Shelby, Michigan -
Shelby Gem Stone Factory - Synthetic Gem Show
Reveals the sparkly secrets of artificial gem manufacturing that have made it possible for all of us to own a gem-encrusted scepter. Try your hand at faceting a stone.
- Address:
- 1330 Industrial Park Drive, Shelby, MI
- Directions:
- Exit US Hwy 31 at Shelby. Several large signs direct you to turn north to the industrial park. The museum is about five minutes from the exit.
- Admission:
- free
- Hours:
- M-F 9 am - 5:30 pm, Sa noon - 4 pm. (Call to verify)
- Phone:
- 231-861-2165
Visitor Tips and News About Shelby Gem Stone Factory - Synthetic Gem Show
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Shelby Gem Stone Factory - Synthetic Gem Show A visit to the Shelby Gem Stone Factory is an amazing step back in time to the nineteen seventies, when a retro world of Important Scientists sought to serve America by creating glamorous, synthetic gemstones.
Upon walking into the showroom, I was warmly invited into a very nice 60-seat theater, where a twelve minute narrated slide show detailed the Art and Science needed to create synthetic gemstones.
The museum houses unique and very sparkly displays of lab-created stones, the equipment needed to produce the stones, etc. There is also a machine to let you try your hand at faceting stone. The museum is apparently a popular field trip destination, and the kids in the museum during my visited seemed genuinely awed. The factory also, of course, sells its gems. [Holly Helterhoff, 08/01/2007]
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