Cat's Eye Gems [Phenomenal Gemstones]
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 27 พ.ค. 2024
- Emperors used these Cat's Eye stones to "watch their back." When buying a cat's eye stone, what do you need to know and how do you evaluate them? We talk about what causes the cat's eye effect and the qualities you need to understand in a buying situation in todays video.
You’re way too underrated!!
Thank you Starlie~~~ hopefully its just a matter of time and shameless self-promotion XD
I just got a blue grayish sapphire cat eye, dont really like the colour but i have never seen them in the market, so decided to buy it just for the rarity. Soon going to make in into a ring
Cool ~ curiosities all have a place somewhere. Best of luck with your ring.
Great video as usual. Thank You!
My pleasure - more to come~~~
I'm going to Taiwan next year just to check out the mine for Jade where cat's eye jade are found. The mines were closed ages ago, but the government has allowed one store to sell nephrite in the area
Taiwan is a fantastic place. I'd gladly go back yearly. Keep me posted on what you find. I'm told most of the cat's eye jade material that is sold in Taiwan (and mainland) is from Siberia. There evidently IS cat's eye jade (actinolite) naturally occurring in Taiwan, but its not that evergreen colour. Thanks for the comment Mon Acosta.
@@GemologyforSchmucks that's true, thats why I am going to the only workshop that is government approved to sell Hualien jade. It's my third time in Taiwan next year, but it's my first time in Hualien. I should be there this year but COVID happened
Hualien is the best - keep me posted on how your trip goes.
I just got a beautiful grey cat's eye moonstone 😊it is nice to find some good information about it 😇
Glad to be of service~
Thank you so much for the info at 1:20-1:30! I'm just getting into lapidary and I have been trying to find answers on how to identify the different axis of a chatoyant stone and the best way to cut it from that point for what seems to be forever! I have some petrified wood river stones that I've been wanting to cab but have been very gun shy about cutting into them without the knowledge of how to orient the cut for the best result.
There is indeed lots to learn ~ but the best way to learn is to DO!~. for chatoyant stones and stars - try a drop of water, or i hear honey is the super pro tip
I've been informed that what I have is sugar agate. Should I assume that the same technique should be applied to get the most of the aventurescent brilliancy with a cabachon cut?
@@claws98837 The water/honey thing should not be essential for aventurescent stones. The aventurescence effect isnt usually associated to the crystal faces/ any crystal axis of the stone. Agate is a cryptocrystalline quartz, so its not one crystal anyhow, but a whole multitude of crystals living together like a colony. Cut it however you like i'd say. If you find something different out as you're cutting it, please do let me know ;) I'm still learning many things too.
I'll let you know for sure! 😁 The technique I meant was the way cat's eye is cut, but you answered that question with the cryptochrystaline quartz colony info. Sugar quartz may be a simple stone but I love the way the aventurescence in the rock mirrors colors like tiny holographic glitter. 😁
@@claws98837 beauty is beauty - If you like it and it's natural: i've got no qualms :D
Thanks mate like your program
Cheers, and thank you~
I've seen Cat's Eyes that appear to blink when you rotate the gem. I was told that only these are "true" Cat's Eyes. They are purportedly very popular with Japanese men as symbols of status...but I've see precious little this subject. Can you expand and/or provide an episode discussing this?
Cat's eye chrysoberyl is officially the only one that can be simply called "cat's eye" without a mineral name modifier, that is correct. To my understanding, there is a popularity of cat's eye stones of many types in Asia, partially due to a belief that the stone "keeps an eye out for you" and can protect from bad luck etc. As to the specifics of that belief in Japan, im not certain. Something to look into, for sure. The "open and closed effect" or eye blinking is available in some higher quality cat's eyes.
Very interesting thank you. I have a 5mm cats eye orb which, when held to the light a colourful abstract 'picture' is visible. The pattern can be seen from both sides but facing in different directions.. I am guessing this is somehow dyed into the stone?? It was purchased in Thailand. Your advice will be appreciated. Thank you
Hi Jocelyn,
It sounds lovely ~ to say more, i'd really need to see the stone, as there are MANY different possibilities. If you go to gemshepherd.com there is a contact form where you can get ahold of me directly.
