Blue Sapphire - The Classic Precious Stone

Blue Sapphire - The Classic Precious Stone
By Ron Nash.

Blue sapphire is a gemstone that has never lost its timeless appeal. Combining excellent hardness and wear-ability with outstanding brilliance and luster, blue is the classic sapphire color. Though sapphire is available in many lovely hues, including yellow, green, pink and orange, it is the blue which remains the most popular.

Blue sapphire itself occurs in a wide range of blue tones. These range from a delicate pale blue to an inky dark blue that appears nearly black under some lighting. The important thing in sapphire is the intensity or color saturation level, regardless of the shade of blue.

Some people prefer the lighter blues, because they always appear blue, even under indoor lighting or in the evening. The color called cornflower blue, reminiscent of the flower, is particularly popular. The deep velvety blue is the most famous sapphire blue.

You will find a variety of shapes and cuts available, including cushions, ovals, pears and rounds. Round stones will often be slightly more expensive because more material is required to cut a round stone. However, round stones are very easy to adapt to standard settings. Most sapphire are faceted, but you will see some very fine sapphire cabochons as well.

Sapphires tend to have better clarity than rubies. You should look for gems that are graded VS (eye-clean) or better. This means no inclusions or defects are visible to the naked eye. You should also look for a consistent color throughout the gemstone. Too much color zoning will detract from the gem's value. Look at some expert sapphire information before you go to look at gems.

Sapphires that have not been treated in any way are especially valuable. But you will find very few untreated sapphires in the market these days -- most sapphires have been heat treated to improve the clarity and color. Compare a number of sapphires before you make your choice so you will have a better idea of how different grades are priced. In general it is better to buy a fine smaller stone than a larger gem of poor color or clarity.

The most famous blue sapphire come from Kashmir, but they are very rarely seen in the market these days. Burmese sapphire is also famous, but Burmese sapphire has become nearly as rare as the Kashmiri stones. The vast majority of fine sapphire found these days comes from Sri Lanka (Ceylon sapphire) and Madagascar, with smaller amounts of material coming from Thailand, Australia, Nigeria and Tanzania.

GemSelect is a leading online dealer in tourmaline, sapphire, ruby, spinel and zircon.

Fine Blue Sapphire

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The Sapphire - Origins, Properties and Uses

The Sapphire - Origins, Properties and Uses
By Stephen Richardson

Sapphire is the gemstone form of a mineral known as corundum, with one important caveat: A sapphire is only a sapphire unless it is red, when it is known instead as a ruby. In fact there is one more stipulation to the rule, in the case of a pinkish-orange variety of corundum called padparadscha (derived from the Sinhalese word for lotus blossom).

Colours of Sapphire

Sapphires come in all manners of colours determined by the quantity of impurities present. Elements such as chromium, iron and titanium all contribute towards shifting the hue of the otherwise transparent mineral to a vast spectrum of colours such as yellow, pink, green, orange and the well known blue variety. Sapphires can also be found in tones of grey and black.

Properties of Sapphire

Sapphire is a very strong and hardy mineral, it not only has a melting point greater than 2000 degrees C but it is also infusible and insoluble. It is also an extremely hard mineral, at five times the strength of glass it is very resilient to scratching and as such has many practical applications other than for use in sapphire jewellery such as sapphire rings.

Practical Applications of Sapphire

Whilst sapphire is a highly sought after gemstone in the jewellery industry (having been used in items such as sapphire rings, bracelets, pendants etc.), uses have also been found for it in fields such as electronics and construction. The first laser ever made was with a rod of synthetic ruby - the red cousin of sapphire.

Sources of Sapphire

Sapphire comes in two varieties; natural and synthetic. Natural sapphire must be mined... naturally, and synthetic sapphire is grown through a procedure first developed by the French chemist Auguste Verneuil in 1902, later dubbed the Verneuil process.

Advancements in the production of synthesizing sapphire mean that today sapphire can be cheaply manufactured on a very large scale, making it all the more valuable for both industrial use and also in the jewellery trade.

The most significant source of natural sapphire is from Australia and Madagascar, although different varieties can be found in deposits all over the world.

Star Sapphires

A star sapphire is so named due to the appearance of a star-shaped pattern which presents itself when the sapphire is lit by a single top-down light source. This pattern is the result of a phenomenon known as an asterism. An asterism can be found in several types of gem, in star sapphires they are due to intersecting needle-like impurities.

Star sapphire jewellery valuation is dependent on the colour and intensity of the asterism present.

Sapphire Jewellery

Natural sapphire jewellery is generally more expensive than synthetic sapphire jewellery as natural sapphires are obviously rarer, the problem however being that it can be extremely difficult to distinguish between natural and synthetic sapphires without help from an expert. The cost of the sapphire gems used in jewellery depends on several factors including colour, clarity, size, cut and quality.

As mentioned above, sapphire jewellery exists in a wide range of forms as with any precious gemstone. Highly popular are sapphire rings such as eternity rings and engagement rings.

The blue variety is perhaps the most valued form of sapphire on the market, and so often finding the highest price. Sapphires in the shade cornflower blue are the most prized and valuable, known as the 'Kashmir Sapphire' or 'Cornflower Blue Sapphire'. The pinkish-orange corundum padparadscha however can fetch higher prices than even the finest blue sapphires.

For a wide selection of Fine Jewellery including sapphire rings visit John Hollins Fine Jewellery.

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