Antique Emerald Jewelry Cleaning
Antique emerald jewelry cleaning is very important if you want to ensure that your emerald jewelery is kept in good condition and retain its sparkle and value.
All emeralds have been especially treated by soaking them in oils to fill cracks and fissures that occur naturally in emeralds. The oil used ins usually green and used to also enhance the emerald. There are no exceptions so if you have an emerald it is guaranteed that it has been treated in this manner.
Over time the emerald can lose the oils, become brittle and tend to crack. You can get such emeralds retreated and back to their pristine condition again by going to a reputable jeweler who knows how to treat emeralds.
As a consequence special treatment is required to clean an emerald. Never use chlorine or detergents or even enzyme cleaners. These can react with the oils and cause problems as well as allergic reactions to the wearer. Also Emeralds to not like excessive heat either so putting an emerald in boiling water can also cause problems. Also using an ultra sonic machine is not recommended for emeralds. Emeralds are more delicate than people expect and can suffer from thermal shock and lose the oils contained therein.
Simple warm soapy water and brushed with an old tooth brush is the safest. Then rinsed really well and thoroughly dried is the best option.
Emeralds are valued on the quality of fissures and breaks present in the emerald. The a=mount of treatment an emerald has had also would affect the value.
Most commercial emeralds are valued anywhere from 600 to 2,000 US dollars per carat. Possibly more for larger emeralds. Some of the finest emeralds in the world have been known to fetch over 30,000 US dollars per carat.
When purchasing an emerald it is wise to insist upon a certificate that shows the quality of the emerald including the quality of fissures, cracks and inclusions the emerald has.
Provided the above information is kept in mind and your antique emerald jewelry cleaning is done properly you can expect many years of please from your emerald.