Dr. James Shigley - 2008 Antonio C. Bonanno Award for Excellence in Gemology
The Accredited Gemologists Association (AGA) is pleased to announce that this year’s Antonio C. Bonanno Award For Excellence in Gemology will be awarded to Dr. James Shigley of the GIA Gem Trade Laboratory.
Dr.Shigley, a Distinguished Research Fellow at the Gemological Institute of America, is the author of many articles on diamonds and other gemstones, and a well-known speaker on gemological topics to both professional and general audiences. Dr. Shigley helps direct GIA’s research activities on the identification of natural, synthetic, and treated diamonds, colored stones and pearls. In his current position as Distinguished Research Fellow, he continues to advance GIA's gem research program to support the jewelry trade to meet the challenges of gem identification. Last summer marked his 25th anniversary with the Institute.
The award ceremony was held in conjunction with the AGA Tucson Gala Dinner Dance on February 6, 2008.
Also nominated for this award were Peter Yantzer, Donald Palmieri, and Ted Themelis.
Shane McClure - 2007
After earning his Graduate Gemologist diploma in 1978 at the Santa Monica campus, Shane McClure accepted an entry-level position at the GIA Gem Trade Laboratory in downtown Los Angeles. Some 28 years later he is still with the GIA Laboratory, now located in Carlsbad, California, where he manages both gem identification activities and numerous research projects as Director of West Coast Identification Services.
McClure is an accomplished writer and photographer. Among his journalistic achievements, he has won the Gems & Gemology award for most valuable article seven times, an award that is voted on by the readership of that journal.
Also nominated for this award were Thomas Tashey, Kurt Nassau, & Donald Palmieri.
Richard Drucker - 2006
Richard Drucker entered the jewelry industry as a third generation jeweler in 1980. In 1982, he began a pricing publication, now known as The Guide. This publication is used in more than 20 countries and is the most quoted publication in the industry today for pricing information on colored gems, pearls and diamonds. Richard has lectured for many industry trade groups. His articles have also appeared in many trade publications. Richard has also published several industry books including The MicroWorld of Diamonds (Koivula) and the PhotoMasters for Diamond Grading (Roskin).
He also owns and distributes Guide Appraisal Software, used by more than 600 jewelry appraisers. In 2005, he opened Gemworld International Laboratories in New York, a cutting edge laboratory doing light performance and cut grading.
In 1993, Mr. Drucker was elected as the first Chairman of the Gemological Institute of America Alumni & Associates International Board of Governors. He continued as Chair of the Alumni Executive Council through 2000 and received an Alumni Leadership Award for exemplary service in this role.
Richard was nominated for his 25 years of dedication and major contributions to the Gem and Jewelry Industry as a provider of information to benefit the gemological community. He has been instrumental in pressing the cut grade issue and is a leader in this arena. Richard has devoted his time tirelessly to the industry as a publisher and lecturer in his attempt to expand knowledge about colored gemstones, diamonds and pearls, and developing a methodology for collecting and disseminating reliable price information.
Also nominated for this award were Michael Cowing, Branko Deljanin, William Hanneman, Ted Themelis, & Peter Yantzer.
Alan Jobbins & Antoinette Matlins - 2005
Antoinette Matlins, PG, is a well-known author of many books on gems and jewelry and a leading educator both within the trade and to the public.
Initially pursuing a career in primary remedial education and subsequently moving into the advertising field in New York City, gemology remained only a hobby until the early 1980s. Angered by misinformation that had been appearing in various investment magazines for several years regarding diamonds, gemstones and gem investment, Matlins decided there was a real need for a book to protect consumers; in 1984 this book was published, written by Matlins, with Antonio Bonanno as co-author.
She was Gemology Editor for National Jeweler magazine for almost a decade during the mid-1980s and 1990s, and her work on consumer-related issues soon established her as a dedicated consumer advocate. The Accredited Gemologists Association’s nationwide campaign against gemstone investment telemarketing scams was spearheaded by Matlins, and she is often seen on television segments on ABC, NBC, CBS, and CNN educating consumers and exposing fraud and misrepresentation.
Through her books, articles, lectures and media appearances, she has played an important role in bringing information to the public’s attention regarding the routine use of gemstone treatments and in focusing the trade on the need for disclosure. In the educational arena, applying her father’s unique approach to gemology, Matlins developed an innovative, practical course focused at people in the trade without an interest in gemology. Her goal was to give people without any science or technical background the skills they needed to reduce risk and to gain greater confidence in buying and selling gems.
Her unique approach has taken her as an educator not only to major gem shows and conferences, but to such places as the Northwest Frontier Province of Pakistan where she spent a month sharing her techniques with illiterate miners. It is estimated that she has personally taught several thousand people, many of whom have gone on to pursue the study of gemology and to obtain gemological diplomas.
