberwynjewelers.com; then phone us at 708.788.0880 for an appointment to select the perfect gift - the brilliant stuff of her dreams.

October 17 was the beginning of Diwali, the Hindu New Year; and it kicked off five days of celebration - all of which bring me to the Jains. I do business with a few of them and I’ve found them pleasant and competent.

In a world of violent extremism, Jainism, a strict and democratic splinter of mainstream Hinduism, prescribes non-violence. Instead, Jains are urged to follow a philosophy of self-effort in conquering one’s inner demons. While this might seem rather esoteric, the brass tacks of their business ethics are not. Jainism encourages close family ties, cooperation with others and strict business ethics; and these have facilitated their entry into the world of diamonds. In fact, though there are only about 5 million of them, they’ve become quite influential in the world of jewelry as a whole. At its heart, the jewelry business, particularly the diamond business, functions on an understood system of trust. A reputation for integrity is all; and Jains have become recognized for this.

Though historic India was the first important source of diamonds, most of India’s diamond mines were played out by 1750. Nonetheless, Indian consumer demand persisted; but it was not until the discovery of diamonds in South Africa (1867) that the demand could be met. The Jains were not far behind. In 1909 a small group of Jain merchants in Palanpur, India, entered the jewelry business as importers of cut and polished diamonds. Over time, the international diamond business developed confidence in India’s Jain merchants; while their close family ties and cooperative habits helped them to prosper in India’s domestic diamond business. After 1947 (the year India became independent), India’s new government, anxious not to lose foreign exchange, attempted to discourage the importation of luxury goods by taxing them heavily. Jain diamond merchants countered by importing rough diamonds and cutting them (gem cutting in India was already a long established art). The government found this agreeable; but to the dismay of both the new Jain cutting firms and the Indian government, Indians started to horde diamonds as a hedge against inflation. Government intervention soon followed.

Faced with Government opposition to their new industry, in 1955 the Palanpur diamond cutters made a creative overture to the government. They proposed the “Replenishment Scheme”. The heart of their proposal was a commitment to import rough diamonds and cut and polish them for export, only. To make it most attractive to government, they also proposed that the government would regulate mandated increases in value for their diamonds after cutting. As this would both create jobs and benefit India’s balance of payments, the Government readily agreed.

Despite this victory, the Palanpuris were still faced with the fact that the tightly knit diamond business was concentrated in Belgium. Practically speaking, this meant that rough would be hard to get, particularly high quality rough. Palanpur’s cutters usually had to make do with such very poor quality material that they complained, “. . . these are industrial and industrial sand.” In fact, the yield from such inferior rough was quite poor. Typically more than 83% of their rough weight was lost in cutting; but the Palanpuris persevered. Their high ethical standards eventually brought them more and better rough; and then the monolithic character of the diamond business was broken. Dissatisfied with the old DeBeers monopoly’s sales of their rough material, Rio Tinto, majority owner of Australia’s Argyle diamond mine, offered India’s cutters as much rough as they could cut. Again, most of the rough was of poor quality (Argyle’s rough is mostly dark and included); but the deal provided the stepping stone that India’s diamond cutters needed to establish themselves in the world market. Between low labor costs and modern equipment India’s diamond cutting business began to soar. While in 1966 India accounted for about 6% of the world’s polished diamond production, today it accounts for about 92%! And while most of India’s production is in small diamonds (smaller than 1/5 of a carat), the quality of Indian cut diamonds continues to grow.

Interestingly enough, an Indian owned firm has a minority stake in Hearts On Fire; and through this connection (remember that cooperative spirit?) Hearts On Fire has been able to develop and use the high tech cutting and polishing equipment that has made Hearts On Fire diamonds reliably the most perfectly cut diamonds on the market. Perfection in cut, of course, is the source of real diamond beauty. No diamond has greater fire, sparkle and emotional excitement than the Hearts On Fire; and we sell them because we know diamonds and want to offer you only the best there is. So if you want to tell her how much you love her with a gift this Christmas, make it Hearts On Fire. You won’t have to say a word; she’ll know, and her tears of joy will confirm it. Check out our Hearts On Fire collection on line at our website, hurstsberwynjewelers.com; then phone us at 708.788.0880 for an appointment to select the perfect piece of diamond jewelry. We’re Hursts’ Berwyn Jewelers; and we have the stuff of dreams waiting here for you.

