Richard W. Hughes

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Richard Hughes in Tibet

Richard W. Hughes is an American gemologist and author, known as an authority on corundum, rubies and sapphires.

## Career

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Hughes graduated from the Asian Institute of Gemological Sciences (AIGS) in Bangkok, Thailand, in 1980, and became a Fellow of the Gemmological Association of Great Britain (F.G.A.) in 1982. He was the director of AIGS during the 1980s, and also served at the American Gem Trade Association’s gemological laboratories in California and New York from 2005 to 2008. In 1997 he authored Ruby & Sapphire, which is considered by many in the gem and jewelry industry to be the most authoritative treatise on the subject.[1]

Hughes has authored or co-authored a number of books on gems as well as numerous articles on gemology over the past 34 years.[2] He received the American Gem Society's Richard T. Liddicoat Journalism Award in both 2004 and 2005.[3][4] In 2010, Hughes received the Antonio Bonanno Award for Excellence in Gemology from the Accredited Gemologists Association,[5] in recognition of his contributions to promoting gems and the countries that produce them through his travelogues, as well as his scientific writings and the sharing of this information through trade journals and his website.[6]

Hughes has worked both in lab gemology and also in the wholesale, retail and mining sides of the gem business. He currently resides in Thailand with his wife and daughter, where he continues his gemological research. In 2012, together with his family, he established a Gemological laboratory in Bangkok called Lotus Gemology. In 2017, Lotus Gemology published Hughes' book Ruby & Sapphire: A Gemologist's Guide,[7] covering the corundum gem species.[8][9] In 2019, Tongji University created an exhibit centering on Lotus Gemology's photography.[10] Van Cleef & Arpels' L’École, School of Jewelry Arts ran an exhibit in Hong Kong featuring photomicrographs from Lotus Gemology in 2020.[11]

## Books

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* Terra Spinel: Terra Firma, Yavorskyy, V. and Hughes, R.W. (2010). Yavorskyy Co., 202 pp., ISBN 978-0-615-40901-6
* Ruby & Sapphire, Hughes, R.W. (1997) Boulder, CO, RWH Publishing, 512pp. ISBN 978-0-9645097-6-4
* Corundum, Hughes, R.W. (1990). Butterworth’s Gem Books, Northants, UK, Butterworth-Heinemann, 314 pp., ISBN 978-0-7506-1007-0
* The Book of Ruby & Sapphire, Halford-Watkins, J.F. & Hughes, R.W. (2012). RWH Publishing, 434 pp., ISBN 978-0-9645097-0-2

## See also

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* Gemology

## References

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1. ^ Australian Jeweller, May 1998, p. 10
2. ^ Richard W. Hughes bibliography
3. ^ "Richard Hughes Receives Journalism Awards". Retrieved 24 September 2014.
4. ^ "Liddicoat Awards Announced". JCK Magazine. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
5. ^ Accredited Gemologists Association
6. ^ Field Gemology.org
7. ^ Hughes, Richard; Manorotkul, Wimon; Hughes, E. Billie (2017). Ruby & Sapphire: A Gemologist's Guide. Bangkok: RWH Publiishing/Lotus Publishing. p. 816\. ISBN 978-0-9645097-1-9. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
8. ^ Minieri, Paolo (26 October 2017). "Driving gemstone lovers to corundums. A twenty years tireless work for the most accurate survey on rubies and sapphires". rivistaitalianadigemmologia.com. Italian Gemological Review. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
9. ^ Skalwold, Elise (Winter 2016–17). "Book Review • Ruby & Sapphire: A Gemologist's Guide" (PDF). InColor: 68–73. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
10. ^ Lawson, Lynda. "Lotus Gemology's Gem Exhibit "Inside Out"". sustainablegemstones.org. Gemstones and Sustainable Development Knowledge Hub, University of Delaware. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
11. ^ Knott, Kylie (10 July 2020). "Precious gems go under the microscope in Hong Kong exhibition". scmp.com. South China Morning Post. Retrieved 25 November 2020.

## External links

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* HW Diamonds
* Web Site of R.W. Hughes