Everything you need to know before you buy--or sell--gems and jewelry at auction. A source of expert guidance to help you enter today's fastest-growing marketplace for gems and jewelry. This definitive guide to buying and selling at auction covers both the unique risks and opportunities to be found--how to make a profit on yesterday's treasures or find a valuable treasure of your own. Entertaining, informative and packed with tips from an "insider," this practical, easy-to-understand guide makes available--for the first time--detailed information on:

• What distinguishes auction buying and selling from other methods
• How to buy and sell at auction: The rules of the game
• What you need to know before bidding on:
• - Diamonds
• - Colored gemstones
• - Pearls
• - Gold and platinum
• Design and style: Great jewelry periods and great jewelers
• Special concerns when buying and selling on Internet auction sites
• How to avoid the pitfalls when buying and selling at auction
• What auctions do guarantee, and how to protect yourself against what they don't
• ... and much more.

With comprehensive price charts and auction results, as well as resource information on auction houses and websites, Jewelry & Gems at Auction is a book no potential auction buyer or seller can afford to be without.