Gem Library

BUYER’S OVERVIEW:
Sapphire is classified as one of the traditional four precious stones along with emerald, ruby and diamond. High quality stones are limited in nature but gems of good color and size are available (for a price).

Sapphire comes in a wide range of colors including; yellow, green, violet, purple, blue, pink, orange, black, brown and colorless with blue being the most popular but Padparadscha (a peachy-pink) being the rarest and most valuable. When buying Sapphires you must look at the intensity of their color for this factor often outweighs the size and the clarity of the stone, however, be careful not to get a stone that is too dark or inky. Silky inclusions can often give a Sapphire a velvety look, so watch out for this highly desirable trait. Finally, beware of beautiful sapphires with very low prices, their beauty may be only surface deep (see enhancements & treatments).

COLOR:
Sapphire (bested only by Tourmaline) comes in a wide range of colors including; yellow, green, violet, purple, blue, pink, orange, black, brown and colorless.

APPEARANCE:
Transparent to opaque, Sapphire is a Type II gemstone and is usually included (though usually cleaner than ruby). Top gems should be eye-clean with no inclusions visible to the unaided eye. Extremely fine silk inclusions throughout the stone can enhance the value of some Sapphires like the Kashmir.

Phenomena: Sapphire often exhibits the phenomena of color change as well as Asterism, a pattern of reflected light that forms star patterns (usually 6-rayed), typically seen in star rubies and star sapphires.

SIZE RANGE:
Melee (0.01 carat) sizes to 5 carats; high quality stones over 1 carat are rare, however faceted stones over 100 carats are known.

TYPICAL CUTTING STYLES:
Transparent: most cutting styles are available.
Translucent to opaque: cabochons, beads and carvings

POSSIBLE ENHANCEMENTS & TREATMENTS:
Heat treating is a method commonly used to improve clarity and color, this is a stable treatment. Sapphires can also be treated by diffusion coating or irradiation, these treatments are not stable and only change a thin layer on the surface of the gemstone. Rough treatment, cleaning or polishing can remove the treatment.

HARDNESS:
9 on the Mohs scale.

BEST USE OF THE GEMSTONE:
Sapphire is a strong gemstone and as such can be used in any type of jewelry, however, reasonable care should be taken with all gems.

CARE & CLEANING:
It is best to never expose colored gemstones to cleaning solvents or chemicals of any kind.
Common cleaning methods include:
Ultrasonic: usually safe (depending on enhancements)
Steamer: usually safe (depending on enhancements)
Warm soapy water: safe
Reaction to Chemicals: can be damaged by acids.
Reaction to Heat: heat sensitive, at high temperatures stone will lose or change color.
Stability to Light: stable, except for irradiated yellow and orange sapphires.

INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT THIS GEMSTONE:
Sapphire is a member of the corundum (ko-RUN-dum) family and is the second hardest gemstone after diamond. It is the sister stone of ruby which is also a corundum. Sapphire is actually broken into two groups, one referred to simply as Sapphire, which is made up of the blue stones, and Fancy Sapphire which is any sapphire not blue or red (ruby). The finest quality blue Sapphires come from Kashmir and Mogok, Burma with a color that is deep, intense and velvety. These Sapphires are rarely seen in the market and when they are, they are very, very expensive. Today Sri Lankan Sapphires are the most common.

Purple Sapphire is rare, its color coming from iron and titanium impurities within the stone. Yellow sapphire is on the lighter side and heat can be used to produce more intense yellowish-brown stones while beryllium-treated stones may be a brilliant yellow. Until the end of the 19^th century, yellow sapphire was called oriental topaz.

Padparadscha is the Sinhalese word meaning “lotus flower” and this very rare Sapphire color exhibits both a pink and orange color simultaneously, often times being called peachy-pink. Color, brilliance, size and clarity will determine the value of these rare stones. A true Padparadscha will always have a hint of pink. Natural unheated Padparadscha Sapphires are so rare that they sell for $5,000 a carat or more. These stones are rarely seen, more common are pink or orange sapphires that have been treated with beryllium to look something like the Padparadscha color. Usually the color is too saturated or the tone too dark to look like a genuine Padparadscha. If you love the color Padparadscha color, you may wish to consider tourmaline. Many pink tourmalines have a delicate touch of orange or yellow.

Large sapphires are rare and attract fame. The largest star sapphire is the Star of India weighing in at 536 carats. Discovered about three hundred years ago in Sri Lanka, the gem was donated to the American Museum of Natural History by J.P. Morgan. The 423 carat Logan Sapphire is displayed in the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History and is the largest faceted sapphire on public display. It is an egg-sized, cushion cut stone from Sri Lanka set in a brooch surrounded by 16 carats of diamonds and was donated by Mrs. John A. Logan to the Smithsonian Institute in 1960. The British Crown Jewels contain two famous Sapphires; the St Edward’s and the Stuart Sapphire (104 carats).

DESIGNATION:
Birthstone of September, 5^th and 45^th wedding anniversary

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