Articles and News

AGS Labs Appoints New Diamond Director

Las Vegas, NV--The American Gem Society Laboratories, LLC (AGS Labs) announces the appointment of Alethea Inns as director of diamond grading.  

Inns is a graduate of McMaster University in Canada, with a degree in geology. She also earned Graduate Gemologist (in residence), Accredited Jewelry Professional, Graduate Pearls, and Jewelry Business Management credentials from GIA, and began her gemological career with GIA's Gem Trade Laboratory in the diamond grading and gem identification departments. She has become expert in a wide range of gemological materials and techniques, including grading, advanced testing, research, and evaluation.  

“We’re very excited to have Alethea join the AGS Laboratories’ management team,” said Peter Yantzer, executive director of the AGS Labs. “She brings a broad range of technical knowledge and practical experience that is perfectly suited to the Laboratory and our future plans.” The new position is part of the lab’s commitment to continued growth, expansion, and service, and adherence to its commitment of a one-week turnaround time of grading results.

Separately, AGS Labs also has added QR (Quick Response) codes to a number of its documents, giving users fast access to the Report Verification section of the AGS website.

Final Tally on Liz’s Jewels: $156.8 Million

New York—Last week’s auction of Elizabeth Taylor’s jewels at Christie's broke records even before the first night of the sale was over, but the final tally leaves jewelry auction history in the dust.

Every lot of the 1,778 pieces of jewelry, fashion, decorative arts, and film memorabilia in the auction sold, many fetching prices up to 50 times their pre-sale estimates. 26 items sold for more than $1 million apiece; six items sold for more than $5 million each.

In another landmark first, Christies also hosted an online auction in tandem with the live auction in New York, adding 57,000 bids and $9.1 million in sales to the final tally. All proceeds from the sale will go to the Elizabeth Taylor Trust. A portion of the profits generated from sales of exhibition tickets, event sponsorships, and ongoing sales of select publications will be donated to the Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation. View a selection of videos and blog from the sale here.

Labs Agree to Updated Terminology

Basel, Switzerland—Members of the global jewelry industry’s Laboratory Harmonisation Manual Committee met here last week to discuss the most recent gemological developments, update nomenclature and disclosure terminology in the  Committee’s existing information sheets and finalize four new sheets.