Great Game, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Central Asia, History, gems

Peter Hopkirk’s The Great Game: The Struggle for Empire in Central Asia recounts the nineteenth-century rivalry between the British and Russian empires for political, military, and commercial influence across Central Asia, particularly Afghanistan, Persia, the Pamirs, Tibet, and the territories bordering British India. Drawing extensively on contemporary travel narratives, military dispatches, diplomatic correspondence, memoirs, and historical studies, Hopkirk reconstructs the activities of explorers, spies, soldiers, merchants, and political agents who ventured into remote and frequently dangerous regions. The narrative begins with Russia’s expansion across Siberia and the Caucasus, tracing the growing British fear that Russian armies might eventually threaten India through Afghanistan and the mountain passes of the Hindu Kush. Among the principal figures are Henry Pottinger, Charles Christie, William Moorcroft, Alexander Burnes, Arthur Conolly, Francis Younghusband, and their Russian counterparts, including Nikolai Muraviev and Bronislav Gromchevsky. Hopkirk describes clandestine surveying expeditions, diplomatic intrigues, the conquest of the Central Asian khanates, the disastrous British invasion of Afghanistan in 1839, and the subsequent struggle for control of strategic mountain corridors. Particular attention is devoted to the geographical obstacles confronting imperial expansion, including the deserts of Baluchistan and Turkestan, the Karakoram and Pamir mountain systems, and the difficult approaches to Kashmir, Ladakh, and Chinese Turkestan. For gemological and mineralogical history, the book provides valuable incidental evidence concerning the movement of precious stones, gold, and luxury goods along the commercial networks connecting Central Asia with India, Persia, Russia, and China. Hopkirk describes Peter the Great’s interest in reported gold deposits along the River Oxus and his unsuccessful attempt to establish a Russian presence at Khiva in 1717, partly to facilitate mineral exploration and overland commerce (pp. 16–20). The diplomatic use of gemstones is illustrated by the British mission of Sir Harford Jones to Persia, during which a large diamond presented on behalf of George III helped restore relations with the Shah (p. 35). The book also recounts the activities of Aga Mehdi, a Persian-Jewish merchant operating as a Russian agent, who carried valuable rubies and emeralds through Central Asia, apparently intended as diplomatic gifts for Ranjit Singh and other influential rulers (p. 94). The famous Koh-i-Noor diamond and Peacock Throne appear in the account of Nadir Shah’s sack of Delhi in 1739, illustrating the importance of jewels as symbols of imperial wealth and conquest (p. 69). Beyond these references, Hopkirk’s descriptions of caravan routes, trading centers, political boundaries, and the opening of previously inaccessible territories provide historical context for understanding the circulation of gemstones and other valuable commodities between the Himalayan region, Central Asia, and international markets. Although not a gemological treatise, the work is an important historical resource for reconstructing the political and geographical circumstances surrounding nineteenth-century exploration, commerce, and the movement of precious materials across Inner Asia.

gems, jade, jadeite, fei cui, Mesoamerica, Mexico, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Mayans, Olmecs, Aztecs, archaeology, history, archaeogemology, Copan, Honduras

Copan in modern Honduras was one of the great cities of the Classic Maya. Abandoned to the rain forest for nearly a thousand years, it was rediscovered in the early 1800s. Now, two centuries later, an international team of scholars is solving the puzzle of Copan and the ancient Maya. William Fash, himself one of the key contributors to the recent breakthroughs, describes how decipherment of the Maya inscriptions together with tomb finds have unlocked the secrets of Copan's history. For this revised edition, Professor Fash shows how recent discoveries in the Acropolis, urban wards, and rural redoubts of the Copan kingdom reveal fascinating insights into the life and times of royalty, nobles, and commoners in this distinguished Maya city. The uncovering of the extraordinary tomb of the dynasty's founder provides illuminating information on his origins and accomplishments, while archaeological and hieroglyphic studies have demonstrated the importance of Tikal and the great metropolis of Teotihuacan in the founding and long-term legitimization of the Copan royal line. New excavations in the royal residential area give a blueprint for the layout and functioning of Maya palaces, as well as dramatic evidence for the violent and sudden end to dynastic rule. 11 color and 109 b/w illustrations.

gems, gemology, glyptic, engraved gems, gemoarchaeology, Harappa, Pakistan, beads, shell, agate, carnelian, chalcedony

Recent excavations at Harappa and Mehrgarh, along with other sites in Pakistan and India, have provided new opportunities to study the ornaments of the Indus Civilization. A brief discussion of the methodologies required for studying Indus ornaments is presented, along with examples of how Indus artisans combined precious metals, stone beads, shell, and faience to create elaborate ornaments. Many of these styles were also imitated in more readily available materials such as steatite or terra-cotta. The social and ritual implications of specific ornaments are explored through their archaeological contexts and comparisons with the roles of such ornaments as recorded in ancient texts and folk traditions of South Asia.

gems, ancient gemology, early gemology, ancient mineralogy, glyptic, color science

