Andesine: The Final, Final Chapter..

Transcription

1 Andesine: The Final, Final Chapter.. From the International School of Gemology The complete story of the ISG investigation into the diffusion treatment of andesine, the people who were involved, and the methods of identification that we have discovered International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 2011 International School of Gemology[Type text]

2 Of course, this is not just about andesine. It s about an industry that is like a rudderless, captainless ship on an ocean fraught with pirates. Once in a while the pirates get on board and adjust the sails to take the ship off course and into treacherous waters. That is the story of andesine. I am writing a book on this epic tale that will name those pirates and tell the story of how they commandeered this industry into these dangerous waters of andesine, but that is for another time. Today we publish our final investigative report on andesine. Final!...you may say. This is the second year of final reports and the third edition of them. Yes, that is true. But as one famous mine owner noted, this andesine thing is like the Whack-A-Mole game at the local carnival. Knock it down here, it springs up over there. A moving target that can never be completely knocked down. That again.is andesine. The main difference in this final report to our previous final reports is that we are including some advanced test results from independent lab studies that were commissioned and paid for by the ISG to further confirm those previous final reports. We believe the images and instrument testing will stand on their own merits to show that someone took our industry ship off course and into these perilous waters we call andesine. Andesine Ground Zero The real responsibility of this whole andesine fiasco must be put at the feet of those who advertise themselves as the authorities of the industry. The AGTA and GIA. The AGTA claims to be the authority in color while the GIA claims to be the world s foremost authority in gemology. And yet Andegem, the andesine supplier to both Jewelry Television and Direct Shopping Network, reports that they submitted their stones to the AGTA GTC and others for verification before selling. Both labs issued certificates (see examples below) that identified this andesine as all natural and untreated. When later confronted with the evidence of the diffusion treatment, what was the response from both the GIA and AGTA? We didn t know to look...didn t know to look? Consider the situation.. 1. A new gemstone from a new source that no one had seen before, 2. Colors that even a first year gemology student would question, 3. A complete lack of any rough on the market, 4. No one from the labs could confirm the mine location, 5. The only evidence of the source was here-say information, 6. And yet.in spite of a total lack of proper gemological research and investigation.the largest gemological labs in the country certified this andesine material as all natural and untreated. And consumers paid the price for the lab s failure to act responsibly. This is just an astounding failure of the GIA and the AGTA to perform their duties as the industry authorities. And worse yet, these labs were being run by what are supposed to be some of the top names in the industry. We will have more on that in just a minute. For now we include two examples of the AGTA and GIA certificates that verified this andesine as natural and untreated. We have more in the ISG office if anyone would care to review the International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 1 P a g e

3 The Richard W. Hughes Factor There are facts in this situation that cannot go unnoticed. They are: 1. Tibet andesine was formally introduced to the market at the AGTA GemFair at Tucson in 2006 by Bill Larson and Pala International. 2. Richard W. Hughes was working with Pala International at the time. 3. When the AGTA GTC Identification Reports were issued calling this andesine natural and untreated, Richard W. Hughes was working at the AGTA GTC and signed an unknown number of these certificates. (see the AGTA GTC cert above) 4. Upon leaving the AGTA GTC, Richard W. Hughes went to work for GemsTV, a television seller of andesine. 5. Richard W. Hughes and the GIA published an expedition report that declared the Tibet andesine issue over. In his report Mr. Hughes dug an andesine out from under a bush and declared: The andesines found beneath this bush proved beyond doubt that the Tibetan mines are genuine. 6. Shortly after this expedition report, Dr. Peretti reported and filmed Tibet mine owner Li Tong s crew salting the Tibet mines, and reported scientific research that called the Tibet andesine a hoax. 7. The National Gem Testing Center of China also went to the Tibet mines and found a warehouse full of hundreds of kilos of treated andesine, and also visited the mines and called it a hoax. The evidence to the NGTC was so profound that they called for a Chinese government investigation into this situation International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 2 P a g e

4 8. Only the Richard W. Hughes expedition continues to maintain that the Tibet mines exist. All other expeditions that have been to Tibet report the mines a hoax, and that the locals have never heard of a mine of this type. Mr. Hughes is either a victim of a remarkable set of coincidences, or else there is more to his story than is currently known. Strangely, every time this andesine situation surfaces his name is tied to the issues. Again, these are simply the facts based on the historical record. Expedition Contradictions The players in this andesine fiasco have refused to answer our inquiries about the images below. At left is a picture reported to be of the Tibet andesine mine from the first report by the Chinese. Below right is the picture of the Tibet andesine mine reported from the Abduriyim expedition of the Tibet andesine mine. No mention of any other mine locations is offered, and no explanation of why these images are so dramatically different, and yet are supposed to be showing the same mine location. In spite of their failure to explain these contradictions, those perpetrating this story continued on ignoring our requests for clarification. Rather than explain the profound contradictions of their own images, the Chinese set about to have Abduriyim do another expedition, which gave us a whole new look at a whole new reported mine location that had heretofore been totally unpublished. In this image from Richard W. Hughes report, Abduriyim is seen digging in yet another claimed Tibet mine location that is reported to have been mined for years. The problem? No holes. Look into the background of this image and you see nothing that would indicate any previous digging other than the hole there with Dr. Abduriyim International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 3 P a g e

