BANGKOK, September 7, 2026 — GUILD Gem Laboratories marked ten years of field gemology research with “A Decade in the Field,” an anniversary event held in Bangkok. Built around the theme “Mine to Market,” the gathering brought together industry leaders, gemologists, and trade association representatives to explore how field observations, documented reference samples, and market insight inform laboratory research and gemology education.
Andrew Lucas, President of GUILD Institute of Gemology and Senior Vice President of GUILD Gem Laboratories, delivered the keynote address, drawing on a decade of tracking the global colored gemstone market — from shifting sources and supply chains to evolving field research methods. Ruby Liu, President of GUILD Gem Laboratories and Founder of GUILD Institute of Gemology, also attended the event and spent much of the evening engaging with guests.
Rizwan Nayeem, President of the Sri Lanka Gem and Jewellery Traders Association; Prof. S.P. Chaminda, Chairman of Sri Lanka’s National Gem and Jewellery Authority; and Khun Chomphol Phornchindarak (Huang Haidong), President of the Thai Gems and Jewelry Traders Association (TGJTA), also addressed attendees.
A Decade of Change in the Colored Gemstone Market
In his keynote, Lucas traced a decade of change across the colored gemstone trade — in consumer demand, the map of producing regions, and the way business gets done. Growth in the Chinese market has driven rising demand for new gemstone varieties and sources, while global production and trade patterns have continued to shift since 2021, with markets such as India emerging as significant new sources of demand. Livestreaming, e-commerce, and social media have also reshaped how information travels and how gemstones are sold across the industry.
As gemstones from a widening range of origins reach the same markets, sourcing and supply chains for materials that look alike have grown more complex — sharpening the industry’s need for transparency and reliable origin information.
From Field Sampling to Laboratory Analysis
Over the past ten years, GUILD gemologists have carried out field research across Colombia, Mozambique, Sri Lanka, Zambia, and Australia, as well as in Panjshir, Afghanistan; Ilakaka, Madagascar; and Chanthaburi, Thailand — among other gemstone-producing regions and trading centers.
In producing regions, GUILD’s gemologists document geological settings, mining conditions, and extraction methods, and collect A-Type reference samples with verified origins. In trading centers, they observe how rough material is sorted, cut, treated, and brought to market.
Each A-Type sample carries a clear, traceable record linking it to a specific source and geological context. The physical stones enter the laboratory’s reference collection, while the corresponding test data are added to its database for comparison against similar material.
Field observations don’t replace laboratory analysis — they give it context. Determining origin still depends on microscopic examination, instrumental testing, reference samples, and field documentation working together.
Origin Determination in a Multi-Source Market
Using emeralds as a case study, Lucas walked through the research questions raised when a single gem type is supplied from multiple sources. Colombian emeralds have long anchored the market, even as Zambia and Swat, Pakistan have drawn growing attention in recent years; he also spoke about mining operations and rough auctions at Zambia’s Grizzly mine.
The Q&A session turned to origin determination for jadeite from different sources. Lucas explained that laboratories weigh field-collected reference samples against geological records and analytical results — origin, he noted, is never established from a single characteristic or data point, but from how the full body of evidence lines up.
Bringing Field Research Into Gemology Education
The event also introduced GUILD’s global Field Gemology study programs, which have taken students to Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Brazil, and other locations to see mining areas, trading markets, and other stages of the gemstone trade firsthand — observing how a stone moves from ground to market through mining, sorting, processing, and trading. Future programs are planned to expand into more gemstone-producing regions.
“If you don’t go, you don’t know,” Lucas said, summing up the case for field research. Producing regions and trading floors hold information no laboratory submission can fully capture. Bringing that documentation and those samples back to the lab — and building on them through analysis and comparison — is what grows the reference base supporting gemstone identification, research, and education.
About GUILD Gem Laboratories
Founded in 1980 and headquartered in Los Angeles, GUILD Gem Laboratories operates laboratories in Los Angeles; Bangkok; Beruwala, Sri Lanka; and Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, and Zhuji in China, providing identification, grading, and research services for colored gemstones, diamonds, pearls, and jade.
Media Contact
Dany Chen
chendanning@guildlab.cn
