Does an appraiser take the gemstones out of the piece of jewelry to determine their size and worth?

This question is often asked of appraisers.  Gemologists with decades of experience, as those at AIGR have, generally do not need to remove the gemstones to estimate their weight and quality in the mounting.  If a diamond appears to be one carat or larger and does not have a laboratory report, an experienced appraiser may recommend removing the diamond in order to provide a more detailed document.