5 It became quite obvious that it was easy to create a Tibet andesine mine location, so we created one along the Balcones Fault line right outside of San Antonio. In the image below is the mining report that I created in about 2 hours. The images are remarkably similar to the level of evidence presented by the two Abduriyim expeditions. Perhaps most important is that there were many people who indeed believed that I had found andesine right here in the Lone Star State. And, of course, we cannot neglect to add the famous mud pie photo that Abduriyim produced showing what was claimed to be Tibet andesine in the rough matrix. To this day people shake their head s at this image. The obvious mud pie against the dry desert soil. Oh! And yes! That is a big old thumb print right there on the mud pie where they pressed the rough andesine into the mud. To date, Abduriyim has not offered any explanation of the infamous Tibet Mud Pie photo. The other major issue of the expedition reports is the rough itself. Anyone who has seen natural Oregon Sunstone rough knows that the copper inside the stones causes every stone to be unique. Virtually no two stones will be alike. And yet, with the Tibet andesine, every stone is virtually identical. Almost as if.they had been artificially created! 2011 International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 4 P a g e

6 The other issue is the white glassy, glazed material on the surface of all of the rough. This was very strange stuff and was one of the tells of this material. The ISG Andesine Study Collection We fast forward to present time and the ISG andesine study. It should be noted that any study of this type requires a huge number of study specimens. And those specimens should come from the open market, purchased blindly from as many dealers as possible without their knowing the purpose of the purchase. The reason the ISG was the one to accurate report this treatment was due to (1) the excellent work of many people before us who gathered volumes of information on the subject and made this available to us, and (2) a huge number of specimens purchased by the ISG to apply that information to confirmation testing. The big labs missed this because (a) they are not well connected to the industry to be able to obtain such a wide range of information and (b) they allowed the dealers involved in the fiasco to provide their study group. The big lab research was tainted due to lack of information and allowing some of the pirate dealers to provide the study specimens, thereby allowing the dealers to control the study. That is why the GIA, the AGTA GTC and others got this so wrong. Their studies were tainted due to lack of information and lack of proper research protocol. The ISG purchased from our own coffers literally hundreds of specimens from the open market. That was simply the required method to uncover this andesine fiasco. These, and hundreds of control specimens obtained from the Oregon Sunstone miners, and scores of specimens provided by consumers were critical in our uncovering this andesine spectacle once and for all. Below you see a cross section of some of our specimens. We have the inbound envelopes and customs forms where we imported this collection from around the world. That is what it takes to uncover this level of deception in the market International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 5 P a g e

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8 ISG Test Results Hours and hours and hours and hours and days and days and months and months and years. That is what it took to get to the bottom of this Tibet andesine fiasco. And that is not to mention the scores and scores of wonderful people, industry and consumers, who helped. But by obtaining what is now thousands of specimens, spending what is now thousands of hours searching, we finally found the answers. Andesine: Refractive Index When first approached by consumers regarding this Tibet andesine issue, we were simply asked if it was possible to separate the claimed Tibet andesine from the known natural Oregon Sunstone. As seen below, we found this to be quite easy since the RI readings of the two are so different. The Tibet material had an RI range of to while the Oregon material was to Easy ID. Case closed. Or so we thought. The GIA Gems and Gemology Winter 2008 report on the first Abduriyim Tibet mine expedition listed the refractive indices of andesine at This was in line with the RI obtained by the ISG and others of this material. However, we started getting some strange anomalous readings from certain specimens that were claimed to be Tibetan andesine. Upon obtaining some specimens from one of the Mexican feldspar mine owners, we started finding a pattern. The Mexican feldspar had a RI range of to 1.570, in the middle of the two Tibetan and Oregon feldspars. But some of the Tibet material was floating up into the Mexican RI range International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 7 P a g e

9 China Mexico Oregon At the 2010 Sinkankas Symposium, GIA Research Director Shane McClure stated that he did not believe that there were many gemologists that were good enough with a refractometer to separate these stones. However, the ISG Community soon found the refractive indices to be an easy method to separate this claimed material. But we took this a step further. During the course of our investigation we found stones that offered RI readings that were very unusual, but predictable and repeatable. These stones offer two different sets of RI readings based on what appeared to be incomplete diffusion treatment. All were and are from Chinese dealers and sold as Tibet andesine. The problem..the stones provide areas that give both the Mexican refractive indices and the Chinese indices. Below is one of our examples: 2011 International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 8 P a g e

10 The left side that shows diffusion treatment has the classic Chinese andesine refractive indices. But the colorless side where the diffusion treatment apparently failed gives very clear readings for Mexican feldspar from the Casa Grande mine International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 9 P a g e

11 Below is a view of this stone in our Dixie cup immersion cell to clearly show the diffusion treated area and the rest of the stone where the diffusion treatment failed. After testing a lot of specimens, we found that we could easily pick out the stones that would give us these anomalies. The tell was incomplete diffusion treatment on larger sized stones where multiple RI readings could be taken on large tables. No completely yellow or completely red feldspar gave us this strange set of RI readings within one stone. Below are images of some of these specimens including the box areas where Mexican refractive indices were found. The RI readings in other parts were of the Chinese readings International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 10 P a g e