Cheers, and thanks for reaching out.
I watch this video because for a reason that l have found one object that looks like a cats eye and it is my first time. Im so curious and start searching for answers.. How i hope for an answer!!
Keep safe !!!
Where can I purchase real Chrysoberyl? I feel most of the beads and such online are fake
When i'm back in Bangkok I can source chrysoberyl for you. Send me an email and we can talk further about what you are looking for: thegemshepherd@gmail.com
Hi there, thank u for the video! Can a cat's eye stone be light pink/orange?
Hi there ~ there are cat's eye effects in many types of stones, though I don't know that i've seen orange just yet. Light pink is definitely possible, though severely uncommon. Pink sapphire of the right type can be oriented and cut so that it has a cat's eye rather than a star, according to what i read. That said, most of the material is cut already, so recutting a stone specifically for this effect would likely be cost prohibitive.
I’m looking for a cats eye for a pendant I’m having made. Can you direct me to where I can buy a genuine cats eye?
If you contact me via gemshepherd.com (click the contact button) we can talk further about what you're looking for~ Cheers
Is it possible to find cars eye in. Amber
Great question ~ Cats eye effect usually comes in a gemstone that has one of a few structural features like oriented needles/ silk, a fibrous structure that directs light, or even hollow growth tubes. Amber is amorphous (no crystalline structure) so I doubt it. That said, I am not the judge and arbiter of what is possible, so who knows~~ I'd be super excited to see it if a natural piece existed.
Thank you thank you... Followed by questions
1) if we cut an arm of a star and carve it into smaller 6 pieces are we going to get cat eyes or 6 stars? Or most likely nothing. So in simple terms can a needle from a star become an eye of a cat :)
2) you mentioned nephrite as soft jade, is Nepherite realler softer than jade? I was told that actually in comparison to durability of stones Nepherite is tougher? Just that jadeite is rare and that makes it more expensive.
Gladly with the questions :)
1) I've been reading the Ruby and Sapphire book by Richard Hughes and theres a section on asterism and chatoyancy. From my understanding of what he wrote, in order to get a cat's eye from a stone that has silk and would create a star, you cut it parallel to the C axis as opposed to perpendicular with a star stone. Many sapphires grow in a crystal that is like a 6 faced pyramid, and there are two pyramids stuck together, one up and one down. The face of the star would go towards the point of the pyramid, and a cats eye would be cut with the face going towards the hips of the pyramid... if that makes any sense. In this way (as long as there is enough silk) the silk can line up and create a cat's eye.
2) Nephrite jade is called "soft jade" in Chinese. Nephrite and Jadeite are the only two minerals that are allowed to be called Jade scientifically at the moment. They are in two different groups of minerals, but because they both have been backed up as "Jade" historically/ culturally, the scientific community had to bend XD.
You are correct - jade (Nephrite even more than Jadeite) is TOUGH, which means that it can resist breaking more than any other type of gemstones, but that doesn't mean it is "hard" and cannot be scratched. Nephrite is about a 6 on the moh's scale, so it can be scratched by quartz and topaz etc, but it can crush quartz and topaz into dust because of its higher toughness. Traditional axes made from Nephrite have been found in many ancient cultures (to include the Chinese and Indigenous Peoples of the Northwestern American continent [B.C. Canada area])
So to sum up - nephrite IS the historical jade, and it is tougher than Jadeite, but a little bit softer (can be scratched by), and as you've already noticed, Jadeite is MUCH rarer than nephrite, and that's why jadeite is typically much more expensive.
Great observations~!
@@GemologyforSchmucks Thank you for a detailed response again. By the way I didn't notice Hashtag with keywords added at the back of your TH-cam video description. Maybe adding more of the #gemstones like keywords could help increase your views as people can search it more? Oh and by the way if you happen to make a video on jade... Maybe adding some info on Mawsit sit and jadeite look alike stones would support such topics too? Thank you as always for detailed response.
