vivid

[Barrett]

quick question..whats the criteria for "vivid" again?

 

[T L]

It is a stone that has the strongest saturation possible for it's hue and species (the species part from Mr. Zeolite), and no modifiers (brown or grey). Because it has a strong saturation, it cannot be too light or dark in tone either.

 

[VapidLapid]

I like vivid. it''s so real-life!

 

[Barrett]

thanks TL!

 

[Gailey]

So does my rubellite from Lisa count?

 

[Sal from Cal]

Gailey,

It would in my book. Very intense color

 

[T L]

I am very cautious to assign a vivid rating to any stone. If I were a gemologist, I would be extremely conservative in my grading. Even the AGL, that sees many of the best stones, rarely rarely assigns top color grading on a gem. They even state this on their website. Even among every stone I own, I don't think I would assign a vivid to any of them. Vivid stones are very very rare in nature, and typically cost an arm and a leg when you find them.

 

[Gailey]

Well I don''t know if my stone counts or not. The local appraiser raved about it and my appraisal was astonishing compared with what I paid for it. Maybe I will sent it to AGL just to see what they say.

 

[T L]

Date: 4/20/2010 11:46:34 AM
Author: Gailey
Well I don't know if my stone counts or not. The local appraiser raved about it and my appraisal was astonishing compared with what I paid for it. Maybe I will sent it to AGL just to see what they say.

That's not to say that a person doesn't have an intensely colored gem, but I do think there is a difference between very strong or intense color and vivid color, and a stone doesn't have to be vivid to be very beautiful. That's another misconception. Of course, the more towards vivid, the more desirable, but if you can get close to that ideal, that is the goal for many gem collectors.

I have a very intensely colored spessartite, I was at a gem show with it, and did not see one like it anywhere, nor through many of the other various gem shows I was at, or museums, online, etc. . . Richard Sheerwood took a look at a photo of it on PS, and said he would call the color intense, which is like a step away from vivid in the way I intepreted his words (he used the grading of fancy colored diamonds as an example). I think he's a more conservative appraiser, but I would agree with his surmisal of a photo of my spessartite. I wouldn't call it vivid either, and I doubt the AGL would. It might be a fine color, but vivid is so rare in nature.

My next series of statements are my own opinion and I don't know if others would agree with it, and that's fine.

I also think it depends on the hue. Some hues are more vivid than others. A top ruby is always going to be more vivid than a top sapphire because red is simply a color that you can see from a mile away, in simplistic terms. I beleive this has to do with the wavelength for red and how the eye perceives this wavelength, in scientific terms. I believe Mr. Zeolite had some discussion about wavelength and color in his recent thread on saturation and tone.

ETA: Gailey, If you feel it's a vivid stone, I think it's a good idea to send your stone to the AGL, but they can be pricey with some higher end color quality reports, like the Prestige report.

 

[Barrett]

Cool thank for the info TL..it would seem for me at least..if i was grading a colored gem to have a master color chart or pics of previous stones same color that did recieve a Vivid grade to compare whatever one you had in your hand if you were wanting to know if it was vivid..at least for me..i am sure Sherwood and Wise can do it no problem...i would have a hard time delineating between an intense colored stone and a vivid colored stone..I guess that comes with experience and having access to the best stones like Zeo, Wise, or Sherwood would have. Thanks again TL

 

[T L]

Date: 4/20/2010 12:23:35 PM
Author: amethystguy
Cool thank for the info TL..it would seem for me at least..if i was grading a colored gem to have a master color chart or pics of previous stones same color that did recieve a Vivid grade to compare whatever one you had in your hand if you were wanting to know if it was vivid..at least for me..i am sure Sherwood and Wise can do it no problem...i would have a hard time delineating between an intense colored stone and a vivid colored stone..I guess that comes with experience and having access to the best stones like Zeo, Wise, or Sherwood would have. Thanks again TL

That''s why labs like the AGL are important when you''re grading a stone for color. They mention again, on their website, that they have retained what is the worst and best in a gem and will use that as a basis for grading.

In establishing a base for international quality reference standards, AGL had to be sure that all gemstones from the best to the worst could be accommodated by the system. Therefore, the top of the scale has become almost a theoretical standard of excellence. Please do not ask for 1.00 to 2.00 color grades. Because of the AGL''s stringent grading practices, a 3.5 color is usually the best color grade any gem will receive. A 3.5 colored gemstone on an AGL Grading Report is nearly synonymous with a D-color diamond on a GIA Diamond Grading Report. On rare occasion, AGL may find exceptional examples that will receive even better color grades.

http://www.aglgemlab.com/Services/Prestige.aspx

 

[ma re]

Date: 4/20/2010 11:59:18 AM
Author: tourmaline_lover

Date: 4/20/2010 11:46:34 AM
Author: Gailey
Well I don''t know if my stone counts or not. The local appraiser raved about it and my appraisal was astonishing compared with what I paid for it. Maybe I will sent it to AGL just to see what they say.

My next series of statements are my own opinion and I don''t know if others would agree with it, and that''s fine.

I also think it depends on the hue. Some hues are more vivid than others. A top ruby is always going to be more vivid than a top sapphire because red is simply a color that you can see from a mile away, in simplistic terms. I beleive this has to do with the wavelength for red and how the eye perceives this wavelength, in scientific terms. I believe Mr. Zeolite had some discussion about wavelength and color in his recent thread on saturation and tone.

I agree and I believe it has something to do with warm colors (red, orange, yellow), being more easily detectable than cool ones, because our eyes are more sensitive to them. That''s why signs of danger (in traffic etc.) are always painted red - cause it''s the easiest to spot.