12 In the case of the Tibet andesine above right the red area showing Chinese RI readings and the yellow area showing Mexican RI readings is pronounced with the slight reddish color and slight yellow areas outlined. This anomaly is predictable and repeatable, and is found in scores of our specimens that demonstrate a failed attempt at diffusion treatment that left the stone only partially treated International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 11 P a g e

13 This was the first step in our declaration that the Tibet andesine tested the same as the Mexican material. But there is more. Andesine: Immersion Cell Neither the GIA nor the Gem-A reports on Abduriyim s expedition bothered to drop these claimed Tibet andesine into an immersion cell to see the interior formation of this material. Our very first reports included this information that demonstrated a very strange structure of the colors of this material. It is known that the Oregon Sunstone has the red interior and sometimes green coloring on the outer edges due to copper oxidation. But with the Tibet andesine this was completely reversed. Green interior with red exterior. One famous German researcher pronounced that all andesine with a green core and red outer rim is treated. Of course, he also said that the Chinese material cannot be Mexican due to elemental analysis, but we will deal with that in a minute. For now, the green interior and red outer rim is indeed a major 2011 International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 12 P a g e

14 tell of the diffusion treated material. We know because we took the following image of a Direct Shopping Channel gemstone submitted to us back in No one in the industry with any kind of gemological training has looked at this and called it natural. The very color formations and structure are classic for treatment. And yet the GIA and certain members of the industry continue to support Direct Shopping Network that their material is natural. Politics? Probably. Fool Hardy Avenue to travel? Without question. Speaking of the Direct Shopping Network v- Robert James and other litigations taking place with DSN on this issue, below is a stone that we first evaluated in The top image is the stone in our immersion cell in You will note the classic green interior and red rim that Milisenda called treated. In the lower image is the same stone after Dr. Rossman cut it in half at the request of the lawyers. A Dr. Ganz from California signed off on this stone being totally natural and untreated. Unfortunately, the science of K/Ar testing used by Dr. Ganz to make his statement has proven to be inaccurate for identifying diffusion treatment. We will demonstrate this below. But we include these images to demonstrate that the tell of this diffusion treatment has been with us all along. But given enough scientific gobbly-gook the scientist can create just about any result they care to create. We have experienced this first hand throughout this investigation International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 13 P a g e

15 2008 image of the stone intact 2010 image of the stone after cutting. Note the curved color formation with green interior and red rim International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 14 P a g e

16 And finally, the specimens the ISG Community members purchased at the 2009 GJX show in Tucson. Below left is the stone from Litto Gems, below right is the stone from Andgem. Both clearly show the color structure of the known diffusion treated andesine. Litto Gems of Hong Kong Andegem Andesine: Fluorescence We want to be very clear that our rough specimens came directly from the major players of this Chinese andesine fiasco. Below is a photograph of Robert James, Lisa Brooks-Pike, and Mr. Ming of King Star. Ming has been a participant in the Abduriyim expeditions and is a major dealer in this claimed Tibet andesine. The specimens are direct from King Star as you see in the picture below left International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 15 P a g e

17 According to the Abduriyim report in the GIA Gems and Gemology of Winter 2008, the Inner Mongolian andesine was inert to both Love Wave and Short Wave ultraviolet radiation. Meaning that any of these specimens that fluoresced had to be from Tibet. In the same GIA G&G article it was reported that the Tibet andesine fluoresced orangey to Long Wave and faint red to Short Wave. All of our specimens from King Star fluoresced orange to long wave and faint red to short wave radiation. This was HUGE! This gave us a method to separate Inner Mongolia, Tibet, and all other yellow to colorless feldspar from all of the world sources. Why? The ISG has collected feldspar specimens from the all known world sources. (very expensive but we did it). And these feldspars from the other sources all have the same UV reaction: inert to long wave, faint red to short wave. Here are some examples. The purple color of the Long Wave is due to residual UV in the image: Ambient Light Long Wave Inert Short Wave Red The above is what natural plagioclase feldspars look like in the LW and SW UV. Below is what we found with the claimed Tibet andesine International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 16 P a g e

18 The first thing we noticed as that there is a glassy, glazed crust on the surface of the rough that is highly reactive to short wave UV and mildly reactive to long wave UV. This material is on all of the 50+ rough stones that we have obtained. Uniformly predictable and repeatable in all specimens. The second issue as the interior of the stones. As seen below the orangey reaction to long wave US is not from the feldspar crystal itself, but it follows the white material that is inside the damage lamella tubes in the stone. In fact, the stones themselves do not react to long wave UV, it is the diffused material inside the stones that is reacting. In well-treated stones the color becomes homogenous with the gemstone itself. We believe that this was the basis behind the Abduriyim report in the GIA publication. But in these specimens from Abduriyim expedition member King Star and Mr. Ming, these specimens clearly show that the long wave reaction is due to something other than a natural crystal reaction. Ambient Light Long Wave UV There is one very important note here: When the GIA G&G article was published Abduriyim was very clear on the UV reaction of the Inner Mongolian and Tibet andesine. When that same article was published in the Journal of Gemmology of the Gem-A in 2010.the information about the UV reaction was noticeably missing. It had been removed after we published what you are reading now. Think about that for just a minute and see the specimen below. It may explain why Abduriyim removed the part about fluorescence in the Gem-A version of his report International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 17 P a g e