Unlike contemporary banks, usually some sort of “MegaCorp”, important banks of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries were often privately owned and based on the fortunes of their principals. As a consequence the loans they made were not matters of public policy; and they could remain quite secretive about their business, unless their probity came into question. One such banking firm was that of “Hope & Company; though founded in Amsterdam in 1726, the kaleidoscopic politics engendered by the French Revolution had led the firm to move its “home office” to London before 1800. The move didn’t harm it. In fact, its prominence was such that when, in 1803, the United States purchased Louisiana from France, both nations agreed that it was the bank to handle the financial particulars of the deal. By 1812, however, Hope & Company was in trouble; troubled enough for Henry Philip Hope, the firm’s principal owner to start looking for a buyer.

Ultimately, a deal was made to sell Hope’s bank to Barings Bank (Established in London in 1763, bankrupted by a rogue trader in 1995), and Hope’s money problems were over. By curious coincidence, however, in the midst of Hope’s money problems, and only two days after the French statute of limitations put crimes committed in 1792 beyond the reach of the law, London Jeweler John Fancillon wrote a “laboratory report” on a 45.5 carat blue diamond that was clearly the Hope. The gem’s owner was unnamed, so the name on the report was that of London diamond merchant Daniel Eliason, recognized as a middleman. Significantly, Eliason never explained his client’s motive for making the diamond a matter of public record. No sale of the diamond appears to have transpired thereafter; so the Hope disappeared from view until H. P. Hope’s death in 1839. Then, in the settlement of his estate, it passed into the hands of one of his nephews; and it has remained, more or less, “on public view” ever since.

Little was made of the diamond’s origin, however, until it was given to the Smithsonian. There it was subjected not only to the gazes of the public but to the scientific scrutiny of the museum’s staff and diamond professionals; and a question began to nag at them. “Was it a recut of the French Blue, stolen from the ‘Royal Storehouse’ in 1792?” Dogged by conflicting historic data, the question went unanswered for decades until a startling find was made in 2007 at Paris’ Natural History museum. It is a cast lead model, the shape and dimensions of which led the Gemological Institute of America’s scientists to believe it to have been cast from the French Blue.  Using a combination of computer modeling and their own hard won diamond lore, they established that the Hope would fit within the contours of their putative French Blue.  As the French Blue has never been recovered, nor has there ever been any report of a blue diamond larger, they were led to the conclusion that the Hope is almost surely a recut of the French Blue. This, of course leads to the questions of when and why it had been recut; and the lead model provides us with some interesting clues.

In the 1850s the cast had been donated to the Museum by the Archard Family, prominent Parisian jewelers in the first half of the nineteenth century. Though the first Archard would have been a mere apprentice in 1792, when the French Blue was stolen, we know that by 1817 Mr. Archard counted Henry Philip Hope among his clients.  All else is conjecture.  Had the blue diamond brought them together? If so, when? The date of Fancillon’s report makes it clear that the diamond had been recut before it was submitted to him in 1812.  If Archard had made the cast of the French Blue, is it possible that he had been involved in the original theft? It is self evident that the recut was intended to hide the gem’s origin; but why, in the words of master diamond cutter Maarten deWitte, was it “a real hack job? Was the poor quality of the recut the result of amateurism on the part of the thieves or was it the result of Hope’s haste in readying the gem for a possible sale? If it was Hope’s haste, was he fearful that the French statute of limitations didn’t apply to the stolen French Blue, or was he afraid that the window of opportunity offered by the amnesty might soon be closed? In any event, what role was played by Daniel Eliason, who was not only a gem dealer but Hope’s diamond purchasing agent as well? Had he obtained the diamond for Hope and if so, what role, if any, was played by Archard? However the questions may be asked, the most likely answers always come back to Hope.  As a wealthy and reclusive diamond collector, he was one of the few men in Europe who could, and might, buy the stolen French Blue; and Archard’s cast makes Hope’s responsibility for the recut a real possibility

Diamonds are romantic. They say, “I love you” when given as gifts and “I made it” when purchased to mark one of life’s important milestones; so why not say it perfectly with Hearts On Fire? Hearts On Fire’s proportions, symmetry and perfect polish make Hearts On Fire diamonds so “pop” with life that they’re always good for smiles, and often tears of love and joy. Check out our Hearts On Fire collection on line at hurstsberwynjewelers.com; then phone us at 708.788.0880 for an appointment to select the very best diamonds for you. We’re Hursts’ Berwyn Jewelers and we’ll help you realize your dreams.

