I didn’t want to be interested in crystals. It happened, as these things usually happen, during a long journey through the desert.
The opportunity to stop by Quartzite, Arizona, piqued my interest. It corresponded to an annual crystal display where thousands of “rock dogs” gather at the appropriately named outpost to sell sparkling pillars of rose quartz, royal amethysts, and malachite as swirling and green as the back of an ancient turtle. Golden RVs and tents parked along the road, Burning Man-style, demanded an investigation.
I soon found myself haggling over the price of golden citrine with a bolero man named Brian. Later, I shell out a few bucks for a couple of rotund geodes to smash at home (dinosaur eggs, I called them as a kid) that came with an oversized nutcracker that looked like it came from a construction site circa 1976.
Turns out, I was late to develop an appetite for “quasi-gemstones,” as diamond dealers call this multi-billion dollar industry. Virtually every LA celebrity you’ve heard of keeps them, whether it’s Amethyst Chunks by Kate Hudson with healing properties for emotional and nervous system issues, anxiety-reducing crystals for performance by Adele, or Rose Quartz by Gwyneth Paltrow. , which some believe promotes harmony. and love. Victoria Beckham (black obsidian), Bella Hadid (blue celestites) and Kylie Jenner are fans. Kim Kardashian called her perfume collection Crystal Gardenia.
Today, the crystal collection game goes beyond the type of people who shop at health food stores or practice Reiki. The Astro Gallery of Gems on Fifth Avenue in New York City attracts celebrity customers with its $ 30,000 barite pieces and six-figure mesolite samples. (“Letterman was here last month,” his star salesperson Ruth told me the last time I was there.) Sotheby’s and Christie’s sell them for tens of thousands of dollars along with meteorites and fossils. Mardani Fine Minerals reports annual gross sales of $ 25 million to $ 40 million, with profit margins ranging from 20% to 70%.
The market was strong before Covid-19 and is not affected. The coronavirus pandemic is expected to dent the $ 76 billion (as of 2018) diamond industry by 20% this year, but the value of nearby gemstones such as quartz, amethyst, citrine and malachite remains stable.
“Gemstones nearby are becoming very attractive,” says Martin Rapaport, President of the Rapaport Group and founder of Rapaport Diamond Report and the online diamond trading network RapNet.
The diamond market was already expecting a slump in 2020. Richer people are buying fewer, rarer gems, he says, while those with more modest resources are forgoing jewelry and gemstones in favor of crystals.
James Hyslop, director of Christie’s department of science and natural history, agrees. The coronavirus has only bolstered a market that has been “historically undervalued. Everyone has the feeling that interest in the mineral, fossil and meteorite market is at an all-time high, ”Hyslop said by phone from London. “It is extremely healthy right now.”
Earlier this month, Christie’s “Sculpted By Nature” auction raised £ 820,375 ($ 1.09 million) in total sales, making it the most successful online sale for the company’s natural history department, surpassing a Similar sale held in October 2019. Many of the lots sold for more than their maximum estimated value. Among the top crystal sellers are three different rounded Gogotte formations formed from quartz and calcium carbonate crystals at Fontainebleau, France. They took 37,500 pounds each.
“I’ve seen some that sell for a hundred times more than 20 or 30 years ago,” Daniel Trinchillo, founder and president of Fine Minerals International, told Business Jet Traveler in December. “I have seen collections that are worth between five and ten times what they cost five or ten years before.”
