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Article Series: Jewelry
A Quick Education On Jewelry
The
Ruby Red Gemstone
The red color of the ruby is its most important
feature. Fire and blood are two magical elements that are associated
with the symbolism of the ruby’s red color. The elements of
the ruby imply warmth and life for mankind. Rubies
are red gemstones that can vary from a light pink color to
a blood
red. Rubies are the red variety of the mineral corundum, which
is one of the hardest minerals on Earth. Pure corundum is colorless,
but traces of elements such chrome, iron, titanium, and vanadium
give it its color. Chromium or aluminum-oxide and chrome causes
the red color of the ruby. Red corundum is called a ruby, and
all other colors of the mineral are classified as sapphires.
Experts only realized the close relationship of the ruby and
the sapphire in the beginning of the 19th century; before this,
red garnets were also thought to be rubies. The ruby is considered
one of the four precious gems with the sapphire, the emerald,
and the diamond.
It
is difficult to find rubies in world mines. The color element
of chrome is mostly responsible for the gemstone’s scarcity.
Chrome gives the ruby its color, but it is also responsible
for many fissures and cracks inside the crystals. Gem lovers
often pay top dollar for rubies with hardly any inclusions
good color, and large size, and these prices often surpass
those paid for diamonds in the same category. Color is the
ruby’s most important feature, and transparency is the second
most important feature of the gemstone. Inclusions do not impair
the quality of the ruby unless they decrease the transparency
of the ruby. Inclusions are also known as the ruby’s “fingerprint,”
and may be seen as a statement of the gem’s individuality,
and provide proof of its genuineness and natural origin.
The cut of the ruby is important to its value and appearance.
It is said that only the perfect cut underlines the beauty
of the ruby. However, it is rare to find a ruby that is cut
perfectly. There are some rubies that display a silky shine,
which is called the “silk” of the ruby. The fine needles of
the mineral rutile cause the shine. The mineral rutile is also
responsible for the phenomenon asterism that may also occur
in rubies. Forming a star-shaped deposit within the ruby, the
mineral causes a bright light effect that is known as asterism.
These are commonly known as “star rubies” and can be more valuable
than regular rubies because of their rarity.
However, their
value depends on the attractiveness of their color and
on their transparency. The finest star rubies will
display rays that are fully formed all the way to the horizontal
line that runs through the middle of the stone. Fine star rubies
also contain stars that are located in the center of the ruby
itself. Star rubies may also rarely show color change. When
the rubies are cut into cabochons, the result is a six-spoked
star that seems to glide across the surface of the stone when
it is moved.
Rubies are mined in many places, including Africa, Asia, Australia,
Greenland, Madagascar, and North Carolina. However, they are
most often found in Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Kenya, Madagascar,
North Carolina, and Cambodia. Some of the finest rubies were
found in the Mogok Valley in upper Myanmar, but recently there
haven’t been many ruby discoveries there. Myanmar rubies have
a unique color that is known as “pigeon’s blood.” These rubies
are known as “Mogok” rubies. The last ruby deposit to be found
in Myanmar, was found in Nam Ya, and in 2002 a ruby deposit
was found in the Waseges River area of Kenya. The findings
of ruby deposits have been a rare occasion in the past few
years, and sometimes garnets are found and mistakenly classified
as rubies.
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: 2008
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