Ruby & Sapphire
The ravenous red colour of Rubies and the bold blue colour of Sapphires have become icons in their own right in the jewellery world. Although strikingly different in appearance these wonderful stones have more in common than you might think...
Sapphires and Rubies belong to the same family, the Corundum family to be exact. This means that they are cut from the same cloth and have the exact same properties and characteristics to one another. One feature being hardness, now this refers to the Moh's scale which is based on every stone's durability when used or abraded against one another. The Corundum Moh's scale score on the hardness scale is 9; second only to diamond which is the hardest known stone to man. A diamond is in fact 4 times harder than corundum, but what does this mean to you?
Well, when purchasing a Sapphire or a Ruby, it essentially means you have the second hardest stone available; so it is therefore a very sensible and practical choice and to be taken into consideration of course.
Another fun fact for you, Sapphires and Rubies are used in watch parts due to their durability and longstanding quality. Watch glasses, moving parts and jewelled set mechanics show quality of the watch and of its movement when set with Sapphires and Rubies.
Rubies are red, Sapphires are blue...
The only distinct difference is the obvious one, their colour. The 'law of the land' in the UK and most parts of the world, when it comes to defining and categorising Rubies and Sapphires, is that a Ruby has to be distinctly and predominately red in its colour and for a blue Sapphire to distinctly and predominately blue. Now a Ruby can have pink and other hues of colour in its make up but it must be distinctly red. If the stone is predominately pink in its colour it should be classed as a pink sapphire. Some countries will however label these stones as pink rubies which is incorrect so be aware, it all depends on where you are at the time of buying these stones.
As you can see from above there is a vast array of colours available in the corundum family. Focusing on colour differences, prices comprise of rarity, availability and demand. All of these factors will affect price. The, most popular stones, highest in demand, are Rubies and blue Sapphires. Padparasha's are incredibly rare and thus are priced at a premium. All other colour varieties aren't as popular in comparison but some can still demand a high fee.
In summary, Sapphires and Rubies are truly wonderful stones and should be part of every woman's jewellery collection at some point in her life. Don't be shy when considering other colour sapphire options either, I guarantee you will be pleasantly surprised.
When purchasing any stone what it truly comes down to is preference, as everyone has a different taste and opinion; especially when it comes to jewellery as its so personable. Once you have decided on the quality, size, shape and its colour it should be, theoretically, easy sailing from there.
I hope this post has been helpful. Please feel free to share and leave feedback or any questions you may have.
