Loose Stone Buying Checklist and Red Flags

A loose stone has no setting to hide behind, which makes it the best way to buy an interesting gem and the easiest way to buy something you cannot verify, so the questions you ask before paying do most of the work.

Ask these before you pay

• What species is it? Species is a specific answer: quartz, corundum, beryl, spinel, chrysoberyl. Trade names such as imperial topaz or Ceylon sapphire describe color, grade, or reported region and are not species names.
• Was it mined or grown in a lab? This should be stated outright, not implied.
• Which treatments, if any? Ask for the treatment by name: heated, irradiated, oiled, resin-filled, glass-filled, dyed, coated, or diffused. The word treated alone does not answer the question.
• What are the exact measurements and the weight? Get length, width, depth in millimeters and weight in carats. Depth is the one sellers leave out and the one that decides how a stone sets.
• Are the photographs of this exact stone, or a representative sample? For a one-of-a-kind stone, every photo should be of the stone you will receive.
• Was the stone photographed wet or dry? A wet stone hides surface-reaching fractures and can look darker or more saturated than it is in the hand.
• Were measurements taken, and were they taken on the loose stone? Specific gravity cannot be measured on a mounted stone, so ask when it was measured.
• Is there an independent laboratory report? If so, which laboratory, and what is the report number?
• What is the return window, and who pays return shipping? This single term is your protection if a description turns out to be wrong.
• Can the stone be returned if an independent laboratory disagrees with the description? For a purchase where identity or treatment is disputed, this is the only remedy that means anything.

Red flags in a listing

None of these is proof of a problem on its own. Each one is a reason to slow down and ask.

• No species name anywhere. A listing that calls a stone a precious gem or a rare find has not told you what it is.
• Genuine, real, or natural used as the whole description, with no measurement to support it.
• No treatment statement at all, especially on emerald, ruby, or blue topaz, where treatments are common.
• No dimensions or weight, or weight in grams rather than carats.
• Photographs only under colored light, or shadowed so heavily that no surface detail is visible.
• Every photo is straight-on, with no side or profile view showing depth and cut.
• The word certified with no laboratory name, no report number, and no document to look up.
• A flawless description for a large stone at a price that does not match fine material of that species and size. Flawless fine material is scarce. The mismatch is the thing to resolve, not a bargain to grab.
• Urgency built into the listing text, such as a claim that this exact stone is the only one and will not last the day.
• No return policy, or a return policy that excludes stones which fail verification.

What to do with the answers

Put the species, treatment status, measurements, and return terms in writing before payment. If the seller cannot or will not do that, treat it as the answer.

Ask for the species, the treatment, and the measurements in writing, and buy from the seller who puts them on the page without being asked twice.