E. Alan Jobbins, BSc, Ceng, FIMM, FGA started his gemological journey as Curator of Minerals and Gemstones at the Geological Museum in London.
Over a span of more than 30 years there, he conducted many important research projects, including a major study of East African garnets, the first papers characterizing the structure and identification of synthetic opals, the discovery of a new mineral (magnesio-axinite), and the field study of the Barwell meteorite fall.
His work has taken him on assignment for the United Nations and the British Government, where he was called to apply his expertise in numerous ways to assist other nations.
Some of his most notable international work included setting up a gemological laboratory in Rangoon, Burma (now Myanmar) and training this country's first gemologists; a major study of Pailin ruby and sapphire deposits in Cambodia, resulting in important recommendations for improved working methods; an assessment of diamond and opal deposits in Piaui State, Brazil; and a survey of the Sri Lankan gemstone industry to improve cutting techniques.
In 1988 he turned his focus to China where he initiated gemological training - with new laboratory facilities - at the China University of Geosciences in Wuhan. In the UK, his record includes 32 years as a gemological lecturer at the Sir John Cass College (now London Metropolitan University), 20 years as an examiner for the Gemmological Association's gemmology examinations, and eight years as Editor of the Journal of Gemmology. But his most sparkling assignment was being a member of the team that conducted the first gemmological examination of the Crown Jewels from 1986-1989.
He is an Executive member of the International Gemmological Conference and the current President of the Society of Jewellery Historians and newly elected President of the Gemmological Association of Great Britain (now Gem-A).
Also nominated for the 2005 award were Branko Deljanin, Laboratory Director of EGL-USA/Canada (USA/Canada); Richard Drucker, President of Gemworld Publishing and Gemworld International Laboratories (USA); Donald Palmieri, Founder and President of Gem Certification & Appraisal Lab (USA); and Thomas Tashey, Founder and Director of Professional Gem Sciences Laboratory (USA).
Dr. Henry A. Hanni - 2004
Dr. Henry A. Hanni, began his gemological career in 1976 when he became a Fellow of the Gemmological Association of Great Britain (FGA). In 1980 he obtained his doctorate, his thesis having been on beryl from the Swiss Alps. In the same year he joined the scientific staff at SSEF, the Swiss Gemmological Institute, of which he became director in 1990. In 1996, Dr. Hanni joined the faculty of Basel University as a professor of Gemmology.
Over the course of the past 30 years, Dr. Hanni has become recognized as one of the leading researchers and educators in the gemological field. He has written over 50 papers on gemstones, analytical techniques, and detection of treatments, in English, German, and French, and maintains a rigorous schedule lecturing and giving courses worldwide.
Under Dr. Hanni's leadership, SSEF has become an important gemological laboratory focusing on research, disclosure, and establishing higher standards for the field. SSEF is at the forefront of gemological research, and its pearl and gemstone reports are now among the most highly respected internationally. Dr Hanni has also helped to build SSEF into an important training center for gemology, attracting students not only from Europe, but worldwide, and is responsible for the SSEF journal, FACETTE, which provides important contributions to the gemological literature.
When asked about his work in the field, Hanni replied that he believed his major contributions were in three areas: teaching "scientific instrumental gemology," pearl research, and his extensive work in treatment identification-especially glass in ruby and organic substances in emerald-and in addressing how treatment information should be handled in laboratory documents. The SSEF publication, "Standards and Applications" was one of the first straightforward and thorough works on how gemstone treatments should be handled on reports and has served as a model for standards put into effect by many laboratories worldwide.
Also nominated for this year’s international award were Allan Jobbins, FGA, a Director of the Gemmological Association of Great Britain (Gem-A), Branko Deljanin, EGL-USA’s Director of Canadian operations, Kenneth Scarratt, FGA, Director of the American Gem Trade Association’s Gemological Testing Center in New York, and William Hanneman, of Hanneman Gemological Instruments. Each of the finalists received a Medallion of Honor in recognition of their accomplishments.
G. Robert Crowningshield - 2003
G. Robert Crowningshield’s life-long passion for the field began while a young man in the navy, looking for stones in “ Ceylon” ( Sri Lanka) where he was told about the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) by a jeweler there. Upon completing his navy tour, he enrolled at the GIA to study gemology, following which he was recruited as an instructor by GIA founder, Robert Shipley. In 1949, Crowningshield was appointed Vice President of GIA’s new Gem Trade Laboratory in New York City, which became his home for most of his illustrious career. His contributions include many “firsts”: the first report on dyed jadeite; the first to apply spectroscopic techniques to separate natural fancy-color diamonds from treated; the first gemological study of gem-quality GE synthetic diamonds.
