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In mineralogical terms, ruby is a variety of corundum, an aluminum oxide, to which a small amount of chromium is added to give it its coveted and ever-popular ruby red color. However, it is not only chromium that makes the actually colorless corundum colored and therefore expensive; other coloring elements, such as iron, titanium and others, are also incorporated into the corundum. This is known as sapphire, which includes all other colors except red.
Due to its appealing color, the ruby is one of the most sought-after, rarest and most expensive top gemstones alongside the diamond, the blue sapphire, the emerald and the color-changing alexandrite. The name ruby is derived from the latin. rubeus = red and appears in Middle High German around 1200 as rubîn. In the centuries before, ruby, but also other red stones – especially the red garnet – were called carbuncle. It was also supposed to glow and sparkle in the dark night, but this was (rightly) doubted by the humanists at the end of the Middle Ages and so the “carbunculus” quickly lost its importance in science.
Around 1800, the French crystallographer Hauy recognized the relationship between ruby and sapphire and chemists then showed that both are crystallized alumina, i.e. aluminium oxide. The Arabic language, rich in imagery, has the most beautiful description for the name ruby: a drop of blood from the heart of nature. There is no question that beautiful rubies deserve this poetry.
For centuries, pigeon’s blood has been the most sought-after and popular color for rubies. It is understood to be a red with a bluish tinge; in painting, this corresponds to magenta, the red as the basic color in the color wheel par excellence. The Mogok Valley in Burma is famous for its pigeon blood-colored rubies. In neighboring Thailand, on the other hand, rubies with a violet or brown tinge are typical; they often have a strong, dark red (still referred to in the trade today as Siamese rubies).
Another type to be mentioned is the Ceylon ruby. They are characterized by a light raspberry red due to their low chrome content. It must be emphasized that rubies of fine to finest quality over 2 ct. have always been among the rarest finds to this day and in this respect differ significantly from diamonds! However, this great rarity has always aroused people’s greed, which is why we strongly advise against buying rubies on the street from dubious sellers.
Particular caution should be exercised in Asia or Africa. Often it is imitations (e.g. ruby red glass) or cheap syntheses using the Verneuil or melting drop method that are offered to unsuspecting tourists. To protect yourself from damage, you should always bear in mind that beautiful and cheap are not mutually exclusive, because a truly beautiful gemstone was, is and will always be rare and therefore expensive; nobody in the whole world gives money away!
If you want to avoid hassle and losing money, buy from a dealer you trust. We guarantee authenticity, of course. Star rubies are a specialty. When the ruby was crystallized, tiny rutile needles (a titanium dioxide TiO2) were incorporated as inclusions according to the crystal system. With a muggle cut (smooth and domed), a six-rayed star can be seen under point illumination, which moves across the stone as it moves. This star formation is called asterism, a phenomenon that not only delights enthusiasts.
Chemical composition:
Al2O3 Aluminum oxide (alumina) with approx. 0.1-0.8 %
Cr2O3 (chromium oxide) as coloring substance plus low contents of Ti, Fe, Cu, Mg, Zn
- Crystal system: trimetric (trigonal); six-sided, compact crystals are typical
- Hardness: 9
- Specific. Weight: 3.99-4.05; typical value is 4.0
- Light refraction: 1.760-1.773
- Birefringence:0.008
- Cleavage: none; breaks small-muscled, uneven, splintery
- Color: light to dark red, often with a brownish or purplish tinge, the pigeon’s blood color (ruby red with a bluish tinge) is particularly popular
- Luster: beautiful, strong glass luster, often almost diamond luster
- Fluorescence: frequent, strong crimson red under short- and long-wave UV
- Pleochroism: clearly bicolored; pale yellowish red, deep carmine red perpendicular to it
- Where found: Mogok Valley in Burma (Myanmar), Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Ceylon (Sri Lanka), India, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Australia, USA, Madagascar, Umba Valley in Tanzania, Malawi, Rhodesia (Zimbabwe), insignificant occurrences in Greenland, Norway, Prilep in Macedonia, Brazil
Rubies look at least as good in artificial light (light bulbs or candles) as they do in daylight. The color distribution is often unevenly striped or blotchy due to the slow crystal growth over many thousands of years. Chromium is incorporated as a coloring foreign element, but its content in the solution fluctuates. The great rarity of rubies (beautiful rubies are much rarer than diamonds) is explained by the low chromium content of 0.011% in the earth’s crust. This makes it extremely unlikely that magma that breaks through the earth’s crust from far below will firstly form a gemstone deposit and secondly come into contact with a chrome ore deposit. This also applies to emeralds or the color-changing chrysoberyl, alexandrite. Many of these rubies come from newly discovered deposits in Madagascar. As these stones are often somewhat cracked, the cracks are filled with a highly refractive lead glass.
However, this treatment method does not detract from beauty, especially as this change is irreversible. At our prices, it is definitely worth considering a purchase of these attractive rubies.
Sensitivity and processing: Corundum, which includes ruby and sapphire, is one of the least sensitive stones because, in addition to its high hardness, it is almost impossible to split and heat does not affect it much either. Care must be taken when heating, especially with smaller stones if they contain liquid inclusions. In any case, they must be well brushed with borax. Ruby is insensitive to acids. The ruby is the month stone for July and the planet stone for Mars (the red planet). Its red stands for joie de vivre, happiness, energy, but also for power. It is the color of the feelings of the heart, of love, eroticism and passions. Ruby red means creativity, activity, dynamism, gives strength and strengthens creative thinking. Red used to be the color of the nobility, today it is a color that everyone wears.