It is so easy to speak of price; but so often presumed price comparisons are based on imperfect information. Let me presume that you know little of jewelry, this for the sake of looking at the aspects of jewelry excellence. These may be summarized as gem quality, metallurgy, technique and quality control.

All too often the jewelry buyer presumes that the value of any piece of jewelry he buys is wrapped entirely in the value of the diamond with which it is set. Many focus on color, clarity and carat weight in an attempt to understand value; but they do so at their risk. While color and clarity are easy to understand, if not to perceive, and weight is wonderfully concrete, ignoring cut begs the question of beauty - the obvious measure of excellence in a diamond. When a diamond is beautifully cut, that is, cut with full consideration of the diamond’s light handling characteristics, it will out sparkle one with a compromised cut in any side-by-side comparison. Once again, its excellence will be obvious; if only, of course the buyer chooses to make the comparison.

Metallurgy is seldom well understood by the average buyer; so let me suggest that excellent metallurgy has two aspects, physical durability and visual durability. Within this framework for excellence, platinum, within some limits, should be the metal of choice for a “lifetime” piece of jewelry. It resists wear better than the gold alloys common to jewelry manufacture; and it retains its high white color while gold alloys usually do not. Platinum’s sister metal, palladium, has a high white color but its durability is similar to that of most gold alloys. As platinum is softer than gold alloys and palladium, it will scratch more easily; and owing to its softness, most platinum alloys will also bend more readily than gold or palladium. This makes some fragile looking designs just too fragile for execution in common platinum alloys, though there are some expensive platinum alloys that can be employed to get around most of this design limitation. Excellence in metallurgy, then, may be understood to favor platinum but with some design limitations.

Then there is technique. For some incalculable reason people who wouldn’t touch a branded manufactured product because of its known lack of quality very often presume that all jewelry is manufactured to the same standards. In the (scripted) words of Mr. T, “I pity the fools.” Most contemporary jewelry is made using the lost wax casting process; and in one form or another it’s been around since before the birth of Christ. Ancient knowledge, however, is no guarantee of perfect technique. The most common flaw in castings is porosity. This usually stems from deliberately over-heating the metal being cast (a matter of technique). Since hot metal flows more easily, it will more reliably fill the mold cavity and thus reduce the apparent rejection rate in casting. This nickle-dime mentality is dreadfully common in the jewelry business; so porosity abounds in much of the jewelry on the market. It makes the metal more brittle (thus less durable) and it usually prevents it from taking a perfect polish. Excellent casting technique is, then, a matter of dedication to quality as well as science. The excellent craftsman knows what he is doing and will not knowingly let anything inferior leave his shop; and this leaves the jeweler.

Sadly, when consumers focus on price (as many do), quality tends to fall by the wayside. The excellent jeweler knows what constitutes excellence in jewelry; and to guarantee it he works exclusively with jewelry craftsmen who are dedicated to quality. With all that, however, he double checks everything. Knowing the parameters of quality, the excellent jeweler administers a strict regimen of quality control on all he offers for sale. This is the consumer’s best guarantee that he will purchase the quality he is entitled to expect in a piece of fine jewelry.

Of course, no one likes criticism; but some take it as constructive while most take offense. This is as true in the jewelry business as it is elsewhere; so our hard-nosed insistence on quality has earned us only a few who are as dedicated to quality as we are. In the diamond bridal market, our “stars” are Hearts On Fire and Varna. Each is uncompromising in quality; and each is concerned for making the perfect statement. So if you want to tell her you love her, perfectly, only Hearts On Fire and Varna will do. We’re Hursts Berwyn Jewelers, your personal jeweler dedicated to helping you realize your dreams. Phone us at 708.788.0880 for an appointment to select the gift of a lifetime.