19 We obtained an 8 carat specimen of claimed Tibet andesine and realized that the diffusion of the stone had clearly followed the damaged lamella. Once again, predictable and repeatable in our findings. Here is that image that clearly demonstrates this problem with the reported UV reaction by Abduriyim And yet another large specimen seen below demonstrated that the unusual long wave UV reaction of this claimed Tibet andesine was due to something in the stone and not the crystal itself International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 18 P a g e

20 This is clearly not fluorescence due to natural causes but demonstrates that something is amiss in these stones. And.the omission of this information in the Gem-A version of Abduriyim s report shows that changes were indeed made in the report to try to counter our previously published exposure of this very serious flaw in the report. As seen below, this very strange long wave UV reaction is both repeated and easy to see in virtually all of the claimed Tibet andesine specimens in long wave UV International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 19 P a g e

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22 We could go on with hundreds of specimens, but I believe you get the point. The orange fluorescence reported in the Tibet andesine is not due to natural fluorescence of the feldspar, but rather is due to the diffusion treatment material or something connected to the treatment of the stone. This is why there is such an anomoly in the UV reaction to this claimed Tibet andesine that is unlike any other known feldspar of this type. In the image below is the first stone we broke open with a hammer. Note that the diffusion material running down the lamella tubes is what is florescing, not the stone itself International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 21 P a g e

23 Andesine: Surface Crust While studying his research on the Be diffusion of sapphires, I learned a very important lesson about gemstone treatments from Ted Themelis: You cannot treat a gemstone by the diffusion method without leaving a footprint somewhere in the stone. Some sort of tell or residual artifact from the treatment process that can identify the process if you know what to look for. We used this concept to not only identify the diffusion of andesine but also of tourmaline and other stones. But for our report here, the surface crust of the rough became one of the biggest footprints left by the diffusion process. The surface of both the Oregon Sunstone and Mexican feldspar appears very similar, as shown in the image below of the surface of a rough Oregon sunstone. This is a predictable and repeatable surface of these stones due to the basaltic rock in which they are found. The surface of the Tibet andesine, however, has very strange features that do not appear natural. Quartz crystals fused into melted calcium with copper in various parts. All on the surface of the Tibet crystals provided to us by King Star, Litto Gems, and other Chinese andesine dealers. Below you will find images of these surface features International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 22 P a g e

24 Below is one of the King Star rough crystals. Note the damaged lamella filled with the crushed quartz crystals. The crushed quartz is used as a slurry to hold the stones during the diffusion treatment process. Due to a higher melt point, the quartz will hold the stones inside the crucible to keep it from contacting other stones or the crucible itself. This crushed quartz slurry was reported by Ted Themelis in his research of Be treated sapphires. Based on our findings, we believe that this process was simply adapted to also diffusion treat feldspar using the crushed quartz as a slurry material International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 23 P a g e

25 Virtually all of the dimpels and crevices of the rough andsine are filled with this crushed quartz that is caught in a melted glaze that we confirmed to be calcium with copper. We believe that the crushed quartz was caught in this calcium base during the diffusion process. With a melting point of calcium at 825 C and quartz with a melting point of 1670 C, this explains why the quartz is not melted while the calcium is, and why the calcium is most likely used as a flux to assist in the diffusion process International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 24 P a g e

26 Below is a 90x view of the quartz slurry crystals melted into the calcium glaze International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 25 P a g e

27 Below is a crevise filled with quartz crystals caught in the calcium melt. The green material in the image was proven to be copper by XRF. Specimen is from Litto Gems, Hong Kong, China. Below is the specimen at 10x showing the melted calcium with quartz slurry crystals. This stone was cut open for confirmation testing by SEM EDXS which further confirmed our findings of quartz, calcium and copper as the constiuents of this white glaze material International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 26 P a g e

28 Finally, as proof that this material is not simply a result of some natural crusting of the rough andesine, we have proven that the white material hardened onto the surface of this finished andesine is indeed the same material found on the surface crust. This material was so deeply melted and hardened into the stone that the material withstood the cutting and polishing of the andesine. The cutter was trying to maximize the finished weight of the rough so he cut the stone with the facet surfaces very close to the original rough crystal surface. The result was that some of the rough surface crust was left on the finished stone. By Raman and XRF we confirmed that this is the same material as the surface crust. But it has been melted so deeply into the stone that it survived the cutting and polishing of the stone. Clearly, not a natural occurrence based on reactions from many industry experts International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 27 P a g e

29 Andesine: Diffusion Structure Below you see the very first view we had of the copper diffusion of andesine. This is the very first stone that we tested. We broke it with a hammer and placed it inside our Dixie cup immersion cell and saw what you see below. The red/green structure of the diffusion of claimed Tibet andesine. While we did not know exactly what we were seeing at the time, we did know that this was not natural for feldspar. The colors were right based on our Oregon Sunstone study specimens, but the formation was wrong. Reversed. We soon found more. Below you see three images of the same area of another Tibet andesine. The bottom view is the actual structure of this diffusion process. As you can see below right, the light has to be just right in order to see this feature. That is why we and others missed this for so long. It takes a lot of practice and the right light sources to see this. But we found it. And once we found this, we were able to see it in many many specimens from many sources International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 28 P a g e

