A gifted individual who touched people’s lives in ways that helped them to succeed in their endeavours, it’s important to begin with a note about his father, Arthur Sandy Tombs.
In 1943, Sandy Tombs became one of the first people in Australia to complete a course in gemmology.
He was one of the three Gemmological Association of Australia (GAA) founders and its first chairman. Sandy’s legacy lived on when his son Geoff took up the gemmology baton and became a Fellow of the GAA.
For more than five decades (1950s-1990s), Geoff Tombs served the field of gemmology in Australia.
His reputation as a gemmologist with thorough knowledge of gemstones and their treatments was respected nationally and internationally.
He shared his knowledge as a keynote speaker at many national and international gatherings and through numerous published papers.
After many years of service as an editor of The Australian Gemmologist, Chairman of the Board of Studies, Federal President and President of the NSW Branch, among other roles, in 1988, he became the Federal Patron of the GAA.
He continued to contribute to gemmology until he died in 2003.
Investigative study
His first paper in The Australian Gemmologist, published in 1958, documented synthetic diamonds observed through the microscope.
Tombs went on to publish more than 30 articles in the GAA’s flagship journal.
The two-part Geoff Tombs Memorial Issue (Volume 21 Nos 11-12 in 2003) began with a reprint of his 1975 publication ‘Notes on identification of Gilson synthetic opals’.
This article was significant because it was a practical way for gemmologists to identify a perceived challenge to the opal industry.
In his paper on the heat treatment of Australian sapphire in this same issue, Terry Coldham pointed out that Tombs recognised something different about sapphire in 1974 and reported it in The Australian Gemmologist.
Coldham believed it was heat-treated sapphire a few years before gemmologists knew about these treatments; however, Tombs recognised the difference and understood its importance.
Tombs’ investigative work continued to guide jewellers and gemmologists. An example was in 1971, with ‘Fakes and Frauds – Caveat Emptor’, which meant let the buyer beware when soldering was completed on a jewellery piece containing yellow sapphires.
The sapphire changed colour and became ‘as near to a cape colour diamond as may be’. Another example was his 1991 paper ‘Some comparisons between Kenyan, Australian and Sri Lankan Sapphires’, where he strongly advised against heating a sapphire in a setting.
If the sapphire was from Kenya, it may turn green!
Tombs founded the Valuers Association of Australia and designed a jewellery valuation form for retailers with his colleague Kenneth Mansergh. The duo advised that the purpose of the valuation had to be stipulated, whether for insurance purposes, retail replacement, or other purposes.
These forms became standard practice in the industry and helped to reduce jewellery valuations being used as a marketing tool rather than the purpose for which they were intended.
Legacy
Tombs was always interested in encouraging people to study, furthering education, and conducting research in the field.
In his honour, the Geoffrey Tombs Research Fund was established in 2004 with an initial grant from the GAA Federal Council and continuing contributions from the GAA-endorsed Gem Studies Laboratory (GSL).
Australian GAA members with a GAA Diploma in Gemmology or equivalent can apply for assistance in gemmological research.
Geoff Tombs is rightly regarded as Australia's ‘father of modern gemmology’.
For his remarkable contributions to advancing the fields of gemmology and jewellery, Geoff was awarded the Member of the Order of Australia in the 1997 Australia Day Honours List.
This well-deserved award went to a generous, humble person whose achievements should inspire all of us to be proud of our field and to work hard to make our own contributions to continue his legacy.
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