Now for sale!
Large Chatham Emerald Cluster
One of the largest Chatham Emerald Crystals is housed in the Smithsonian Museum.
These beautiful emeralds are perfect for museums, fine mineral collectors, jewelers and hobbyists.
Own a piece of San Francisco memory!
Weight: 765.9 carats
Height: 38 mm
Width: 78 mm (widest point to point)
Here's your chance to own an exquisite Chatham Emerald Cluster.
This cluster reveals the shape of the platinum crucible it was grown in.
These crystals were cut into facet-ready material in the past, but they have earned their place in the finest mineral collections in the world.
We have a few of these unique pieces, but not many.
It would also make a beautiful addition to any Chatham collection.
Compare to natural emeralds
Chemically and structurally the same as natural emeralds
Hardness: 7 1/2 - 8
Clarity: most have the jardin (garden) found in natural emeralds.
Also, natural emeralds are almost always oiled to achieve more clarity.
Our emeralds are NEVER oiled or enhanced in any way!
Color: generally a deep emerald green
The original lab-created emeralds
Though many types of gemstones have been produced in laboratories to date, most notably sapphires and rubies, some of the finest were developed by a man named Carroll Chatham of San Francisco, California. In fact, up until the 1990s, his laboratory produced some of the most beautiful gems known to the industry. That San Francisco laboratory, now closed, is the source of our emerald clusters, crystals and rough. The production of these emeralds has remained a family secret. The process is costly and dangerous. So when you buy from us, you are purchasing an investment that can only increase in value and rarity. Our emeralds were grown by John Chatham, one of Carroll Chatham’s sons.
A word about lab-created gems
All gems and minerals are a combination of atomic molecules that bond to form a specific chemical structure. Gems that are created in a lab should not be confused with materials that mimic or imitate natural stones, with shapes, colors, and structures that appear to be, but are not, the original material. Sometimes called synthetic, lab-created gems have the same chemical structure and composition as those found in nature, usually with some additional variation so that they can be distinguished from the natural. This variation allows the new gem to be identified as lab created, often to the specific lab it was grown in.
The first successful commercial process for creating gem material is known as the Verneuil or flame fusion process. Chemicals are introduced into a chamber, heated to an intense degree, and allowed to “melt” together to form what is known as boule. Today, this process is performed at many worldwide labs, the best-known in Switzerland, where the process was developed. These gem materials take only a short time to produce, so they are relatively inexpensive.
Another process is called hydrothermal. This process imitates the natural conditions of intense heat and pressure that form many of the gems that are found around the world. There have been many beautiful gems produced in this way.
A third process is called the flux growth method, by which chemicals are brought together in a sort of “soup” at extreme heat and allowed to form into crystalline structures over along period of time. This is perhaps the most expensive and time-consuming process as these gems are grown in platinum crucibles and require constant monitoring and controlled heat. It is under these conditions that our emerald clusters and crystals came into being.