From the age of seven Sarah has been addicted to Whitby Jet. Like most addicts, it consumes most of her waking day. By the age of eleven she was working jet for pleasure and profit, selling items to friends. By fourteen with the help of her mum Isobel Caldwell, The Ebor Jetworks was established.
However, Sarah was determined to learn more about Whitby Jet scientifically and graduated from University College, Durham with a Degree in Geology in 1992. She has since qualified as a professional gemmologist and was awarded Fellowship of the Gemmological Association of Great Britain (FGA) in 2013, and subsequently Diamond Fellowship (DGA) in 2015. Sarah is also a member of the Canadian Gemmological Association, The Scottish Gemmological Association and is a Senior Accredited Gemmologist of The International Accredited Gemologists Association. Sarah is now considered the world’s leading authority on the Jet Group of gemstones and has recently launched a new branch of gemmology – ‘Hyrdocarbon gemmology’ in order to aid with the understanding of high carbon content gem materials
In 2017 Sarah was appointed Consultant Gemmologist at Whitby Museum, which is home to the most important collection of Victorian Whitby Jet in the world.
Sarah is regularly asked to speak and deliver workshops at conferences around the world. She is also a freelance writer and has had articles published in Gems and Jewellery Magazine and Gemmology Today amongst others.
Her recent research collaborations with the University of Yale are challenging our previous perceptions of Jet.
Sarah has recently accepted an offer from Durham University to continue her postgraduate research on jet which aims to categorise Whitby Jet scientifically.