Nothing related but thought to share this clip on opal... Quite interesting pattern but not sure what affect is this.. th-cam.com/video/VA9wCj4s3Go/w-d-xo.html
Thanks for the suggestion. I'm actually planning on doing some stone focus videos where I talk about different qualities for that stone and how they impact prices and the common treatments etc. Keep an eye out for that in the coming months ;) Thanks for your support
Hi sir I got few stone it’s got cat eye effect . I don’t know which one is that. I think it’s chrysoberyl or alexandrite. Do you help me to find out what it is
Hello~ you'll need a gemologist to test this stone in person. Identifying stones from a picture over the internet isn't something a professional should be willing to do. Our eyes can deceive us, but using the right instruments will guide us to the truth.
@@GemologyforSchmucks thanks! I am from uk I take it to uk lab they told me what it is. But I am not happy with there answer. I went to India show same stone to lab in Indian. They told me it’s some thing as. I am still not happy there answer. Because uk lab say its 7 hardness stone. Indian lab say its 2.5 hardness stone. Any way thanks.
My question is¡ if we cut a metal in round shape. We can see line in it. So that metal is cat eye metal.
XD after a manner of speaking haha. The quality of the cat's eye directly influence the price of copper pipes now eh? hahaha
I wonder if stone called "tiger eye" is the same as "cats eye" ?
Maybe tiger eye is specifically only for nephrite jade ?
Many thanks for your explanations about gem stones on utube.
" Brown" nephrite jade I mean.
Hi Brian ~ Tiger's Eye and Hawk's eye are both varieties of fibrous quartz that exhibit the cat's eye effect. So to make it short - yes they have the effect, but no they can't be called cat's eye on their own, as that name is reserved for Chrysoberyl Cat's Eye. Everything else would have "Cat's Eye ____" followed by the name of the mineral, like emerald or tourmaline (and i've seen cat's eye effect in both~)
@@GemologyforSchmucks Many thanks...and for the tip about sharpness
of cats eye....natural vs synthetic.
Which cat's eye batter cyloni Nd chrysobery plz tell me
Pardon? Which is better between Ceylon cat's eye and chrysoberyl? Many cat's eye from Ceylon ARE chrysoberyl. Which are better? that depends entirely on the piece. There is no origin that is always better than another, for ANY stone.
@@GemologyforSchmucks green or golden is batter work Sir
@@babuldey3815 Are you asking which is more valuable, or which is easier to sell or? Pricing is something you will need to explore on your own. I suggest finding which colour appeals most to your clients and customers. If you buy the one that the gem community says is more valuable, but none of your clients like it... then it will still be incredibly difficult to sell, regardless of value.
Conduct. ?
Pardon?
I have cabbed some cats eye no star yet
With some stones (like corundum) the orientation of the stone will be important to get a star vs a cat's eye effect . Try dropping a *tiny* drop of water (or honey) on the stone before you cab it to find which direction might give you a star or cat's eye.
@@GemologyforSchmucks thanks for all your great info. I would like to send you some gems. Maybe you know what they are. I found a huge supply.
So what’s cats eye opal?
I can't say that i've ever heard of one. Sounds suspicious to me, but science asks one thing: tell me more.
XD According to the normal properties of opals and how they are formed, it doesn't seem likely (at all) that natural (or synthetic either) would form a cat's eye effect. That said - if it can be shown to be an opal, then i'd love to hear more about it.
@@GemologyforSchmucks hi there..thank you for your reply..I only found this recently about cats eye Opal seeing that I’m working with opals so I’m always on the hunt for new opals from different countries
And then I found on TH-cam there’s cats eye opal from India Tanzania
By the way, l live in the Philippines...
Do you have a TikTok?? Users on that app would love to see this content!
I don't, but thanks for the suggestion. I'll see what opportunities come up for growth.
1st
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Sir your voice more speed
You want me to speak faster?!? Goodness gracious XD