https://maedot.co/journal/Guides, research and news on Ethiopian gemstones and on buying from Ethiopia. Every entry is dated and lists its sources.enWed, 28 Oct 2026 06:00:00 +0000https://maedot.co/journal/check-ethiopian-gemstone-supplier/https://maedot.co/journal/check-ethiopian-gemstone-supplier/Wed, 28 Oct 2026 06:00:00 +0000GuideCheck the seller's export licence and the parcel against a written specification, then pay only into the exporter's own account at a bank in Ethiopia.https://maedot.co/journal/judging-rough-welo-opal/https://maedot.co/journal/judging-rough-welo-opal/Wed, 28 Oct 2026 06:00:00 +0000GuideRough Welo is judged first on the play of colour it will show once cut, then on body tone, what lies behind each face, matrix, yield and stability.https://maedot.co/journal/ethiopian-gemstones/https://maedot.co/journal/ethiopian-gemstones/Wed, 28 Oct 2026 06:00:00 +0000ResearchOpal, emerald, sapphire and copper-bearing tourmaline are traded; aquamarine, garnet, peridot and others are recorded finds. Where each comes from.https://maedot.co/journal/import-duty-ethiopian-gemstones/https://maedot.co/journal/import-duty-ethiopian-gemstones/Wed, 28 Oct 2026 06:00:00 +0000GuideAs of October 2026, unworked rough coloured gemstones enter the US, EU, UK and Hong Kong free of duty and India at 0.5%; import VAT or GST still applies.https://maedot.co/journal/ethiopian-opal-rough-price/https://maedot.co/journal/ethiopian-opal-rough-price/Wed, 28 Oct 2026 06:00:00 +0000ResearchTop single pieces of rough Welo opal sell abroad at $30 to $150 a gram; fine rough by weight at $18 to $24 a gram ($18,000 to $24,000 a kilogram).https://maedot.co/journal/mezezo-opal-shewa/https://maedot.co/journal/mezezo-opal-shewa/Sat, 24 Oct 2026 06:00:00 +0000ResearchEthiopia's first precious opal to reach the trade, in 1993. Brown-bodied and contra luz nodules from Yita Ridge, and what GIA's stability tests found.https://maedot.co/journal/ethiopian-sapphire/https://maedot.co/journal/ethiopian-sapphire/Wed, 14 Oct 2026 06:00:00 +0000ResearchFound near Aksum in late 2016, mostly blue and usually heated. The geology, how laboratories place it, and what is known about supply today.https://maedot.co/journal/ethiopian-colombian-zambian-emerald/https://maedot.co/journal/ethiopian-colombian-zambian-emerald/Fri, 09 Oct 2026 06:00:00 +0000ResearchHow emerald from Ethiopia, Colombia and Zambia differs in geology, colour chemistry and inclusions, and how laboratories tell the three apart.https://maedot.co/journal/how-a-parcel-leaves-ethiopia/https://maedot.co/journal/how-a-parcel-leaves-ethiopia/Tue, 06 Oct 2026 06:00:00 +0000GuideA licensed exporter's bank issues the export permit, and the Ministry of Mines and customs clear the parcel in Addis Ababa before it flies, insured.https://maedot.co/journal/ethiopian-opal-stability-crazing/https://maedot.co/journal/ethiopian-opal-stability-crazing/Thu, 01 Oct 2026 06:00:00 +0000GuideMost Welo opal does not craze, but some does. What crazing is, how water affects hydrophane opal, and how to test rough before buying or cutting.https://maedot.co/journal/opal-octobers-birthstone/https://maedot.co/journal/opal-octobers-birthstone/Tue, 29 Sep 2026 06:00:00 +0000GuideWhy opal is October's birthstone, who set the list in 1912, what play of colour is, and how to choose an opal.https://maedot.co/journal/opal-and-the-commodity-exchange/https://maedot.co/journal/opal-and-the-commodity-exchange/Thu, 24 Sep 2026 06:00:00 +0000NewsOpal contract