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Blue Sapphire Gemstones and their Properties
From AfricaGems.com
Blue Sapphire is probably the best known and one of the most popular gemstones in todays gemstone world. Considering there are hundreds of varietys of gemstones available to people today the blue sapphire stands out as the great gemstone, the king.
The blue sapphire also stands out as being one of the most hardiest of stones, coming in at 9 on the Mohs scale of hardness, 10 being the hardest, which makes this a very wearable, durable treasure.
In simple terms sapphires are nothing more than the mineral corundum that appears white or transparent. Elements such as iron, titanium and chromium give corundum its differing hues. This is why you'll find yellow, pink, green, orange, red other wise known as a ruby and the ever-popular blue sapphire.
Sapphire loose gemstones, the birthstone for September come in a wonderful array of colors. Colors other than blue, like pink, purple, yellow golden, orange, padparadscha among others are considered "fancy" colored sapphires. Because sapphire gemstones come in so many colors and are durable, they are the gemstone of choice for gemstone ring designers and jewelry makers. Sapphire gemstones are one of the "big three" of the precious gemstone family along with emerald and ruby. Like its corundum cousin ruby, sapphires also posess wonderful physical characteristics like durability, no cleavage and extreme hardness (9 on Mohs scale). This durability and hardness are one reason that it is the most popular choice after a diamond for an engagement ring. Pure corundum is white in color. Presence of very small traces of iron is responsible for the coloring of a sapphire. Some corundum's also have presence of chromium which is responsible for the red color of a ruby gemstone. Sapphires can also be blessed with the unique characteristic of asterism caused by the presence of minute quantities of rutile inclusions. These rutile inclusions reflect light back in the form of a six rayed star that glides across the surface of the gemstone.
Blue Sapphire is probably the best known and one of the most popular gemstones in todays gemstone world. Considering there are hundreds of varietys of gemstones available to people today the blue sapphire stands out as the great gemstone, the king.
The blue sapphire also stands out as being one of the most hardiest of stones, coming in at 9 on the Mohs scale of hardness, 10 being the hardest, which makes this a very wearable, durable treasure.
In simple terms sapphires are nothing more than the mineral corundum that appears white or transparent. Elements such as iron, titanium and chromium give corundum its differing hues. This is why you'll find yellow, pink, green, orange, red other wise known as a ruby and the ever-popular blue sapphire.
Sapphire loose gemstones, the birthstone for September come in a wonderful array of colors. Colors other than blue, like pink, purple, yellow golden, orange, padparadscha among others are considered "fancy" colored sapphires. Because sapphire gemstones come in so many colors and are durable, they are the gemstone of choice for gemstone ring designers and jewelry makers. Sapphire gemstones are one of the "big three" of the precious gemstone family along with emerald and ruby. Like its corundum cousin ruby, sapphires also posess wonderful physical characteristics like durability, no cleavage and extreme hardness (9 on Mohs scale). This durability and hardness are one reason that it is the most popular choice after a diamond for an engagement ring. Pure corundum is white in color. Presence of very small traces of iron is responsible for the coloring of a sapphire. Some corundum's also have presence of chromium which is responsible for the red color of a ruby gemstone. Sapphires can also be blessed with the unique characteristic of asterism caused by the presence of minute quantities of rutile inclusions. These rutile inclusions reflect light back in the form of a six rayed star that glides across the surface of the gemstone.
Blue Sapphire and History
The blue sapphire, for thousands of years has been mesmerizing people, entrancing people. Be it a smaller stone under 1 to 2 carats or the larger blue sapphires these great stones have made the human soul dance. Maybe its's the deep rich blue sapphire color or the sparkle, the brilliance the fire, that jumps out at you and pulls you in, these stones have earned their place in history. You'll discover though that the history of the blue sapphire is rather colorful in its own right. The word sapphire comes from the Latin word 'saphirus', which means 'blue'. When it comes to the history of the blue sapphire you'll discover that it's been praised by many civilizations as a special gemstone over the millenniums. History of the Blue Sapphire - Before and After Christ The history of the blue sapphire goes as far back as 800 B.C. and the rulers of Persia in the Middle East. They believed the Earth itself was imbedded into a gigantic blue sapphire and that the color of the sky was a result of blue sapphires being reflected upward. The early Catholic Church also held the 'sky theory' and felt that blue sapphires were holy stones. Over time many other religions revered these blue sapphire gemstones because they represent the heavens. During Medieval times royalty often wore them as a means of protection from their foes or to keep them out of harms way. History of the Blue Sapphire - A Cultural Connection The history of the blue sapphire continued over the centuries. What's rather interesting is that even though many different cultures with belief systems that varied greatly felt blue sapphire gemstones had similar meanings. For example, Buddhists felt that blue sapphires represent loyalty while 18th century European cultures used the gemstones to test female loyalty. If a woman was unfaithful it was said the color of the stone would change, making the sapphire one of the first 'mood rings' in history. But the history of the blue sapphire doesn't end centuries ago. When Prince Charles proposed to Lady Diana he did it with a sapphire engagement ring. What few people realize is that it was also a sapphire engagement ring that his father, Prince Phillip, gave to his mother, Queen Elizabeth. So as you can see the history of the blue sapphire, and sapphires in general, is a rather colorful one, not to mention one that continues in modern times. Sapphire Gemstone Sources and Occurrences
The largest sapphire source in the world is Australia. In 1987 about 75% of the world's supply came from there. Thailand is the next largest producer of gem quality sapphires. In the 1990's a huge deposit of fine quality blue sapphire and fancy sapphires was discovered on the island nation of Madagascar. This deposit is still being mined and numerous other deposits have been discovered all over the island. The most valuable gems come from Sri Lanka, Burma and Kashmir, although the Kashmir production is almost non existent. Sri Lanka has been mining for sapphires since before the time of Buddha. Another major source of sapphires is the Yogo Gulch deposit in Montana. Other important high quality sources recently discovered are Burma and Tanzania. Sapphire Gemstone Evaluation and Valuation
Sapphire Gemstone Evaluation and ValuationThe most important considerations for the evaluation and valuation of a sapphire, both blue and fancy color is color, size and clarity. Sapphire gemstones also are evaluated by the source of origin. A Burma or Kashmir sapphire gemstone will have a higher value than a Sri Lankan sapphire of equal quality. Source can be determined by gemological tests so this has become an important criterion in valuation of very fine, larger gem sapphires. The treatment of sapphires also plays an important factor. Natural, untreated sapphire gemstones will have a higher valuation than a similar quality heat treated sapphire as they are much rarer.
