The internal world never fails to amaze, as witnessed by this incredible video of a negative crystal in a Sri Lanka sapphire.
Each time we place a gem into the microscope, we look with the eyes of a child, not knowing what to expect. That was certainly the case with this Sri Lankan sapphire that held a real gem inside, a negative crystal containing a microscopic amount of the original broth, the witches brew from which it grew.
Fillet of a fenny snake, In the cauldron boil and bake; Eye of newt and toe of frog, Wool of bat and tongue of dog, Adder's fork and blind-worm's sting, Lizard's leg and owlet's wing, For a charm of powerful trouble, Like a hell-broth boil and bubble. William Shakespeare, Macbeth
About the Author
Wimon Manorotkul has been involved with gems and gemology since 1979, as a lab gemologist, instructor and photographer. She is an Accredited Gemologist from Bangkok's Asian Institute of Gemological Sciences and for many years directed their lab. Wimon also qualified as a Fellow (with honors) of the Gemmological Association of Great Britain. A skilled gem photographer, her images have been featured in books and magazines around the world, particularly Ruby & Sapphire: A Collector's Guide, along with Ruby & Sapphire: A Gemologist's Guide and Inside Out | GEM• ology Through Lotus-Colored Glasses. Wimon not only photographs gems, jewelry and mineral specimens, but is also an expert photomicrographer. In 2013, she founded Lotus Gemology with her husband, Richard Hughes, and daughter, E. Billie Hughes.
Reference
- Koivula, J.I. (1980) Carbon dioxide as a fluid inclusion. Gems & Gemology, Vol. 16, No. 12, pp. 386–390.