In the jewelry business, the term “costume jewelry” is an all embracing one that covers jewelry made from base metal, glass, plastic or whatever. As time and taste dictate, its appearance is “free style”. That is, it may range from a complete flight of fancy that capitalizes on the medium being worked to an imitation of “fine jewelry” (jewelry crafted in noble metals). Unlike the flights of fancy, however, it is the imitations that often drive people through our doors - with questions. And if the most commonly asked question is, “Is this real?”, questions of value are seldom far behind. As with most things, the value of jewelry offered in the secondary market is demand driven. If your eyes are starting to glaze over in boredom, allow me to illustrate.

My older son is his great-grandfather Hurst’s namesake; so the railroad watch great-grandpa carried as a section chief on the old “Frisco” road has been passed on to him. More than a century old, it has immense emotional content for a family member; but a collector (who else would buy an old watch?) would most likely spurn it as it has neither the cachet of rarity nor any appreciable intrinsic value. It is a large, open faced “potato” of a watch with a nickel plated case of negligible value. At some time (long before I ever saw it) it has been dropped, so its porcelain dial is chipped and cracked. Though it runs (amazingly well), its humble character consigns it to a small market value. In like manner, much of the veteran jewelry brought to us has negligible market value, particularly simulated pearls.

When, in the late 19th century, René Lalique looked at the demand for pearls as compared to the price they commanded, it was clear to him that there was a market for a good simulant. He set to work and came up with a technique for coating beads in a mixture of ground fish scales suspended in shellac. The resulting simulants looked like enough like pearls to sell like hot cakes over the next eighty years or so; but there was a fatal flaw in their composition. With continuing exposure to the atmosphere, shellac darkens as it ages; so over time the simulant’s hue would continue darkening into a range of uninspired colors never found on natural or cultured pearls - most commonly, brown. Passed down through inheritance, it is these oxidized beads most often brought to us for some purpose, usually “cleaning” or restringing. When, as we must, advise that cleaning is not an option, there is almost always a “trash or treasure” moment occasioned by that loaded question, “How much are they worth?” It is the rare person who can accept “nothing” as an answer without flinching; and owing to their emotional connection to the beads, many reject the evaluation outright - most in grief, some in rage. Only an unquestioned provenance into an historic event or personage can offer (through the collector market) any hope that grandma’s “pearls” have value; and so it is with most costume jewelry, particularly that designed by Coco Channel.

Oh, “paste” imitations of more expensive pieces were common among the upper crust of the wealthy; but they were a dirty little secret. Until Coco burst into the world of Parisian fashion (shortly after the end of World War I), costume jewelry just didn’t exist. So when, with the brashness of her youth, she designed and offered for sale a whole collection of big, flashy “faux” jewels, it set the world of fashion on its ear. Her metal of choice, antimony, had a lot stronger connection to the printing business than to the world of jewelry. Cast like type from a linotype machine, it was meant for quantity production. “Need a gold color? Plate it. Want it set with a large ‘emerald’? Cast one in glass;” and as her success as a clothing designer grew, a whole new business, the costume jewelry business grew and prospered. Of course the metal didn’t last; but women almost always saved the “gems”, thus bringing them into the inheritance “cycle” and more of those “trash or treasure” moments with us.

Fine jewelry is just that. It needs no apologies, no explanations; everything is in its content - so you need to get it right. To say “I love you” gems need to arrest the eye with their beauty. To say that love is enduring, the piece of jewelry needs to be meticulously crafted in precious metal; and to say that beauty and craftsmanship abound is absurd. Most “fine jewelry” is price driven and its quality, in some aspect, is usually compromised. For jewelry without compromises, you must see us. Our diamonds are Hearts On Fire, the world’s most perfectly cut; and we source the jewelry for our glorious diamonds from a small and exclusive group of craftsmen who never compromise on quality. So if you need an important diamond gift, check out our collection on line at hurstsberwynjewelers.com; then phone us at 708.7887.0880 for an appointment to select that bit of starshine, that immaculate diamond beauty that will say “I love you” as no gift has ever before. We’re Hursts’ Berwyn Jewelers, your personal jeweler; and we’ll help you realize your dreams.