One of a kind, stunning Blue Sapphire and Diamond Rings
Blue Sapphire Rings
Like our loose sapphire gemstones collection, our selection of Sapphire rings is both vast and unique. Our selection of Sapphire gemstone rings are extremely popular due to their beauty, durability, quality, and wide selection of sapphire colors and sizes. The extraordinary quality of our sapphire gemstones, diamond accents and workmanship all combined to create truly fabulous sapphire ring masterpieces. We offer handmade, custom designed sapphire rings featuring the very highest standards of jewelry workmanship and materials. We also have a wonderful selection of unique diamond mountings made up in 18 karat gold (white, yellow and rose) with unique colored gemstones and various types of intricate metal finishing. Many of these ring mountings feature beautiful micro pave diamond setting. This unique line has complimentary pendants, earrings and bracelets that are made in the same style. Our selection of sapphire rings include blue sapphire rings, pink sapphire rings, yellow sapphire rings, padparadscha rings, purple sapphire rings and multi colored sapphire rings.We can also custom design a ring for you using one of our loose sapphire gemstones. Just send us your picture or sketch and a few details we'll give you a quote. Just send us your picture or sketch and we'll give you a quote.
Blue Sapphire Gems by AfricaGems.com-Home page
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AfricaGems has over 24 years of professional gemstone, diamond and jewelry industry experience. Trust our experience, from the mining of gemstones to processing of raw gems into faceted gems and loose diamonds. AfricaGems.com also manufactures fine gemstone rings and fine custom gemstone pendants. Be assured that you are in the best hands when you buy your loose gems, loose diamonds or custom gemstone pendant from AfricaGems.com. All backed by the gemstone industrys best guarantee policy. 100% Guaranteed! - Large selection of Multi-colored Sapphires
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- Blue Sapphires at AfricaGems.com
- Blue Sapphire gemstones, one of the most treasured and timeless of all gemstones, encompass a wide variety of color tones and shades. Fine quality blue sapphire gemstones must have a vivid, intense blue color, sometimes called a "cornflower blue sapphire".
- Blue Sapphires 2 - 3 carat sizes
- For fine quality natural faceted blue sapphire gemstones, AfricaGems.com has the best selection of high quality gems & lowest prices-All backed by the industries best guarantee! We have over 40 individual blue sapphire gemstones in the very popular ring size of 2 to 3 carats.
- Blue Sapphires 3 - 5 carat sizes
- The best selection of loose blue sapphire gemstones is at AfricaGems.com. We have over 70 high quality blue sapphire gems available in the popular size range of 3 to 5 carats. These sapphires are ready to ship to you FREE by FedEx.
- Blue Sapphires 5 ++ carat sizes
- AfricaGems.com has a impressive collection of larger, 5 carat sizes plus of loose blue sapphire gemstones. Our collection includes natural unheated blue sapphires as well as heated blue sapphire gems. These beautiful loose sapphires have origins from Sri Lanka, Madagascar and Thailand.
- Exquisite colored Gemstone Rings by AfricaGems.com
- Like our loose gemstone collection , our collection of fine colored gemstone rings and diamond ring jewelry is truly unique.
- Blue Sapphire Rings
- Like our loose sapphire gemstones collection, our selection of Sapphire rings is both vast and unique. Our selection of Sapphire gemstone rings are extremely popular due to their beauty, durability, quality, and wide selection of sapphire colors and sizes.
- Specials at AfricaGems.com
- Top quality loose colored gemstones at heavily discounted prices are possible. Once a month AfricaGems.com updates this section with really terrific gemstone buys. For the savy buyer these gems are something to take a close look at.
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- flowski flowski Feb 27, 2008 @ 8:54 pm
- I learned a lot about blue sapphires, thanks!
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- LeslieBrenner LeslieBrenner Feb 9, 2008 @ 6:45 pm
- Well done lens.
by AfricaGems.com
Marc Sarosi created AfricaGems.com in 1997. Marc is a recognized professional in the colored gemstone field since 1984, specializing in fine qua...
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