Today starts an occasional series covering the rarest gems you've probably never heard of. The remarkable 9.41-carat light-pink oval gem seen here is one of the largest — if not the largest — faceted poudretteite in existence, according to the Smithsonian. A faceted poudretteite is so rare, says the Gemological Institute of America (GIA), that […]
Welcome to Music Friday when we bring you great throwback songs with jewelry, gemstones or precious metals in the lyrics or title. Today, we shine the spotlight on Don Cherry's 1955 hit, "Band of Gold," which made a resurgence more than 50 years later on the Emmy-award-winning AMC series Mad Men. In the song, Cherry […]
Dogo, a police dog with the Keweenaw County Sheriff’s Office, recently showed off his amazing olfactory skills by sniffing out an engagement ring that was lost at a Michigan beach on the shore of Lake Superior. The five-year-old Dutch shepherd is trained to locate hidden drugs and weapons, but is also skilled at detecting human […]
In a startling report, Mastercard singled out "jewelry" as the fastest growing retail sector, with July 2021 sales jumping a whopping 54.2% compared to pre-pandemic July 2019 levels. When comparing July 2021 jewelry sales to those in July 2020, the growth is even more dramatic, with the jewelry sector accelerating 82.6%. In the 2021 vs […]
It's one of the most difficult beaches to access on Hawaii's Big Island, but certainly worth the extra effort. Because when you get there, you'll be walking barefoot on a blanket of sparkling green sand that owes its astounding color to olivine crystals eroded from the belly of an ancient volcano and delivered to the […]
Last Thursday, the wedding ring that Philadelphian Jim McAllister wore continuously since 1974 slipped off his finger in the surf at Ocean City, NJ. McAllister was with his son, Ryan, when a large wave nearly knocked them over. Jim felt the ring falling off his finger, and the water was clear enough for him to […]
Welcome to Music Friday when we bring you feel-good songs with jewelry, gemstones or precious metals in the lyrics or title. Today, Beyoncé and P. Diddy sing about falling in love and cruising the world for pearls in “Summertime.” In this 2003 collaboration, Beyoncé celebrates that special moment when a woman knows she’s finally found […]
As the hardest material known to man, diamond is often used in tools to cut glass. But, research scientists at China's Yanshan University have developed a new type of glass that can actually scratch a diamond. This new high-tech glass — tentatively named AM-III — rated 113 gigapascals (GPa) in the Vickers hardness test, compared […]
A new study confirms what most of us already know — that jewelry plays an important role in our daily lives. Two out of three respondents said that they wear specific jewelry pieces to express their personality and mood. And exactly 64% of respondents believe that — to some extent — the symbols used in […]
A Grand Island, NE, man celebrated his 80th birthday with a class ring he lost more than 60 years ago — thanks to the "pay it forward" attitude of a North Platte couple that shares a love for metal detecting and making the world a better place. Greg and Crystal Mattke were treasure hunting in […]