The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) has created a compilation of data collected from gemstones of the Edward J. Gübelin collection, which GIA acquired in 2005. The project named as the GIA Gem Project is being made available online for the end consumer, and GIS is offering it free to the trade.

The Edward J. Gübelin collection boasts over 2,800 samples, that speak about 225 minerals and gem materials, from 48 different countries. The collection is an extraordinary set of examples in relation to attributes of light, colour, weight and geographic origin, and remains as the unmatched online source of such information. It significantly enhances the educational and display potential of GIA’s gem collection and supports the colored stone trade.

Dr. Gübelin, reputed as one of the world’s preeminent gemologists, collected coloured gemstones from major localities worldwide between around 1940 to 2000. His lifelong study of gemstone inclusions revolutionised the science of gemology and helped laid the foundation for microscopic gem identification.

GIA speaks on its Gem Project as a virtual museum offering the advantage of viewing the gemstone and key pieces of information and comparing similarities and differences between types of stones at an advanced level. The database enables researchers to conduct comparisons between gemstones. The online project offers photomicrographs of gemstone features, graphical plots of visible, infrared, Raman and photoluminescence spectra and qualitative chemical composition information, as per the gemstone type. The GIA has plans for expanding the present database to include other stones in the GIA collection, historical and rare gems from other collections, reports say.