The subject of colour aesthetics in ancient gems and jewellery has received little scholarly attention. Discussions of gold and silver in jewellery and finger-rings have tended to focus more on technique and relative value than on aesthetic considerations, aside from obvious art-historical issues. While colour contrasts between metals are noted, they are rarely examined in depth and seldom intentionally exploited in Archaic and Classical Greek art, with only slightly more attention in later periods. It is primarily from the fourth century BC onward that the colour contrast introduced by precious stones—used as beads or inlay—becomes significant. Earlier, isolated orientalising practices in the Greek world, such as the use of colourless rock crystal or amber as inlay, had no immediate continuation. This paper offers a summary consideration of questions raised by the physical appearance—rather than the intrinsic or relative value—of gold and silver in Greek antiquity, and examines evidence for possible colour selection in Mediterranean glyptics from the sixth to fourth centuries BC.

gems, history of gemology, crown jewels, United Kingdom, England, jewelry

Piers Gaveston, the Gascon favorite of Edward II and earl of Cornwall from 1307 until his violent death in 1312 at the hands of disaffected magnates led by Thomas of Lancaster and Guy of Warwick, was the subject of numerous accusations, one of the most prominent being that he had unlawfully seized the royal treasure and transported it to his native Gascony. Contemporary sources like the Annales Londonienses report that upon Gaveston’s return from exile, Edward II entrusted him with the entirety of the royal treasure, including jewels and precious stones. Other chronicles suggest that this event coincided with the fall of Walter Langton, bishop of Coventry and Lichfield, who had previously served as Edward I’s treasurer. The Annales Paulini even claim that Gaveston persuaded Edward to surrender to him the wedding gifts received from Philip the Fair of France. Allegedly, Gaveston sent much of this wealth abroad, leaving both king and Crown impoverished. While such charges were widely accepted by fourteenth-century chroniclers and the authors of the Ordinances of 1311 without the need for proof, modern historians demand more substantial evidence than these narrative accounts can provide, turning instead to documentary records to better understand Gaveston’s dealings with the royal treasure.

garnet, pyrope, Czechoslovakia, gems

Red garnets have been mined in the Bohemian Hills of Czechoslovakia since the 16th century. These pyrope garnets reached their height of popularity in jewelry of the Victorian era. Although the deposits had been generally regarded as depleted, today a small mining operation is working on garnetiferous gravels near the village of Podsedice, northwest of Prague.

corundum, treatments.6, Montana.12, gems

corundum, sources, Africa, gems

feldspar, andesine, labradorite, plagioclase, sunstone, Oregon, USA, gems

The Ponderosa mine is now producing commercial quantities of the gem-quality labradorite feldspar known as sunstone. This gem material exhibits unique optical and physical properties that include a wide range of saturated body colors, aventurescence, and strong pleochroism. The feldspar is An₇₀ labradorite, a high-calcic plagioclase; the aventurescence-causing inclusions have been identified as pure native copper. Microprobe analyses conducted on colorless, red, and green samples did not reveal any obvious causative mechanism for the exhibited colors, although ongoing research is investigating intervalence charge transfer, possibly involving colloidal copper. Gemological identification involves the use of R.I., S.G., and microscopy. Locality determination (Oregon) is based on the copper inclusions and a distinct pleochroism.

corundum, chemistry.2, synthetic corundum.7, gems

Investigates the use of proton-induced X-ray emission (PIXE) to distinguish natural from synthetic ruby and assess relationships between trace-element composition and source. The study analyzes 160 specimens comprising 133 natural rubies from Afghanistan, Burma, two Indian localities, Kenya, Sri Lanka and Thailand, together with 27 synthetic rubies representing Chatham, Inamori, Kashan, Knischka, Ramaura, Seiko and an unidentified flame-fusion source. Some natural origins were supported by characteristic inclusions, whereas others depended on supplier information because the specimens were insufficiently transparent for microscopic verification. Measurements employed 2 MeV protons from a Van de Graaff accelerator, a silicon-lithium detector and a counting time of 150 seconds per specimen. Spectra were fitted using the AXIL program, with calibration standards enabling quantitative determination of trace-element concentrations relative to aluminum oxide. Natural rubies generally contained a greater variety and higher concentrations of impurities than synthetic specimens. Besides chromium, detected elements included silicon, chlorine, sulfur, potassium, calcium, titanium, vanadium, manganese, iron and gallium. Vanadium was undetectable in every synthetic specimen but occurred in most natural rubies, with exceptions among Thai and Indian samples. The detection limit was approximately 20 ppm in the absence of titanium. Burmese rubies had the highest mean vanadium concentration, with one specimen reaching 1800 ppm, while Thai rubies had the lowest mean. Consequently, detectable vanadium strongly supported natural origin within the studied population, although its absence did not establish synthetic origin. Most synthetic rubies contained little iron, with the Knischka specimen providing an exception; Thai rubies and some Sri Lankan specimens were comparatively iron-rich. Chromium concentrations varied considerably between groups but were relatively consistent within several individual sources, suggesting additional discriminatory value. The authors emphasize that source attribution requires combinations of elements rather than a single concentration. For example, high iron together with low chromium and vanadium favored a Sri Lankan attribution within their dataset. Titanium, calcium and potassium also offered potentially useful information in some cases. The results agree with published analyses obtained by energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence and neutron activation. PIXE is presented as a rapid and useful identification technique, and the authors recommend developing a larger database of specimens with known origins. They nevertheless caution that synthetic ruby manufacturers could modify product compositions, potentially reducing the future reliability of distinctions based on trace-element chemistry.