30 Below is what we started finding in virtually all of the Tibet andesine. The red colored lamella that carried the diffusion material. The colorless area immediately surrounding the tube where the diffusion material flowed quickly into the stone. The green area that is actually a relic of the diffusion process, and the red coloring as the copper diffusion material flows out into the stone. After learning how to adjust the view direction of the stone and the direction of the light source, we were able to find this formation over and over. Predictable and repeatable International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 29 P a g e

31 In the image below the positioning of the facets creates the light variable that allows us to see the impact of the red and green areas on the stone. This demonstrates that the red and green are not due to color change as reported by some. The green is actually a part of the diffusion process and is viewable based on the direction of light and viewing. Top is a Chinese Tibet andesine in 10x. Below is 90X. Above is the classic diffusion structure of andesine. Note the red filled lamella tubes. The colorless area surrounding. The green contact area. And the red diffused area of this Tibet andesine International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 30 P a g e

32 Below is a large, high magnification view of this feature. This is viewed from a slightly skewed angle to maximum viewing. However, this image clearly demonstrates the diffusion material filling the lamella tubes in this Tibet andesine. Repeatable and predictable International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 31 P a g e

33 It is, of course, a bit frustrating as we had this feature all along and simply did not realize its importance. Below are three images that we took in the very beginning of our research. Although the lighting and viewing angles had not yet been perfected so the actual structure is not seen, the diffusion of materials into the feldspar are nonetheless identifiable in these images International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 32 P a g e

34 One final but very important note. Please review the image below as this demonstrated the diffusion structure of the Tibet andesine. Then.look at the image below this one. Below you see a side on view of a Tibet andesine that clearly shows the diffusion structure. This andesine is a 2008 Beijing Olympic andesine from Direct Shopping Network International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 33 P a g e

35 Andesine: Important Specimens Below you see a stone that should not exist. It has the orangey long wave fluorescence as reported by Abduriyim for Tibet andesine. But it is also yellow as you can see below, in between the red diffused colors. Abduriyim claimed that the Inner Mongolian material was inert to ultraviolet so this stone could not be Inner Mongolian (if it exists at all). And yet it clearly shows the classic patterns that we now know to be diffused. This creates a huge contradiction in the Abduriyim report, as well as the report by Richard W. Hughes that supported Abduriyim s findings. Let s look closer Below is this stone in ambient light, long wave UV and short wave UV. The stone is faint red in SW and orangey in long wave. According to Abduriyim this cannot be Inner Mongolian but matches the claimed natural Tibet andesine. But when we apply our knowledge of the diffusion structure and the light direction for proper viewing International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 34 P a g e

36 This is what we see in this stone: The same diffusion structure on a grand scale. Slightly skewed from direct on viewing, this shows the red filled lamella, the green and colorless areas, and the red diffusion colors going into the stone. This stone contradicts everything in the GIA Gems and Gemology Winter 2008 report. Not by scientific opinion, but by the very gemstone itself telling its own story that the GIA report cannot explain its existence. Below is another view of this same stone, but from straight on to the diffusion filled lamella International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 35 P a g e

37 Compare the image above to the known diffusion structure image below 2011 International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 36 P a g e

38 And a side on view of the same area showing the diffusion material in the lamella tubes. Remember, according to Abduriyim this stone has unique properties that are only found in Tibet andesine. And yet is clearly has the diffusion structure of treated feldspar. Based on the published properties of Tibet and Inner Monglian andesine, this stone should not exist. Could not exist if the GIA report is accurate. And yet..here it sits in front of us. Something is obviously wrong with the GIA article International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 37 P a g e

39 And finally, this specimen that ties this altogether. This specimen has the dual RI indices of Mexican feldspar and Tibet andesine. It has the fluorescent reaction of reported Tibet andesine. But it has the structure of the known diffusion treatment. All adding up to a serious problem for the GIA articles by Abduriyim that reports andesine with these properties to be from Tibet and natural. Here is the high magnification view of the diffusion features of this stone. Note the red filled lamella, colorless area, green contact zone and red coloration from the diffusion material. Once again, a repeatable and predictable feature in diffusion treated Tibet andesine International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 38 P a g e

