10 exam-style questions with answers and explanations, straight from our 1,030-question bank. Tap an answer to check yourself. When you're ready, take the scored version in the free practice test.
These 10 free MGA questions are organized by exam domain, so you can see how each part of the Master Gemologist Appraiser blueprint is tested. Reveal the answer and explanation under each question.
Domain 1: GJ209 Connoisseurship Class & Alternate Credit in Lieu of GJ209
Question 1
Factory records matching a platinum ring's authenticated maker's mark and serial number document its manufacture in 1986. The records also establish that diamonds from a 1920s brooch were supplied for the new ring, whose geometric design follows Art Deco styling. The owner's proposed description is 'Art Deco ring, circa 1925.' Which revision properly separates the ring's date from the history of its components?
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Correct answer: D - Art Deco-style ring, made in 1986, incorporating diamonds from an earlier jewel.
Domain 2: GJ210 Gemology Practicum
Question 2
A loose colorless round brilliant gives a diamond response on a thermal-conductivity probe. Pavilion facet junctions appear doubled when viewed through several crown facets, although the doubling disappears in one viewing direction. Its measured specific gravity is 3.22. Which identification best reconciles these findings?
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Correct answer: C - Synthetic moissanite
Question 3
The protective viewing shield on a short-wave UV cabinet has broken and been removed. The 254 nm lamp still operates, but the laboratory has no alternative UV-rated viewing protection available. A staff member proposes completing the fluorescence examination through the open viewing port. Before that examination proceeds, the appraiser should:
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Correct answer: A - Keep the lamp off until a protective viewing arrangement is restored.
Domain 3: Appraisal Report Requirement
Question 4
During one tax year, an individual donates three similar pieces of jewelry to three different qualifying charities. The combined claimed deduction is $9,600, although no single piece exceeds $5,000. The jewelry is not inventory, and no exception to the general substantiation rules applies. Beyond the required donee acknowledgments, which documentation is generally required for the federal income-tax deduction?
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Correct answer: C - A qualified appraisal and a separate Form 8283, Section B, for each charity.
Domain 4: Summary of ASA-GJ Appraisal Report Requirements
Question 5
A signed brooch comparable sold at auction for an $8,000 hammer price, with a 25% buyer's premium payable in addition. The appraiser has established that buyer-inclusive, pretax prices are appropriate for this assignment. Matched sales show that the comparable's superior condition contributes $1,200 on that same price basis. No other adjustments are needed. What adjusted value indication does this sale provide for the subject brooch?
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Correct answer: A - $8,800
Domain 5: Descriptive Elements for Jewelry Mountings
Question 6
For a metal-content analysis, a ring's entire metal alloy has been verified as 750 fine. Its gross weight is 12.80 g, including gemstones with a documented combined weight of 3.00 ct. There are no other components. How much fine gold does the ring contain?
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Correct answer: A - 9.15 g
Domain 6: Descriptive Elements for Diamonds
Question 7
At 30× magnification, a grader locates one minute internal characteristic in a loose diamond. An experienced grader cannot resolve it with a 10× loupe, even after its location is known. A fine external scratch is visible at 10×, and a complete examination finds no other clarity characteristics. The GIA clarity grade supported by these observations is:
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Correct answer: D - Internally Flawless (IF)
Domain 10: Additional Descriptive Elements for Phenomenal Gemstones
Question 8
Two observations are recorded for a transparent gemstone. First, with the stone and viewing direction fixed, its bodycolor changes from green under daylight-equivalent illumination to purplish red under incandescent illumination. Second, a dichroscope reveals green and yellow-green vibration colors under one unchanged illuminant. How do the two observations differ?
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Correct answer: B - The first demonstrates color change; the second demonstrates pleochroism.
Domain 11: Descriptive Elements for Jade
Question 9
A translucent green bangle is identified as natural jadeite. The seller describes it as 'Type A, wax-finished only.' A qualified laboratory's FTIR analysis identifies polymer within the jadeite's intergranular structure, not merely a superficial wax finish; no dye is detected. How should the treatment be described?
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Correct answer: B - Polymer-impregnated natural jadeite; the Type A claim is unsupported.
Domain 12: Descriptive Elements for Pearls
Question 10
Radiographs of an estate necklace's nacreous pearls reveal no conventional bead nuclei. The laboratory has not yet determined whether the pearls are natural or cultured. The executor argues that the absence of beads is sufficient to select natural-pearl comparables. Which assessment of the executor's claim is correct?
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Correct answer: C - Non-bead-cultured formation remains possible; natural origin is not established.