We recently bought a Paraiba Tourmaline from Thailand (picture below) We washed the gemstone in plain simple alcohol and found some color coming from the gemstone. I would advice everyone to check this when buying gems. especially green gems that have inclusions where I think they are using green oil that are used in emerald to do the same on these Paraiba Tourmaline as well.
I suggest you contact the seller and make this known. This is bad practice all around and gives all of us a bad name in the industry. I know a paraba of that quality and size did not come cheap.
All the best.
Otter.
I have seen a few minerals with colored goop on them. It really ticks me off when I see that.
Whatever it is, I hope you purchased it at a really good price and plan on re-cutting it to get rid of that terrible Window. This stone was cut for carat weight and not for color or brilliance (light return). Assuming it is a natural mineral and not glass or a synthetic, if re-cut for color and brilliance you should be able to get a better return for your investment.
This is done with many different types of gemstones ranging from emeralds, aquamarines, ( All the beryls basically) and tourmalines but Pariaba is not as common. They are using either oils ( like cedar oil with dyes) or Opticon Resigns to fill fractures etc. It is something that should be communicated prior to purchase if a gemstone has been treated or in some cases is even synthetic. I’ve seen many folks try and sell Tourmalines for instance as genuine tourmaline only to find out it’s synthetic. Ebay and many sellers from India seem to try this on untrained unsuspecting buyers. I’m not sure why Ebay allows some of these frauds to be on there after they are found out. Maybe the sellers don’t know what they are selling either. My advice is buy from only reputable sellers or pay certified gemologist from IGS or GIA to certify and appraise first . I know everyone want to get things for a least expensive as possible and spending $75 and up to get an appraisal is adding to the cost but it’s better than paying money for a fake or treated gemstone. Otherwise buyers beware. There are a lot of scammers out there. It happens to the best of us.
