At the Lotus Gemology laboratory in Bangkok, we often get parcels of relatively uniform stones. But sometimes it is in this routine testing that we uncover surprises.

When you see a fine ruby, it does something to you. It’s not about the value.
If it were simply the value, I’d go out and buy a kilo of gold. Richard Hughes to journalist Rod Nordland
“On the treacherous trail to the rare ruby red”  |  1982  |  Asia

Lotus Gemology begins with a simple idea – beauty is the principal source of attraction for precious stones. Thus it should also be the major focus of gemology. In other words, the GEM is the most important part of gemology.

It is our belief that gemology is not simply about counting atoms; to apply science absent a discussion of how it relates to aesthetics and desire does a disservice not just to clients, but to the jewels themselves. We do not believe that attraction can be reduced to a simple set of measurements, anymore than the beauty of a rainbow or sunset can be expressed by mathematical formula.

Rest assured, we are not Luddites. We not only appreciate science, but use it daily. At the same time, we recognize that many parts of the human experience extend into realms far beyond science. Thus the gemology at Lotus includes not just science, but weaves into the mix history, culture, art and travel. We do this in the belief that these factors play equal roles in how humans perceive desirability and value. 

Like a small French restaurant, we believe that crafting a fine meal takes time and individual care; thus our seating is limited. The translation of the intangibles of rarity and aesthetic beauty is our strength.

Precious stones are among the most compelling examples of Mother Nature’s artistic genius.

Lotus Gemology operates from a base of over 80 years of collective experience in the study, purchase, sale and appreciation of precious stones. Our lives have been enriched beyond measure by our involvement with these gifts of nature and we believe if we characterize them with the appropriate reverence and care, we can open this magical world to others. This is our goal.

The early history of beryllium diffusion in sapphire, starting with the 2001 appearance of large numbers of padparadscha sapphires in the Thai gem market.

A large black star sapphire was brought in for testing. Two large pits on the base were carefully filled with brown dopping varnish. After removal of the varnish with alcohol, it was found that a large portion of the base had been filled with a lead glass.

Corundum

Richard W. Hughes  |  1990

Rubies and sapphires are widely considered to be among the most sought after and precious of gems. Together they account for over fifty percent of the world trade in colored gemstones. This book is the first from Richard Hughes on the subject, and the first major work to be devoted entirely to the corundum family of gemstones. It covers all aspects of rubies and sapphires, beginning with their history, chemical and physical properties. Other chapters look at treatments, synthetic corundums, methods of fashioning, famous rubies and sapphires, formation of corundum deposits and world sources, providing a valuable reference source for jewelers, gemologists, students, and the general reader.

Out-of-print. Click here to search for a copy

Inside Out  •  GEM•ology Through Lotus-Colored Glasses

E. Billie Hughes, Richard W. Hughes, Wimon Manorotkul  |  2020

From the dawn of time, precious stones have both attracted and fascinated humans in ways that few other items could. For while objects of desire are found throughout the natural world, physical beauty is too often ephemeral. From the allure of a man, woman, flower or butterfly, through the fleeting moments of a sunset, there is little that lasts and practically nothing that can be passed down to our descendants. The exception is precious stones. Not only are they the most durable creations of Mother Nature, but their visual splendor is truly eternal.

This book presents a completely fresh approach to the subject. Dubbing it humanistic gemology, the authors take readers around the world, showing the places they have explored in their search for gems, along with the people and cultures encountered along the way. Within this volume, remarkable photographs of the human world are interwoven with images of the microscopic realm of the gems themselves. In a lifetime beset by time control, where living is broken into ever smaller bits, as you browse through these pages suddenly you plunge into a domain of frozen time, one that affords vistas of millions or even billions of years. For jewels offer not just superficial beauty, but a window on the primordial forces that birthed both our planet and universe.

Inside Out – Gemology Through Lotus-Colored Glasses represents a fascinating new direction for gemology, linking the external and internal worlds of precious stones for the first time. 

