George F. Kunz

In the present day, the particular place which was won by George Frederick Kunz as expert on gems, discoverer and appraiser of precious stones, is somewhat unusual. It was said that his interest in this somewhat unusual occupation started in his school-days; at any rate, he was barely twenty years of age when he began his long career with the leading American jewelry concern. From that time forward, he extended his peculiar knowledge until, in his prime of life, he was recognized throughout the world as a paramount authority. Kunz was not a home-staying examiner of gems; he personally hunted the world for them, in what he suspected might be their hidingplaces. Search for rubies in Ceylon, for diamonds in South Africa, for jade in China and for pearls in the South Seas, made up his chapter of adventure. In his later years he helped to create the literature of his subject. How his imagination played upon it may be judged by the titles of his books. The man who wrote of “The Magic of Jewels” and “The Curious Lore of Precious Stones,” who expounded meticulously Shakespeare’s references to gems, was surely master of his art.

Alexander Dana Noyes
1933 Century Association Yearbook