Free Republic

The gaudy red ring that helped initially identify the corpse of Iran’s Major Gen. Qassem Soleimani is no Hope Diamond, according to local jewelers. Dealers believe the distinctive ring worn by Soleimani is either a red carnelian stone — believed by some Middle East Muslims as able to bestow “blessings”– or possibly an inexpensive ruby that would cost a few hundred bucks. “From the photo, it looks like it’s a carnelian stone — it’s not a ruby; it comes from Africa,” said Maykel Rieth, a professional cutter for R Gems Inc on West 48th Street. “The ring is made out...

ATLANTA - R&B singer and reality TV star Tameka “Tiny” Harris, the wife of Atlanta rapper and activist T.I., reported more than $750,000 worth of jewelry was stolen from her Lamborghini SUV while she dined in Midtown, police confirmed. Harris told Atlanta police she returned to her vehicle after having drinks with a friend on Sunday night and discovered the jewelry was gone, WSB reported. Her wedding rings, watches and stud earrings were among the jewelry she said she left inside a blue velour bag on top of the center console of her SUV, according to the news station. She...

'Thieves Steal More than $350,000 in Jewelry from Trump Tower, Suspected to Have Been Inside Job""" Hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of jewelry has reportedly been taken from apartments in the New York skyscraper that bears President Donald Trump's name. The New York Post reported that more than $350,000 worth of valuables had been taken from two apartments in Trump Tower in two separate incidents. Sources told the paper that they believe the thefts were inside jobs as there were no signs of forced entry and the residences had not been turned inside out. Insurance fraud is also not...

Unearthed in excavation of the monumental Pilgrims’ Path, the Second Temple-era adornment likely fell after use of a ritual bath, say archaeologists A 2,000-year-old bronze ring with a solitaire gem stone was uncovered in archaeological excavations in the City of David National Park in Jerusalem. (City of David) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Some 2,000 years ago, a Jewish penitent misplaced a bronze ring during his climb of a 600-meter-long (about 2,000 feet) pilgrims’ thoroughfare leading to the Temple Mount. While the recently recovered ring is today heavily corroded, its central blue semi-precious stone still sparkles. The ring was recently discovered at the City...

A jewelry store in Massachusetts is facing backlash after putting up a billboard depicting a man proposing on a football field alongside the words, “If you’re going to take a knee this season, please have a ring in your hand!” The billboard, put up by Garieri Jewelers on a New England highway, was reportedly received positively after being erected on Sept. 1, according to The Washington Post. Scott Garieri, the owner of the jewelry store, told The Post he intended for the advertisement to be a witty “play on words,” in reference to NFL players who choose to kneel in...

GRESHAM, Ore. (AP) — The De Beers Group has announced plans to manufacture synthetic diamonds at a factory in Gresham, Oregon. The British diamond giant said in a news release Tuesday it will spend $94 million on the production facility over the next four years. Once fully operational, the plant will be able to annually produce 500,000 rough carats of lab-grown diamonds. The diamonds will be marketed under the name Lightbox. They will retail from $200 for a quarter-carat stone to $800 for a one-carat stone — much less than traditional diamonds....

Princess Michael of Kent has apologised after wearing a blackamoor brooch to the Queen’s Christmas lunch at Buckingham Palace, attended by Prince Harry’s fiancee Meghan Markle, who is of mixed race by virtue of her white father and African American mother. The royal, who is married to the Queen’s cousin, was photographed wearing the brooch depicting a black figure on her coat as she arrived for the annual gathering on Wednesday. She was later criticised online for wearing “racist jewellery”.

The dwindling respect for human life reached a new low this week with the announcement that a jewelry company is now fashioning pendants out of the ashes of “leftover” embryos from in vitro fertilization (IVF) clinics.Newsbusters broke this appalling story about an Australian company named Baby Bee Hummingbirds that produces keepsakes for new mothers that contain breastmilk, placentas, teeth, cord stumps, hair, and the ashes of loved ones. The company has now added a new category to the list – “embryo ash.”“It’s special because the embryos often signifying the end of a journey, and we are providing a beautiful...

(Video at link)A state Republican party leader brought a pair of handcuffs to an MSNBC interview Thursday, arguing Hillary Clinton could appear in them on inauguration day. Dallas Woodhouse, executive director of North Carolina’s GOP, argued Republicans in his state don't have a "suppression vote problem" but Clinton’s supporters “have a depression problem." "The Democrats have a depression problem. You know why? It’s very simple. Their candidate, if elected, could have these on election day," he said, holding up the handcuffs. “Hillary Clinton inauguration jewelry,” Woodhouse added. “Is this the kind of rhetoric you want to be seeing five days...

Image from khou.com A jewelry store owner used an AK-47 clone to defend his store, employees, and customers from four armed attackers during a dramatic gunfight.  The gunfight happened at high noon on three October, 2016.  The attackers came in shooting. But surprise and speed were not enough to win the fight against the store owner and employees. From yourhoustonnews.com In a hail of gunfire, Conroe jewelry store owner Jeffery Turner Jr. made the decision to shoot back – with his AK-47 rifle – at four men who opened fire on his customers and staff during an attempted robbery...