40 Andesine: Raman Scans There has been much false information spread about our Raman scan reports. Blatant misrepresentations that was culminated at the Sinkankas Symposium by no less than Dr. George Rossman of Caltech who not only used one of our scans in his presentation without permission, but also made purely false statements about our reports. Dr. Rossman told the crowd that we claimed that the Raman peaks in the image you see below proved that these stones were diffused. We never said that. Dr. Rossman has apparently never actually read our reports. We never said that or anything like it. This was yet another example of a GIA paid consultant bending the truth. It should also be noted that Dr. Rossman is expert witness for Direct Shopping Network and their litigation against me and Colored Stone. More on that later, but the fact is that Dr. Rossman gave false statements about our report and used our image without permission. Here is the image and the facts of this matter: In fact, what we said about this image is that the Tibet andesine Raman scans and the Mexican feldspar Raman scans are identical when compared to all other known plagioclase feldspars. And ONLY the Tibet and Mexican scans are identical. It should be noted that with this new scientific age of computer interpretation of testing instruments, it no longer requires a Ph.D. to be able to read a Raman scan. Indeed Dr. Rossman himself has an interpretation software program that will automatically match Raman scans to minerals through his CrystalSleuth software program. And with the RRUFF data base files of Raman scans, it is quite easy to take a Raman scan of a material and double check it against both the CrystalSleuth software and the RRUFF files to verify the results. This is after our Enwave Raman Application Software has done the interpretation and image results. And all this after we have verified the scan results by our own data base of scans from our extensive research collection of feldspars. In short, the computers are doing the work now and it no longer requires a scientist to perform quality Raman scan interpretation International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 39 P a g e

41 In our case, the issue is not just the peaks but the Raman photoluminescence. For while the peaks of the plagioclase feldspars are virtually identical across the board, the photoluminescence of the feldspar Raman scans is where the identification of sources can be made. This is based on our running hundreds of Raman scans on scores of known specimens. The results are.repeatable and predictable. Note the Raman scan of the Oregon Sunstone below. The left side is raised significantly from the bottom of the Raman Shift screen. This raised area is due to the photoluminescence of the Oregon Sunstone. This is repeatable and predictable. Now, look at the Mexican feldspar below. Note that the raised section on the left is now significantly lower International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 40 P a g e

42 Now look at the Tibet andesine Raman scan. Do you notice a similarity with either of the two above?: IF we look at all three in a row the difference and similarities become obvious: Oregon Sunstone Mexican Feldspar Tibet Andesine The Mexican feldspar Raman scan is identical to the Tibet andesine Raman scan. This was our report on this. We never said that the Raman scan proves diffusion treatment. We stated that the Raman scan showed that the Tibet andesine tested the same as the Mexican feldspar, and the same as the known diffusion treated feldspar. Below are more examples of this: 2011 International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 41 P a g e

43 Below is a composite of Raman scans from Oregon Sunstone and a collection of Mexican and DSN 2008 Beijing Olympic andesine gemstones. The area of the red arrow denotes the photoluminescence difference in the scans. This is predictable and repeatable for all Oregon Sunstone, Mexican feldspar, and Tibet andesine. And below you see another composite of scans from other specimens. Once again, this is a repeatable and predictable reaction to the Raman by feldspars from these regions. Once again, we stated that based on the Raman scans the Tibet andesine tested the same as the Mexican feldspar exactly as you see above. We stand by that statement as seen above. We are quite tired of industry experts bending our statements around in forums where we have no ability to correct their misstatements about our research International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 42 P a g e

44 Andesine: SEM EDXS First Round Below you see the actual images and report sent back to us after we submitted a DSN 2008 Beijing Olympic andesine for SEM EDXS evaluation by Applied Petrographics Services. While no indicators of diffusion could be found using this method, we did uncover one very important fact about this Olympic andesine. It is not andesine. Its labradorite. The Na/Ca content of this stone is 39/61. Not only that, it is very close to the Na/Ca ratio we obtained by SEM EDXS analysis that we had done by FAI Materials on known Mexican feldspar. The Mexican feldspar and DSN Olympic Andesine tested the same, as we have stated over and over. And again, this 2008 Beijing Olympic andesine gave us the identical Raman scan as the Mexican feldspar International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 43 P a g e

45 Andesine: XRF Surface Diffusion Our next step was to analyze the surface crust on the rough specimens we obtained from the Abduriyim expedition members. For this we commissioned Oneida Research Services of New York to perform a variety of XRF scans on the surface crust to see if we could confirm our previous findings. The images you see below are directly from the Oneida report. We requested an analysis of the specific white glazed, crusty area that we had previously reviewed. The results confirmed an extremely high levels of calcium and silicone in the area, traces of copper, and an unusual find of molybdenum (Mo) in the mix. Highly unusual but not totally surprising. We moved on to other stones International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 44 P a g e

46 We next asked Oneida to test a burnt, black looking area on another specimen. The results again are below. Extremely high levels of calcium and silicon, with even higher levels of copper and once again a very strange presence of molybdenum. This gave us reason to pause and move to a different location for our next scan International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 45 P a g e

47 This time we moved to an area with no white glazed material on the surface. We tested simply a plain red surface location. Here are the results starting with the actual image taken during testing. This time we found slightly higher levels of calcium but once again we found this strange presence of molybdenum which, according to several experts in the field that we contacted, should not be glazed onto an andesine of this type from the geological source reported. We were concerned that the molybdenum was perhaps the result of a contamination of the specimens that we were testing. Therefore, we decided to take a completely different set of specimens, cut them open, and have a completely different lab run a different type of elemental analysis to see if we would get the same results. We turned to FAI Materials Testing Laboratory of Marietta GA, USA International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 46 P a g e

