GIA exhibit showcases gem and jewellery rare books
The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) is showcasing more than 26,000 pages from rare books on gems, minerals, and natural science dating back to the 15th century, at a museum exhibit in Carlsbad.
Tablet to Tablet: Treasured Pages from Past to Present will be open to the public until early summer 2012 and encompasses the development of gemmology, crystallography, jewellery manufacturing and design, valuation of gemstones and precious metals, diamond mining and more.
Among the 15 cases of books and objects, is the documentation of the Romanov family’s jewels and regalia.
Dona Dirlam, director of the GIA Richard T Liddicoat Gemological Library and Information Center, said: “Visitors are amazed at how fascinating rare books are when combined with gems, jewels and images that reveal their stories.
“The museum and library have assembled the best of the best from our archives; books written in Roman times, those printed around the time of Columbus, and one written by a 17th-century French diamond merchant about his travels to India.”
The oldest book on view is a 1496 edition of Pliny’s Natural History, which includes content dating back to 77 CE.
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