There seems to be a considerable difference of opinion among jewelers, traders & mineralogists on the subject of the classification of precious and semi-precious gems. The more science oriented professionals, from their inclination to treat the matter from the view-point of the mineralogist, appear to be little influenced in their classifications by the inexorable law of demand and supply, or the fickleness of fashion and popular favor.
The motives of mineralogists and jewelers in grouping and classifying gems, seems perfectly justified from their different view-points.
Here is a non-comprehensive list of popular Precious and Semi-Precious stones in general
Precious Gems
- Diamond
- Ruby (Corundum)
- Sapphires (Corundum)
- Emerald
- Spinel (Cobalt Spinels)
- Chrysoberyl (Alexandrite/ Vanadium)
- Tourmaline (Paraiba Tourmaline)
Semi-Precious Gems
- Spinel
- Tsavorite
- Aquamarine
- Garnet
- Tourmaline
- Amethyst
- Quartz
- Opal
The list goes on!
The separation between precious and semi-precious has no real scientific backing. For example, emerald is a variety of a beryl, so are aquamarines. Emerald is precious while aquamarine is semi-precious. When this categorization came about, it was mainly due to the value and rarity differences between the top 4 precious gemstones and the rest. Today some semi-precious gemstones can be worth much more than a precious stone. As an example, some Spinels can be way more pricey, often worth more than a low-quality precious diamond, ruby, emerald or sapphire. Additionally, many semi-precious stones can be rarer than some of the precious. Demantoid garnets or tsavorite garnets and many other semi-precious gemstones are hard to find, harder to mine and produced in much lower qualities than the precious gemstones.
When planning on purchasing a gemstone, we wouldn’t suggest you to get too caught up on if the stone is precious or semi-precious. All gemstones can be special, in the sense that if they provide meaning and value to you in a piece of jewelry, they are special! Bear in mind that colors are subjective and so is the beauty that a gemstone beholds.