This document provides an overview of the gemstone industry of Pakistan. It discusses various tools used to identify gemstones such as microscopes, refractometers, and spectroscopes. It also describes common gemstone treatments like heat treatment and irradiation that are used to improve color, clarity, and durability. The document outlines gemstone cutting and polishing techniques including sawing, grinding, and faceting. It then discusses the occurrence of various gemstones in Pakistan such as emeralds in Swat Valley, aquamarine in Chitral District, and topaz in Gilgit-Baltistan. In conclusion, the document provides a brief overview of other miscellaneous gemstones found in Pakistan.

1. GEM STONE INDUSTRY OF PAKISTAN
Sundas Zahid
Department of Earth & Environmental Sciences,
Bahria University, Islamabad

2. CONTENTS
• Identification Tools
• Gemstone Treatments
• Gemstone cutting and polishing
• Occurrences of gemstones
• Emerald
• Aquamarine
• Tourmaline
• Topaz
• Miscellaneous Gemstones
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3. Identification Tools
• Many gemstones are quite similar in appearance and cannot be
reliably be identified on visual appearance alone.
• The tools used by gemmologists for the identification and grading of
different gemstones, range from the simple to the high-tech and
exotic.
• Microscope
• Refractometer
• Polariscope
• UV light source
• Chelsea filter
• Spectroscope
Figure: Photograph showing Immersion Stereo Zoom
Microscope
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4. Identification Tools
Figure: Photograph showing SpectroscopeFigure: Photograph showing PolariscopeFigure: Photograph showing Refractometer
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5. Gemstone Treatments
• Many gemstones found are of low quality or represented by the
verities of the non-popular colors.
• Gemstone are often subjected to enhancement with the purpose of
increasing their quality or transformation into more popular and
precious varieties.
• Different properties can be affected or improved by treatment
process, i.e.,
• To change depth of color,
• To improve transparency and purity,
• To increase mechanical stability and durability.
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6. Gemstone Enhancement
• Heat treatment
• Color improvement- Aquamarine, sapphire, ruby,
tourmaline
• Alter color- sapphire, amethyst to citrine, topaz,
zircon
• Improve clarity- sapphire, ruby
• Irradiation
• Kunzite- natural pink to green
• Topaz- colorless to various shades of blue
Effects of irradiation are unstable and can be
reversed by heating.
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7. Gemstone Enhancement
• Impregnation and chemical treatment
• Alter the bulk of a material, or least
penetrate the surface.
• Includes bleaches, colorless oil, wax,
polymer, and glass imp; colorless fracture
and cavity fillings, the analogous process
with colored materials; and various forms of
dying.
• Example- turquoise is often very porous and
is sealed with wax or plastic to ‘stabilize’
and improve the color.
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8. Gemstone Cutting & Polishing
• Each stone needs to be cut, shaped and polished for its greatest beauty.
• The process of cutting and polishing gems is called gem cutting or lapidary.
• A person who cuts and polished gems is called gem cutter or a lapidary
(lapidarist).
• Sawing
• Grinding
• Sanding
• Lapping
• Polishing
• Tumbling
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9. Gemstone Cutting & Polishing
• Sawing
• Grinding
• Sanding
• Lapping
• Polishing
• Tumbling
• Cabochons
• Faceted stones
• Beads and spheres
• Inlay
• Intarsia and mosaic
• Cameos and intaglios
• Sculpture
Lapidary Techniques
Lapidary Forms
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10. Occurrence of Gemstones
• Gemstone mineralization in KP, Gilgit-Baltistan and AJ&K occurs in the
Indo-Pak continental plate and in the suture zones.
• Gemstones are products of complex geological processes that have been
operating on and inside the earth for millions of years.
• Gemstones are originated from
i. Surface water (opals of Australia)
ii. Igneous hydrothermal/pneumatolytic activity (Emeralds- Colombia, Pakistan)
iii. Gem-pegmatites ( Brzail, Pakistan)
iv. Metamorphism ( Ruby- Pakistan, Myanmar(Burma); Peridot- Pakistan)
v. Gem gravels/placers (Diamond- Sri Lanka, Africa)
vi. Gemstones formed at greater depths (Peridot- Zabargad island of Egypt; Diamond-
Argyl, Western Austraila).
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11. Emerald
-a variety of the mineral beryl, colored green by trace amounts of chromium and sometimes vanadium.
- Be₃Al₂SiO₆
• Hardness: 7.50-8
• Specific gravity: 2.75-2.78
• In Asia, Swat emeralds has 23.5
million years age.
• Most of the emerald deposits
correspond to the continental
Collison tectonics, however, some
are not related to tectonic
processes, and are resulted from
the granitic intrusions (Australia).
• Total estimated reserves of 20-30
million carats.
• In Pakistan, emeralds are found at,
• Mingora, Swat Valley
• Gujar killi
• Charbagh
• Makhad
• Shamozai
• Gandao
• Barang
• Khaltaro
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12. Aquamarine
-Be3Al2Si6O18
• Hexagonal System
• Specific Gravity: 2.69- 2.73
• Hardness: 7-7.75
• In Pakistan, crystals of blue,
yellowish blue and greenish
blue, transparent to translucent
aquamarine and translucent to
opaque beryl occurs in the
pegmatite.
• It is found at;
• Gabor-o Bakh
• Manour (Garamchasma)
• Matak An (Rumboor)
• West of Brumburete Vally of
Chitral District
• Sumaiyar of Nagar area
• Dache
• Drot of Shengus
• Bulochi in the Gilgit Baltistan areas
of Pakistan.
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13. Tourmaline
-(Li,Na)HAl6B2Si4O21.
• Varieties of tourmaline one the
basis of color;
• Indicolite (blue or bluish-green)
• Rubellite (red)
• Bicolor or tricolor
• Watermelon tourmaline (red central
core surrounded by green)
• Schorl (black)
• Dravite (brown)
• Chrome-tourmaline (vivid green )
• Achroite (colourless)
• Hardness: 7-7.5
• Specific Gravity:
• In Pakistan, black, blue and
greenish blue tourmaline crystals
were found in simple and complex
pegmatites.
• Tourmaline bearing pegmatites are
in;
• Stak Valley( Stak Nala),
• Shigar Valley.
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14. Topaz
- Al2SiO4(F, OH)2
• Hardness: 8
• Colors: brown, yellow, orange,
sherry, red and pink.
• In Pakistan, colorless and yellowish
golden topaz is found in
pegmatites of the Gilgit-Baltistan
areas,
• Pink topaz of Katlang of Mardan
District, is very rare because it is
the only known naturally deep red
or deep pink topaz in the world.
• Katlang-Mardan
• Shamozai- Mardan
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15. Miscellaneous Gemstones
Gemstone Location Occurrences /Associations
Spinel Hunza Found along with rubies and sapphires
Visuvianite (idocrase) Sp-Darra, Dabar and Maizar in
Mohamand Agency
Found in serpentines or rocks from contact metamorphism (
limestone and dolomite),
Rodingite Hiru Shah, Malakand Agency Occurs in association with ultramafic rocks
Quartz Chitral district and Northern
Areas of Pakistan
Gem-pegmatites
Zircon 20 km south of Chilas Found in quartz calcite veins in schists and gneisses
Rutile Silai Patti-Kolangi south of Kot Associated with hydrothermal quartz veins
Azurite Giligit Associated with chalcopyrite, malachite and bornite in
metavolcanics
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16. REFRENCES
• Gems and gemmology in Pakistan /​ by Tahseenullah Khan and Allah
Bakhsh Kausar ; issued by Imran Khan, Director General, Geological
Survey of Pakistan.
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