Inside Out | GEM•ology Through Lotus-Colored Glasses Order Page 

Introducing…

Inside Out: GEM•ology Through Lotus-Colored Glasses

by

E. Billie Hughes  |  Richard W. Hughes  |  Wimon Manorotkul

with a foreword by Paolo Minieri

Chinese translation by Jason C.H. Kao (高嘉兴), with Jinding Yu (俞瑾玎) and Bonnie Chao (晁艳)

From the dawn of time, precious stones have both attracted and fascinated humans in ways that few other items could. For while objects of desire are found throughout the natural world, physical beauty is too often ephemeral. From the allure of a man, woman, flower or butterfly, through the fleeting moments of a sunset, there is little that lasts and practically nothing that can be passed down to our descendants. The exception is precious stones. Not only are they the most durable creations of Mother Nature, but their visual splendor is truly eternal.

This book presents a completely fresh approach to the subject. Dubbing it humanistic gemology, the authors take readers around the world, showing the places they have explored in their search for gems, along with the people and cultures encountered along the way.

Within this volume, remarkable photographs of the human world are interwoven with images of the microscopic realm of the gems themselves. In a lifetime beset by time control, where living is broken into ever smaller bits, as you browse through these pages suddenly you plunge into a domain of frozen time, one that affords vistas of millions or even billions of years. For jewels offer not just superficial beauty, but a window on the primordial forces that birthed both our planet and universe.

Inside Out – Gemology Through Lotus-Colored Glasses represents a fascinating new direction for gemology, linking the external and internal worlds of precious stones for the first time. 

•

Published 2020; Now shipping

Standard Edition – Hardcover
Price: Thai Baht 3000 + Shipping & Handling

•

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152 pages; 270 x 360 mm (10.6 x 14.2 inches); 2.5 kg shipping weight
Full Color Throughout  |  Bilingual text in English & Simplified Chinese

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A few comments from reviewers…

I am doubtless readers both inside and outside of the gem trade will enthusiastically welcome Inside Out. Buy it, read it, give it away. I am fully confident you will be satisfied, ingratiated and inspired.
Jeffery Bergman – InColor Magazine

This book fills a gap in the literature on gems by pictorially exploring the relationship between humans and gems on an artistic and emotional level. It is a work of art that lives from the quality of the photographs and gets by with minimal textual commentary on the images.
Michael Hügi – Journal of Gemmology

Inside Out is a truly stunning work reflecting the combnied personalities, skills, knowledge and philosophy of the authors, who have created something exceptional and innovative for the world of gemmology.
Terry Coldham – Australian Gemmologist

Jade  •  A Gemologist's Guide

Richard W. Hughes, editor  |  2022

The study of jade is unlike any other gem, trespassing across all conventional boundaries, particularly those of the gemological and mineralogical realm. Despite the march of mineralogical orthodoxy and conformity, the word “jade” is a fist in the air of protest, crying out not for reduction and definition, but an expansion of the mineralogical lexicon to include the cultural aspects of human civilization and life. The word “jade” is the anti-mineral. Because jade is so much more than a simple census of atoms, their valence states, and their places of residence.

An understanding of jade is not limited to the technical or exacting; it also incorporates a feeling for the cultural, textural, and ephemeral qualities that make the study of this gem unlike any other in the world of gemstones. It is our heartfelt hope that this volume will not just fill the “traditional gemological” gap, but will open readers’ eyes to a world beyond. Because jade is so much more.

While the literature on jade is vast, perhaps greater than any other gem, there is a distinct lack of a volume that treats jade as a gemological material. This book is designed to fill that gap, with extensive information on the history, sources, appraisal and identification of both treated and the various forms of imitation jade. All of this is together in a single volume for the first time, making this a must-have for all collectors, dealers, gemologists, appraisers, curators and anyone else with an interest in this fascinating gem.