“It is with special pleasure that we present this award to Bob,” explains Antoinette Matlins, one of Bonanno's gemologist-daughters, “because of the wonderful relationship he shared with Dad and the great mutual respect they felt for one another. And like our father, after more than 50 years in the field, Bob retains his passion and dedication to the field. He has touched the lives of thousands of gemologists, conducted research that has had a major impact on our understanding of diamonds and colored gemstones, and truly shaped the field of gemology as we know it today.”
Also nominated for this year’s award were Allan Jobbins, FGA, of Great Britain, and Robert Weldon, GG, of the United States. Jobbins and Weldon each received a Medallion of Honor. Jobbins, a Director of the Gemmological Association of Great Britain, was nominated for his extensive activity in the research arena, his global educational activities, and his work in establishing gem-testing laboratories and gemological curricula at universities in remote lands. Weldon, now Senior Editor at Professional Jeweler magazine, was nominated for excellence in gemological journalism and his exceptional photographic contributions to the gemological archives, in both macro- and micro-photography.
John I Koivula - 2002
John Koivula is internationally recognized for his groundbreaking work in photomicrography, specifically for the study of inclusions and the use of the microscope as an identification and research tool. In the course of his research spanning more than 40 years, Koivula developed several illumination techniques for use in gemological microscopy.
He authored and co-authored more than 700 articles and notes on gemstone inclusions, microscopy, and related gemological topics, including the widely acclaimed reference book, Photoatlas of Inclusions in Gemstones.
Co-authored by Edward Gübelin, the book is considered one of the most important gemology references currently in print. Koivula recently authored the book, MicroWorld of Diamonds and is a contributing editor to GIA's award-winning publication Gems & Gemology.
Koivula lectures extensively both in the U.S. and abroad. He holds bachelor's degrees in chemistry and mineralogy-geology from Eastern Washington State University and is a member of numerous industry associations. A recipient of several esteemed awards, Koivula was named one of the 64 most influential people of the 20th century in the jewelry industry by JCK magazine.
Nominated for the 2002 award were Martin Haske, Gary Roskin, Jeffrey Post, and Robert Crowningshield.
C. R. "Cap" Beesley - 2001
C.R. "Cap" Beesley founded the American Gemological Laboratories in New York City, an international gemstone testing facility, and Gemcore, a nonprofit research and education organization that sponsors events to provide up to the minute information about gem and mineral related issues for gemstone professionals.
He is also Director of Research for the Gemstone Standards Commission, an organization whose advisory board includes representatives from international auction houses, prominent retail jewelry firms, and faculty from universities and technical facilities.
"His work has been a primary force in bringing about universal changes in disclosure policies," said Antoinette Matlins. "Although his positions have not always been popular, and his assertions often challenged, he exemplifies what it means to take a stand on an important issue, and to persevere for what you believe." According to Matlins, Beesley's work has resulted in changes in the entire treatment arena, including laboratory certification, and his work has benefited the entire gem and jewelry industry, creating a more honest and forthright environment. "This was what my father strove for his entire life, and the reason he worked so hard in helping to build the AGA, and programs like the AGA's Master Gemologist Appraiser (which was subsequently taken over by the American Society of Appraisers).
Gemologists Karen (Bonanno) DeHaas, FGA, and Kathryn Bonanno-Patrizzi, FGA, agree with their sister. "He almost single-handedly made gemstone treatment disclosure a top priority among leading auction houses," says Patrizzi. Beesley’s efforts resulted in the implementation of disclosure policies by Sotheby’s and Christies as well, and his positions have influenced the direction of industry trade organizations and retailers worldwide. "Beesley’s work exemplifies what it means to be committed to research, education, and high personal and professional integrity," sums up DeHaas, "And that is what this award is all about."
Also nominated for the 2001 award were internationally prominent gemologists Dr. Henry Hanni of SSEF laboratory in Basel, Switzerland, and John I. Koivula of the Gemological Institute of America.
Alan Hodgkinson - 2000
Alan Hodgkinson, FGA, is the first recipient of the Antonio Bonanno Award. Alan is the developer of Hodgkinson's Visual Optics. Currently President of the Eastwood Chamber of Trade and Commerce, he is working on a book entitled "Diamond & Gemstones - A Practical Identification Manual."
He was acknowledged for his 20 plus years of involvement in the industry, the establishment of his highly acclaimed two-day Practical Gem Identification Course and his reputation as a worldwide lecturer.
Also nominated for the 2000 award were C. R. "Cap" Beesley of the American Gemological Laboratories in New York City and Dr. Henry A. Hanni, Director of SSEF, the Swiss Gemmological Institute.