Introduction to Lapidary | CRATEX Abrasives

Lapidary (also called gemcutting) is the art of transforming stones and precious gems into beautifully polished rocks and precisely carved decorations. A person who uses various precision tools to transform these earth-crusted stones into jewelry and wonderful works of art is called a gemcutter or a lapidary (sometimes lapidarist).

Precision tools are not the only set of skills a lapidary will need to own. Most important values are patience, dedication, love for precision work and passion for gems, as well as the vision to recognize the full potential of a raw stone. You’ll need to study it, its density, shape and color, create an image in your mind about what the finished gem is going to look like, and then you’ll pick out proper tools.

Right tools are just the piece of the puzzle but are just as important. A lapidary has knowledge in operating a variety of power saws, drills, sanders, grinders and sometimes engravers.

Since lapidary is such an amazing art, we decided to create a Lapidary 101 article with a prime goal to introduce various lapidary arts and techniques, necessary equipment, various How-to projects (coming soon!) and CRATEX tools used by lapidarists. ENJOY!