How Size Affects the Value of Amethyst
Larger peices of amethyst are, of course, more valuable than small pieces. In wholesale gemstone trading, amethyst is often priced per carat. It would make sense therefore that the more carats an amethyst has, the more its worth. However, it doesn’t stop there. An additional factor in the value is the rarity of large stones. This means that the larger the gemstone, the higher the price per carat. However, the effect that large size has on the price of amethyst is considerably less than many other gemstones because of the prevelance of large specimen.
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| Small: Amethysts like this one that are 1 carat or less are very common. In these size amethysts, other qualities like color and cut are necessary for the stone to be remarkable. | Medium: This amethyst is nicely sized at around 5 carats. Here we see one of the nicest things about amethyst gemstones: large, showy stones are available relatively affordably: under $200 | Large: This is amethyst is about 15 carats. A stone like this, if accompanied with a nice cut and excellent color (as the one shown) can be a very special piece for your collection. An amethyst like this is usually found in fine jewelry in the thousands of dollar range. | Huge: Sometimes bigger is not better – the amethyst in this ring is about 80 carats (the size of a small egg). It has an excellent color, making this a gem worthy of a museum. We show you this image so that you see what is possible -gems like this are not as rare as you might think and most people would find them cumbersome to wear. |