Shakespeare, speaking through Marc Anthony at the funeral of Julius Caesar, observed, “. . . the evil mean do lives after them. The good is oft interred with their bones.” But perhaps that doesn’t always apply to that simulated individual, the modern business and its brand name. A brand, once established, seems to have a life of its own. People purchase it because they have confidence in its reliable quality; and even when the brand falls on hard times, it has its adherents. This residuum of good will and confidence, of course, must have been part of Fiat’s calculation when it opted to take its current role in Chrysler; and ultra high end jewelry operations seem to have been equally charmed. Many have become parts of large jewelry/luxury conglomerates in the recent past with old sins forgotten; but while the names of these changed corporate entities are probably irrelevant, some of their stories are not. This is a small one.

A dozen years ago or so, one of the world’s very best known jewelers offered a magnificent ruby and diamond necklace to its well healed clientele; indeed, calling it magnificent may be understatement. It was set with more than a dozen very large rubies of seemingly fine clarity and color; and each, of course, was accented with diamonds. The operant word here is “seemingly”. Very soon after it was offered for sale questions about the origins and treatments to which the rubies had been subjected were raised; as in the opinion of many the most gem-savvy gem dealers and gemologists there were more large, fine rubies in the necklace than had been available, world-wide, at the time it was conceived and fabricated. In the ensuing controversy the necklace was submitted for evaluation to an authoritative gem laboratory known for its probity. Its examination of the rubies indicated that they had been subjected to heating, (to improve their color) and had, as well, been subjected to some process that had “healed” many of the internal fractures that had previously marked the gems. The jeweler, supported by many in the business, replied that heating rubies to enhance their color was so customary a treatment that it could be presumed and did not need to be revealed. As for the fracture filling, well that was not deliberate and merely coincident to the heating process; and therein lies the core of the question. Was the fracture filling by design or was it coincidental to the medium in which the gems had been heated? Naturally, in a business so dominated by geologic time, things have moved slowly to a conclusion, but last week a major lab produced a delicate wording to describe the process, “Heating residues are deposited along healed fractures during the heating process.”

When rubies are heated, it has long been customary to coat them in some sort of “fluxing agent or agents”; that is as defined by Merriam-Webster, “a substance used to promote fusion (as of metals or minerals).” While this most certainly must have had its origin in the desire to create a flux of color from the gem’s “skin” inward; some fluxing does more than that. With the right science, the flux melts into all of the fissures in the gem that reach its surface; and as the gem and its new friend cool, a little magic takes place. Small amounts of ruby are grown within the fissure and lie layered between solidified, morphed bits flux and some inescapable voids. It may sound like a small change, but the effect of such treatment can, and usually does, greatly enhance the gem’s appearance of clarity and so its beauty. Clarity enhancement by design or as a coincidence? You be the judge.

While there are also clarity and color enhancements that can be made to diamonds, responsible jewelers reveal and market them as enhanced. As an extra guarantee of quality, one might want to have a gem lab’s report establishing that the diamond you’ve purchased has not been clarity or color enhanced - or you can just be prudent and smart to begin with. That is, you can buy Hearts On Fire. It is the world’s most perfectly cut diamond; so naturally, each significant Hearts On Fire has been submitted to a laboratory for evaluation and has a serial number laser etched on its edge (don’t worry, you can only see it under strong magnification) to verify its connection to that report. Reports aside, let’s consider why you want to buy a diamond. If you’re a man, you usually buy it to say “I love you”; and you want that statement to ring with authority and conviction. A cheap diamond, and there are so many ways to cut corners when cutting a diamond, won’t have the blinding brilliance and fire that is the birthright of each and every Hearts On Fire. Only Hearts On Fire will reliably tell her just how important she is to you; so with your “due diligence” it is the only diamond you should buy. Check out our Hearts On Fire collection on line at hurstsberwynjewelers.com; then phone us at 708.788.0880 for an appointment to select the very best Hearts On Fire for you. We’re Hursts Berwyn Jewelers and we have the stuff of dreams waiting for you.