Lockheed Martin, the aerospace company, have filed a patent for a new kind of 3D printer. The patent, filed on April 4 by inventor David G. Findley, describes a new way of 3D printing which would use a pre-ceramic polymer and nanoparticle filler to create synthetic diamond objects of pretty much any shape you can dream up. “[The] method includes depositing alternating layers of a ceramic powder and a pre-ceramic polymer dissolved in a solvent. Each layer of the pre-ceramic polymer is deposited in a shape corresponding to a cross section of an object. The alternating layers of the ceramic...

It’s not often that we see a company that takes the hunting world by storm, as well as the fashion industry. The Jewelry Source has done just that with their “Made In The USA” Camo wedding rings and accessories. The marriage of Mossy Oak brand Camo and state-of-the-art ring technology have caused outdoor lovers to flock to its online jewelry store in droves. The recent expansion of Mossy Oak Camo Engagement Rings has been met with open arms by couples looking to tie the knot. Offered in all Mossy Oak Camo patterns, the bride and groom can find the camouflage...

Tycoon Joseph Lau bought this bauble for his youngest daughter, Josephine, age 7,and promptly renamed the natural 12.03 caret diamond "The Blue Moon of Josephine." Geneva (AFP) - An exceptional 12.03-carat diamond dubbed "Blue Moon" was sold in Geneva for a new world record of 48.6 million Swiss francs ($48.4 million) on Wednesday, auction house Sotheby's said. The vivid diamond, described as flawless by experts, was bought by a private collector from Hong Kong. The record-breaking sale comes a day after rival auction house Christie's sold a rare 16.08-carat pink diamond, the largest of its kind to ever appear at...

Apple reports earnings for the quarter that ended in March after the market closes on Monday, April 27. Get ready for another monster report. Analysts are expecting big iPhone sales and think Apple could provide a major update to its cash return program. According to data compiled by Bloomberg, analysts are looking for $56 billion in revenue, which would represent 23% growth. Apple's revenue growth is expected to be driven by strong iPhone sales. Analysts are anticipating that Apple sold 58.1 million units, which would be an impressive 33% increase. If Apple sells 58.1 million iPhones, it will be the...

Apple Watch. Seems like Apple has a hit on its corporate hands. Or a preorder hit. The company sold a million Apple Watches in the first 24 hours—just in the U.S.—according to one piece of analysis. That would make it the most successful new product category launch in Apple's history—so what do you do if you've been talking smack about it for months? If you're Roger Kay, you stuff a straw man full of nonsensical numbers that will allow you to declare the device a failure no matter what. It's a neat trick so long as no one applies a...

The FBI is helping investigate a high-level jewel heist at a southern Minnesota rest stop. Authorities say the theft was done quickly and precisely without weapons, and about $500,000 in jewels was taken. Danny Ranta is the head maintenance worker at the Marion rest stop on Interstate 90 between Eyota and Rochester, and he came into work Monday morning to learn there was a high-end jewelry heist in the parking lot. "Nothing has ever happened here before," he said. The robbery happened just after midnight Monday, the Olmsted County Sheriff's Office said. A man and several of his employees were...

The State Department reported Tuesday that the queen of Brunei gave Mrs. Obama jewelry worth $71,468 in 2013. The flower-shaped white gold earrings, ring and necklace were studded with yellow sapphires and diamonds, according to the department’s annual accounting of gifts published in the Federal Register. That’s almost seven times more valuable than the most expensive gift received by President Barack Obama, a glass amber-colored sculpture of a falcon on a branch worth $10,400 from Qatar’s ambassador to the U.S. Not that the president fared poorly. He also received a large Azerbaijani rug with red, white and blue geometric designs...

'King of clubs' being sheltered by Syrian army By Damien Mcelroy in Damascus (Filed: 11/05/2003) The king of clubs from America's card deck of most wanted Iraqis is being sheltered at a military base in the Syrian capital Damascus, according to a Gulf diplomat. Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri, a former vice-president of Iraq and one of Saddam Hussein's closest henchmen, is said to be under the protection of Syria's Republican Guard in the decrepit military base near the airport. He is among thousands of regime figures who are believed to have slipped into Syria before Damascus sealed the border. Izzat had...

Throughout her political career, including during her current race against former GOP Sen. Scott Brown, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D., N.H.) has touted her experience as a small business owner. Shaheen’s small business “experience” was co-running a store that once sold thousands of dollars-worth of stolen jewelry. “As the former owner and manager of a small retail business, Senator Shaheen knows what it’s like to worry about meeting payroll and inventory costs to keep a business going,” the Issues section of her Senate website declares. Her Senate biography also describes her as a “former small business owner.” This week, the Shaheen...

ANTIOCH -- An Antioch jewelry store owner shot and killed an armed robber Friday afternoon and police said a customer was also shot during the heist, police said. The robbery at the Hardy Nix Jewelry store at 3600 Delta Fair Boulevard shut down a major street as authorities swarmed the surrounding area looking for a second suspect who escaped the store after the 4:27 p.m. robbery. The female customer who was shot was taken to a hospital with a non-life threatening wound, according to Antioch police Lt. Robin Kelley. The woman "just happened to be in the way" as the...