specifications for the exchange are finished, but no gemstone has traded on it yet. What has happened since 2021, and what it means for buyers.https://maedot.co/journal/carats-grams-kilograms-rough/https://maedot.co/journal/carats-grams-kilograms-rough/Mon, 21 Sep 2026 06:00:00 +0000GuideA carat is 0.2 g, so a kilogram is 5,000 carats. How rough opal and emerald are weighed and quoted, why wet opal weighs more, and what scales allow.https://maedot.co/journal/where-ethiopian-opal-goes/https://maedot.co/journal/where-ethiopian-opal-goes/Fri, 18 Sep 2026 06:00:00 +0000ResearchMost Ethiopian opal leaves rough for India and is cut in Jaipur. The figures, and what they mean for buyers elsewhere and in India.https://maedot.co/journal/ethiopia-copper-bearing-tourmaline/https://maedot.co/journal/ethiopia-copper-bearing-tourmaline/Mon, 14 Sep 2026 06:00:00 +0000NewsGIA and Gübelin confirmed paraíba tourmaline from Ethiopia in August 2026. Where it was found, how labs place origin, and what the name means.https://maedot.co/journal/how-to-read-a-selection/https://maedot.co/journal/how-to-read-a-selection/Thu, 10 Sep 2026 06:00:00 +0000GuideWhat each line on your private selection page means, what we leave out, and how to ask about a parcel.https://maedot.co/journal/ethiopia-mining-exports-2025-26/https://maedot.co/journal/ethiopia-mining-exports-2025-26/Fri, 04 Sep 2026 06:00:00 +0000NewsMining exports reached USD 5.7 billion in 2025/26, almost all of it gold. Where opal and other gemstones fit, and what it means for buyers.https://maedot.co/journal/which-gem-lab-report/https://maedot.co/journal/which-gem-lab-report/Wed, 02 Sep 2026 06:00:00 +0000GuideIdentification, treatment and origin reports from GIA, Gübelin, SSEF, AGL and GRS: what each covers and costs, and when rough or cut stones need one.https://maedot.co/journal/emerald-from-shakiso/https://maedot.co/journal/emerald-from-shakiso/Thu, 27 Aug 2026 06:00:00 +0000ResearchFound in 2016 and on the market by the end of that year. Where Ethiopian emerald is mined, what it is like, and how laboratories place it.https://maedot.co/journal/ethiopia-foreign-exchange-rules-exporters/https://maedot.co/journal/ethiopia-foreign-exchange-rules-exporters/Wed, 19 Aug 2026 06:00:00 +0000NewsHow a foreign buyer can pay an Ethiopian exporter under directive FXD/01/2024, and what the 2025 and 2026 amendments changed on the buyer's side.https://maedot.co/journal/dry-or-wet-opal/https://maedot.co/journal/dry-or-wet-opal/Wed, 12 Aug 2026 06:00:00 +0000GuideMost Ethiopian opal absorbs water and looks different wet. Where it comes from, why it changes, and how we label our photographs.https://maedot.co/journal/smoked-and-dyed-ethiopian-opal/https://maedot.co/journal/smoked-and-dyed-ethiopian-opal/Wed, 05 Aug 2026 06:00:00 +0000GuideWelo opal is porous enough to be smoked, dyed or sugar-treated to look black or coloured. The signs, the tests, and what sellers should disclose.https://maedot.co/journal/emerald-clarity-enhancement/https://maedot.co/journal/emerald-clarity-enhancement/Wed, 29 Jul 2026 06:00:00 +0000GuideMost emeralds have filled fissures. Oil versus resin, how laboratories grade the amount of filler, and how to care for a filled stone.https://maedot.co/journal/welo-opal-vs-australian-opal/https://maedot.co/journal/welo-opal-vs-australian-opal/Wed, 22 Jul 2026 06:00:00 +0000GuideWelo opal formed in volcanic rock and absorbs water; Australian opal formed in sedimentary rock. How they differ in tone, durability and price.