Were I to ask you to draw a picture of a crown, most of you would probably depict a headband with a row of triangular points at its top. Some of you, however, might just draw a crown embellished with fleur de lis and cross motifs; and this mirrors the appearance of the St. Edward’s Crown as one might see it on Queen Elizabeth II’s personal standard. Save for the coronation of Queen Victoria in 1838, St. Edward’s crown has been the coronation crown used in every coronation since it was created for the coronation of Charles II in 1661. Its present appearance, permanently set with 444 precious stones, dates from the coronation of George V in 1911; but the crown Victoria commissioned for her 1838 coronation is a lot flashier. It has since become known as the Imperial State Crown and between it and St. Edward’s Crown, they carry the weight of history - and perhaps, imperial myth.

The English Civil War (a series of conflicts between Parliamentarians and Royalists) began in 1641 and ended in 1651. In its course Charles I had been executed and his heir exiled to the continent. Oliver Cromwell proclaimed the monarchy at an end, replacing it with the “Commonwealth of England” and declaring himself Lord Protector of England. It was a military dictatorship; and when Oliver died, the dictatorship died with him. Parliament was reconstituted and in 1660 it invited Charles I’s heir, Charles II, to return to England as king. After some negotiation he did so in May of 1660; but his official coronation wouldn’t take place until April 23, 1661, in part out of the need to reconstitute the “Crown Jewels”.

Cromwell had ordered the “original crown of St. Edward” melted down; but since it was (and had been) emblematic of English royalty since King Edward first wore it on Christmas day, 1065, Charles and his retinue wanted it recreated. So, after a fashion, it was. Its general shape was crafted to the same general appearance of the original; and best of all, it was said that some of the gold used in making it had come from the original crown. Not only that, it was also embellished with pearls said to have belonged to Queen Elizabeth I; but the rest of its embellishment would prove problematic. After more than a third of his life to that date living on the charity of the king of France (Louis XIV), Charles was broke. Hence the need to borrow and rent gems to “fill out” his crown; and among them the most ancient gem of the English monarchs took precedence. It was (and is) St. Edward’s Sapphire. It is believed to have been the principal gem in the ring worn by Edward the Confessor at his A.D. 1042 coronation. When Edward died in 1066 he had no heir and the ring was buried with him in Westminster Abby; but he did not rest in peace. He was canonized in 1161 and in 1269 Henry III commissioned a stately tomb for his remains. In the process of moving the body, the coffin was opened and all “ornaments”, including the ring, were removed from the body and became part of the crown jewels of England. As compensation, perhaps, St. Edward became the patron saint of the British royal family and remains so to this day.

In the creation of her coronation crown (the Imperial Crown of State), Victoria had quite cheerfully raided all of the crown jewels for gems; and so it was that Edward the Confessor’s sapphire became part of the new crown, as did a lesser sapphire, the Stuart Sapphire. Since 1838 this crown has seen other revisions, the most recent and important being its reconstruction (honoring the original design) for the coronation of King George VI in 1937. With this reconstruction the Imperial Crown of State had become a brief study in the history of England and its empire. As well as St. Edward’s Sapphire, it incorporates (from the Middle Ages) the Black Prince’s Ruby, (from the 1700’s) the Stuart Sapphire and also (from the early 20th century) the Cullinan II diamond. In practice, monarchs since Victoria have honored the history incorporated into each crown, wearing St. Edward’s Crown during the coronation ceremony and then, for the procession from Westminster Abby, exchanging it at once for the Imperial Crown of State.

That’s fine jewelry in a nutshell. At its best, it tells a story; and so it’s important to get your choice of jewelry right. That means only Hearts On Fire, the world’s most perfectly cut diamond will do for that all important gift. Its flaming beauty will tell her you love her perfectly, and you won’t have to say a word. So check out our Hearts On Fire collection on line at hurstsberwynjewelers.com; then phone us at 708.788.0880 for an appointment to select the Hearts On Fire you need to do the talking for you. We’re Hursts’ Berwyn Jewelers and we have the stuff of dreams for you.