Device for qualifying gemstones by discerning gemstones from one another on the basis of their electrical conductivity, said device comprising:
- a capacitor producing an electrical stray field and in which at least a part of a gemstone (15,16,17) to be qualified can be placed;
- a measurement converter (9) for generating a signal as a function of the capacitance of said capacitor when at least the part of the gemstone to be qualified is placed in the electrical stray field of the capacitor;
- a read-out unit (10) for displaying said signal;
- and
- means for generating a signal when the measured capacitance for the gemstone (15,16,17) to be qualified, placed in said electrical stray field, is larger than a reference capacitance value in relation to which this device is calibrated and which is at least equal to the capacitance value of said capacitor when a reference material (12) is placed in said electrical stray field, said reference material (12) having a dielectric constant which is smaller than 15 and larger than that of the gemstone (15,16,17) to be qualified.