48 For this testing we chose four specimens from Abduriyim expedition members and cut them open. We asked FAI to perform SEM EDXS analysis on the surface of these stones, and the interiors. The results were profound. We not only had extremely high levels of carbon and molybdenum on the surface of these stones, but in various cases the molybdenum had penetrated into the interior of the crystal itself. Given that SEM does not analyze to the extremely fine levels of LA-ICP-MS testing, the fact that there was enough molybdenum across all surfaces and inside these crystals that showed up on the SEM EDXS scans as well as the XRF scans told us that something was amiss with these specimens that went beyond mere crushed quartz, calcium melt, and copper. We searched the Chinese website and found what we believe to be the answer. Actual SEM images (above) and some of the reports (below) from FAI Materials Testing Labs 2011 International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 47 P a g e

49 China has a very large industry in molybdenum crucibles for high temperature applications, such as gemstone treatments. Based on our having found molybdenum baked onto and into andesine that should not normally have this element present, and we found it on a variety of specimens and by two different testing methods, it is our belief that the molybdenum found on the Tibet andesine is indeed a relic of the diffusion process. Plus, the fact that the molybdenum is found in conjunction with crushed quartz crystals, melted calcium, and copper in places that it should not normally be found, leads us to strongly believe that we have found a method of identification for this treatment as long as the Chinese are using these crucibles for the treatment. While this could easily change in the future simply be switching of treatment methods, we now know that in the past this Mo was part of the treatment process and serves as a tell of the process itself. Below is just one portion of one page of searching we found regarding Mo crucibles from Chinese dealers International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 48 P a g e

50 Andesine: UV-VIS-NIR From the very beginning of our andesine testing with the hand held diffraction grating spectroscope something was just not quite right. The Tibet andesine was touted to be identical in every way to the Oregon Sunstone. And yet, using a simple diffraction grating spectroscope, there was an anomaly. The red colored stones of both Tibet and Oregon were virtually identical, but the greens were not. Not even close. As you can see below, the top two spectra are of the Tibet green and red from our original testing of andesine from Jewelry Television. The lower two spectra are of a known Oregon Sunstone. In these cases, the colors are claimed to be from copper. But the green Oregon Sunstone and the green Tibet andesine did not have the same spectra as was reported. Although Abduriyim reported that the green absorption was of virtually the same intensity of the red, in fact when we tested all Tibet andesine sent to our office the green absorption spectra simply did not exist optically. So we turned to our Challenger UV-VIS-NIR spectrometer, and our GL Gem Spectrometer from the Canadian Institute of Gemmology International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 49 P a g e

51 The Oregon Sunstone offered the anticipated absorption spectra of both the red and green copper colored areas of the stone. You can see below the Oregon Sunstone specimen from the Double Eagle #16 mine, and the GL Gem Spectrometer print out using SpekWin32 software. The absorption lines for both the red and green are pronounced and match the optical diffraction grating spectra that we obtained previously. Below you see the green and red spectra of the Tibet andesine. Note that the green does not give the absorption of copper that is expected in this stone. We believe that this demonstrates what we have previously seen regarding the diffusion structure: that the green color is a result of the treatment process, and not of naturally occurring copper. Simply stated: The green color of the Tibet andesine is in a formation that is totally anomalous to the known natural Oregon Sunstone. And the green colors of the andesine generate a UV-NIR-VIS spectrum that does not match the known Oregon Sunstone spectra for comparable natural green color due to copper oxidation. We have used the specimens from Litto Gems and King Star for this spectrum study of the Tibet material International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 50 P a g e

52 Consider the information above from the VIS-NIR Spectrometer and look at the images below of the diffusion structure. Clearly the green color is due to something that has happened to this stone and not due to natural copper as claimed by the GIA and Abduriyim International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 51 P a g e

53 And finally, the stone that should not exist if the GIA, Richard W. Hughes, and Dr. Abduriyim are indeed correct. This stone came to us from a Hong Kong dealer. Sold as Tibet andesine. And imported directly to the ISG office. Given the all of the information from all of the investigations above, please look at this stone: Properties of this stone: Color: Yellow Transparency: Transparent Refractive Index: Fluorescence: Orangey to Long Wave, Faint Red to Short Wave Features: Obvious red diffusion material in surface breaking lamella. Raman Scan: Identical match to known feldspar from Casa Grande, Mexico Problem: According to the GIA and Abduriyim, this stone should not exist International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 52 P a g e

54 It cannot be Inner Mongolian because the fluorescence and refractive index do not match. It cannot be Tibetan because the refractive index, color and transparency do not match. It cannot be Mexican because.well, because Dr. Rossman said so. Or can it? What else could this be. This single feldspar gemstone makes the GIA published reports by Abduriyim, and Rossman s statements..fall apart. Here is why.. Based on the research of Ted Themelis, we now know that the diffusion treatment of gemstones can change the elemental makeup of the stone, and therefore change the refractive index and other properties in unknown ways and extents. As a result, the position of Dr. Rossman that elemental makeup alone can eliminate Mexico as the source of this Tibet andesine is no longer valid. In fact, statements that the Chinese andesine is different from the Mexican material is due to tests done on the Chinese material after the diffusion process. In fact, since Dr. Rossman did not have the stones before and after the diffusion treatment in China, there is no way he can say for certain what the original elemental makeup of the stones were before treatment. In short, due to the diffusion process changing the elemental makeup of the stone, this cannot be used to confirm or deny the source of any gemstone after diffusion treatment is done. What is required is other properties that can establish a source. In the case of this stone the properties of the stone clearly point to its source. The refractive index exactly matches that RI for feldspars from Casa Grande, Mexico. The fluorescence matches that of known diffusion treated Tibet andesine. The Raman scan exactly matches control scans for feldspar from Casa Grande, Mexico. Abduriyim s report on the properties of Tibet andesine and Inner Mongolian andesine specifically eliminate those as possible sources for this gemstone. Resolution: The only viable answer to the existence of this gemstone is that it is of Mexican origin, shipped to China at some point and treated, the treatment failed leaving it in the condition you see now, the dealer sold this stone cheap on ebay from his Hong Kong office International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 53 P a g e

