Trying to find value of Gemstone for my father

[loscarlett1]

Hi All.
 I'm trying to find out the value of a particular gemstone that belongs to my father. He lives in regional Australia so is some distance from any major city. He is also somewhat of a technophobe, hence he has tasked me in seeing if I can find out where (wether online or in person) would be the best place to get an idea of the value of this stone.I have looked online to see if I can find something similar but have had no luck. I have also looked at the option of signing up to Gemval for I think $40/month but am unsure if this is the best place seeing that its only one stone that he's concerned with. He's been a keen fossicker for about 25 years and this stone he found over a decade ago, It's his pride and joy, and while I expect he'll never part with it he'd like to have some idea of its worth. Thanks in advance.

[Faceting Frank]

What is it? Not going to be easy to get an accurate evaluation.

[loscarlett1]

Hi Faceting Frank, Its a Sapphire. the information I have is that is a Blue Trapedo Star?? 108 ct.

[MakkyBrown]

Hello loscralet1,

Could you upload a photo, it may help others value your fathers stone.
Sounds like a great stone to be one day made into a pendant and kept as family heirloom
Cheers
MB

[loscarlett1]

Hi MakkyBrown,
 He does occasionally set stones in jewellery for friends and family members, Im not sure if he will with this one but it will definitely be a family heirloom, He sent this photo through to me that he took with his phone, Don't know if it shows it in the best light.

[Dihusky]

I think we're going to need a bit more than a picture of a polished rock on a bench, please get some photos of the stone, maybe outside in some diffues sunlight, light shining through the stone from different angles etc. Use the light on a phone as it's powerful and shine it through the rock.

[Bucket]

loscarlett1, as you would understand, trying to identify something without seeing it personally is quite difficult, it helps if you have extensive photos showing colour, size (a ruler helps) and in this case, the star would be great. Having the weight was good but without more information, getting a valuation online is hard. How remote is he? Does he get to a major city at all? If so, he should take it to a gem valuer (not necessarily a jeweller) or be prepared to post it to one. I wouldn't be prepared to give any valuation with seeing the stone.

[loscarlett1]

Thanks Bucket,
 This is exactly the info i'm looking for. I did think that evaluating gemstones online (no matter how good the photos) might be a tough call. I assumed that these websites such as Gemval can only give you some type of estimate based on type/weight and that a proper evaluation would need to be done in person. I thought maybe a Jeweller might be able to do this but after reading your comment maybe a gem valuer might be more suited. He does visit family often (Sydney/Melbourne). is there maybe a list within this forum of valuers? (had a quick look couldn't see one) Or any particular recommendations? Again, thank you.

[Faceting Frank]

I wouldn’t bother with your average jeweler, all they sell is junk from China and wouldn’t have a clue on value.
He could get a list of valuers from Sydney or Melbourne to see before he goes.

[Dihusky]

If he's going to post it (registered I hope) the Valuers location probably doesn't matter. My valuer is Kym Hughes of Symmetry Jewellery Valuations. Kym is Internationally regarded as a Valuer.

[loscarlett1]

Thank you Faceting Frank / Dihusky. This is great information, I'm not sure if he'd feel comfortable sending even by registered mail, personally I wouldn't have a problem with that but it's not my property. So maybe a personal visit will be the go.
 I passed on the name Kym Hughes of Symmetry Jewellery Valuations to him Dihusky, looked it up and it seems as though thats exactly the kind of person he needs to talk to.
 Thank you to everyone who has contributed with this thread, has been a big help, Hope everyone has a lovely Christmas.
 
 

[harryopal]

If you are just getting a theoretical value from a valuer that's fine. If later you were looking to sell the stone remember that this is a theoretical value and finding a buyer at that price may be difficult. Awkward times selling anything. Were you to try to sell it to any kind of business remember that many jewellery businesses work on a 100% mark up so do not feel someone is trying to cheat you if you are offered half what is deemed the value.

For your own interest, as suggested above, get a good light to shine into the stone and use a loupe or at least a very strong magnifying glass. Clarity in the stone as against obvious small fracture or stress lines will be most relevant to it's value. There are natural inclusions in many stones and you might find a reference book in a local library to help you understand what you are looking at.

I am sure most responders here to your message would be most interested if you followed up regarding the outcome of your quest. Good luck.

[loscarlett1]

Hi Harryopal,
 Thanks for your feedback. I was away over Christmas so am late to your post.
I spoke to my father yesterday and mentioned about maybe getting some better photos with a light shining through it if only to post here if anyone is interested, we'll see how that goes. I did mention to him about maybe sending it via registered mail to a valuer and he actually seemed ok about that, so maybe a next step would be contacting some.
 I'll be honest, I don't know much about any of this (although doing the small amount of research that i've done I can see why my father and others like yourself can get so passionate about it). He is quite knowledgeable about the subject but has never really entertained the idea of getting anything valued, I think he simply enjoys fossicking and the stones he finds are special to him.
 That being said he has shown this particular stone to a handful of people that he respects within the community over the last decade or so and it always gets very encouraging feedback on it, so I guess the value of this one has piqued his interest
 I will definitely post an update on any news (or photos) that I have going forward, Thanks again.