Jade • A Gemologist's Guide Order Page 

Ruby & Sapphire

Richard W. Hughes  |  1997

Ruby & Sapphire is widely acknowledged as one of the finest gemology books ever published. Not just an update of his previous volumes on ruby and sapphire, it represents something rarely seen in a technical book, a fusion of accurate science and spirited, accessible prose. Within its pages, one finds information on prices, quality analysis, sources, history, treatments and identification. Featuring over 300 color photos and 2500 references, this now out-of-print volume is today highly sought after by collectors and gemologists, who pay as much as $1000 or more for the privilege of owning a copy.

Out-of-print. Click here to search for a copy

Ruby & Sapphire  •  A Collector's Guide

Richard W. Hughes  |  2014

Few gems capture the imagination like ruby and sapphire. This book removes the cloak of
 an otherwise secret world
. Drawing on a lifetime’s experience, 
the author ventures around the globe for the
 finest specimens, in the process allowing readers to discover 
the people and places where these rare gems are 
found, along with the story of the stones themselves. Throughout the text, Hughes guides readers with
 the steady connoisseur's eye, explaining what collectors should look for. For many pieces, actual
 auction prices are given, aiding collectors in their 
buying decisions. Illustrated with more than 300 color
 photographs, this is a visual and intellectual feast of
 the most delicious order.

Ruby & Sapphire • A Collector's Guide order page

Ruby & Sapphire  •  A Gemologist's Guide

Richard W. Hughes, with Wimon Manorotkul & E. Billie Hughes  |  2017

Designed as a companion to Ruby & Sapphire: A Collector's Guide, this massive volume is aimed specifically at working gemologists, appraisers and students. Based on Richard W. Hughes' 1997 classic, Ruby & Sapphire, this edition is fully updated. The product of nearly 40 years of firsthand experience and research, it covers every aspect of the subject from A–Z. History, sources, prices, quality analysis, synthetics and treatments, everything is here. With over 1000 photos, maps and illustrations and 3500 references, Ruby & Sapphire—A Gemologist’s Guide represents the most comprehensive book ever written on a single precious stone.

Ruby & Sapphire •  A Gemologist's Guide Order Page 

From Peacock to Pigeon's Blood  •  An Introduction to Ruby & Sapphire Colors

Lotus Gemology  |  2017

An introduction to the ruby & sapphire color types used at Lotus Gemology.

From Peacock to Pigeon's Blood Order Page 

Diamond: An Early History of the King of Gems by Jack Ogden, 2018. Yale University Press, New Haven and London, www.yalebooks.com/www.yalebooks.co.uk, 388 pages, illus., ISBN 978-0-300-21566-3. $40 hardcover.

Gübelin, Eduard J. & Koivula, John I. (2005) Photoatlas of Inclusions in Gemstones, Volume 2. Opinio Publishers, Basel, Switzerland, 830 pp. ISBN 978-3855040957

Ruby, Sapphire & Spinel: An Archaeological, Textual and Cultural Study By Derek J. Content, 2016. Brepols Publishers, Turnhout, Belgium, www.brepols.net, 452 pages, illus., ISBN 978-2503568089. €150.00 hardcover.

A brief history of Burmese (Myanmar) sapphires, along with details of some of the major pieces of yore.

An essay on buying gems at the source in Asia, with a discussion of how con men play on the greed of those who believe gems will be cheaper at the mines.

The history of glass-infilling in blue sapphire, along with a description of the latest treatment generation developed in Chanthaburi, Thailand.

Developing a comprehensive colored stone grading system has been the dream of gemologists since the late 1970's, but despite a number of valient attempts, we are no closer to the goal today than we were four decades ago. This article examines the various problems of colored stone grading, explaining why the challenges are at least an order of magnitude greater than the grading of diamonds.

Color types such as "pigeon's blood," "Paraíba" and "cobalt blue" have become wildly popular in the gem trade. But there is a vast difference between coining such terms and applying them in a way that is both consistent and logical. Richard Hughes casts a critical eye on the subject.