55 That is the only plausible answer to the existence of this feldspar that is victim of a failed treatment effort. Andesine Summation Since our original testing there have been many others who have investigated this issue. Jordan Clary in Colored Stone magazine wrote an article about her visit to Tibet searching for this andesine mine. None was found and the locals had never heard of it. Dr. A. Peretti headed an expedition to the Tibet mines and video-taped the workers salting the mines by dropping specimens out of their pockets. He and others also tested this material and found it all to be some kind of hoax. The National Gem Testing Center of China visited the Tibet mines and found a warehouse with hundreds of kilos of diffusion treated andesine based on their own testing. They also visited the mine and reported that there this whole thing was artificially created. The only people to go to the Tibet mine and report it as a done deal was Richard W. Hughes, who signed many of the original AGTA GTC certificates verifying the Tibet andesine as all natural, Brendan Laurs of the GIA Gems and Gemology who publishes the Abduriyim expedition reports, and Abduriyim himself who continues to maintain the authenticity of the Chinese mine when even the Chinese themselves say it s a hoax. Jewelry Television, who was once a major player in Tibet andesine they purchased from Andegem, is now representing all of their andesine as diffusion treated. We have obtained 10 specimens from them to use as control stones. JTV now works to promote proper disclosure and integrity in the industry and we applaud their efforts. Direct Shopping Network lost their law suit against Colored Stone magazine over their publishing of our reports. Direct Shopping Network continues their litigation against me personally for my having reported on this matter. We will say the DSN 2008 Beijing Olympic Andesine in our office, which we have shown here in this report, shows the classic features of what we know to be diffusion treatment. And we continue to maintain that the Tibet andesine that we tested from DSN shows the same Raman scan, inclusions, and other features of the Mexican feldspar. Art Garabedian of DSN has admitted that the Diamond Institute of Anaheim was created by him on his own computer. DSN sold these certificates to consumers as independent gemological reports of DSN gemstones to verify their authenticity. When in fact, they were created and signed by Art Garabedian himself International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 54 P a g e

56 One more item regarding Andegem, Direct Shopping Network, Dr. Rossman, et al on the Mexican source of Andegem s gemstones. At the Tucson gem shows one of our ISG Community members 2011 International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 55 P a g e

57 purchased stones from Andegem. They were given a free sample gemstone for having purchased. The front and back of that gemstone holder is shown below. We believe it will speak for itself. Now we don t care where Andegem gets their gemstones from. But it is obvious that they do indeed supply labradorite from Mexico in spite of what many have said. If anyone doubts that Andegem is supplying Mexican feldspar please see the images above. We should note that Andegem is the sole listed supplier for Direct Shopping Network for andesine. DSN s lawsuit is based on our statement that the DSN Tibet andesine tests the same as the Mexican material. Perhaps we now know why. As a final point on this, below you will find a composite scan of 10 known feldspars. These include: 3 Oregon Sunstones 1 Diffusion Treated and Disclosed Red Andesine from Jewelry Television 1 Casa Grande, Mexico faceted yellow feldspar supplied by the mine owner 1 Mexican Yellow Labradorite properly disclosed and supplied by Andegem 2 Direct Shopping Network 2008 Beijing Olympic Andesine purchased direct from DSN 1 Tanzanian Confetti Sunstone supplied to the ISG by Color First gem dealers. 1 Indian Sunstone supplied to the ISG by a major Indian gemstone cutter 2011 International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 56 P a g e

58 The Oregon Sunstones all have identical Raman scans with a higher Raman photoluminescence than the others species. The Mexican yellow labradorite, DSN 2008 Beijing Olympic Andesine, and the properly disclosed Diffusion Treated Andesine from Jewelry Television all have identical Raman scans. The Tanzanian Confetti Stone feldspar and the Indian Sunstone feldspar have identical but unique Raman scans. This was and is the basis of our report that the DSN 2008 Beijing Olympic Andesine, as well as all of the Tibet andesine tested to date, tests the same as the known Mexican and diffusion treated feldspars. Repeatable and predictable Raman scans. If we take the entirety of the information, investigation, and scientific documentation contained in this report and weigh it against the evidence by those who claim that this Tibet andesine is all natural, the only plausible conclusion is that the Tibet andesine mines are indeed a hoax. That this is the largest single gemstone treatment fiasco perpetrated on the market, and done with the tacit approval of the major gem labs who by their own admission fell short in their responsibility International School of Gemology ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 57 P a g e