As with all the materials we consume, it is now the time to question the origin, the conditions of extraction, transformation, and the environmental and societal impacts linked to them.

In the world of precious stones, this question of origin has existed for several decades, driven firstly by a valuation factor (a ruby from Burma will be estimated at a much higher value than a ruby from Mozambique). The need to know the origin, in order to answer questions about the environmental and societal impacts of the supply chain is growing with consumer demand, as well as European and international regulators who are pressuring all industries for more transparency and responsibility.

The determination of origin provided by gemmological laboratories therefore constitutes a major issue for the gemstone market. Today, certification of origin is a service offered by gemmological laboratories, for a price often equivalent to the certificate of authenticity. Laboratories have embarked on a race to find the best origin determination process, based on methods and data that are little or not communicated to customers. The laboratories protect themselves by explaining that these origins are “expert opinions”. These origins are usually given based on 2 main characteristics: inclusions (other minerals trapped in the stone) and geochemistry (concentration of elements which are in low quantity in these minerals).

However, the geological contexts in which the gemstones are formed are sometimes similar. The data acquired often shows overlaps between different origins (a few deposits have the same chemical composition for example). For the same stone, several laboratories can therefore give different origins, as evidenced by the sapphire sold at Christie’s Hong Kong in 2015 which, with 3 certificates, shows 3 different origins.