In this presentation, lapidary historian and author Justin K Prim will take us on a journey through time. Using archival photos and documents, Justin will reveal the roots of gemstone cutting in America. Starting in Maine in the 1890’s, we will see rare photos of America’s early faceting pioneers and their experimental machines. We will follow the rise of the lapidary community on both the East and West coasts and try to discover who invented the first mast machines that went on to inspire today’s modern faceting technology.
Justin will lead us through the Great Depression and two World Wars in order to watch the community develop from handwritten letters between only a dozen interested hobbyists to several thousand people organized into lapidary clubs all over North America. This is a previously untold story that will give new insights into the unique early origins of today’s lapidary clubs and the community of American faceters that it birthed.
About the Speaker:
Justin K Prim is an American gemcutter and gemologist living and working in Bangkok, Thailand. He has studied gemcutting traditions all over the world as well as attending gemology programs at GIA and AIGS. Justin has taught gemology and gemcutting at AIGS and IGT in Bangkok and he has recently published his first book, The Secret Teachings of Gemcutting. He is the founder of Faceting Apprentice, an online gemcutting school, and he also writes articles, produces videos, and gives talks about gemcutting history.
