Sapphire- The Chaste Gemstone

With its deep midnight blue, Sapphire is called the celestial gemstone. Ancient Persians believed that earth was embedded in an enormous solitaire Sapphire.

Sapphires are available in a wide range of colors including white, pink, yellow, peach, orange, brown, violet, purple, green etc. Sapphires belong to the corundum family and the red crystals of the corundum mineral family are called ruby. The most valued color of sapphire is vivid dark blue.

The word "sapphire" has been derived from the Latin word "sapphirus" (meaning "blue"). Since ancient times sapphires have been believed to possess talismanic powers - kings and royals of the ancient times wore sapphire to protect them from wicked thoughts and charm divine favor, priests in ancient times used these gems to help them decipher Oracles, the Greeks sanctified sapphire and associated it to their Sky God – Zeus. Sapphire was regarded as a symbol of truth, chasteness and endurance. Traditionally Sapphire was regarded as a gemstone that symbolized purity; it was believed that if a disloyal lover or spouse wore a sapphire ring, the brilliance of the gem would dim.

Sapphire is the birthstone for the month of September and astrological stone for Libra zodiac sign. Sapphire is anniversary gift for the 5th and the 45th wedding anniversary.

Where are sapphires found?

One of the major sources of sapphire since ancient times is Sri Lanka. The orangish pink sapphire called padparadscha is one of the most celebrated verities of sapphire.

Another major source of fine sapphires is Australia. The Australian gemstones are dark inky blue in appearance.

In the 19th century, the most precious and the most beautiful blue sapphires were found in Kashmir in India. The Kashmir sapphire has a pure, intense blue color with a very subtle violet undertone, refined by a fine, velvety shine. Now this source is not being mined any more but Kashmir sapphires still remain to be the most valuable sapphires across the world.

Burma has recently emerged as a major source of vivid blue sapphires. The Burmese sapphire is considered the closest to Kashmir sapphire. Other sources of sapphire include countries like Madagascar, America, Thailand and Cambodia.

Know your sapphire

Sapphires (AL2 O3) are the non red variety of the mineral corundum. These gemstones have a hardness level of 9 on Mohs scale. The hardness of this gemstone combined with the toughness makes sapphire perfect for daily wear.

Sapphire includes all gemstones of the corundum mineral family except the fully saturated red variety, which is instead known as ruby, and the pinkish-orange variety known as padparadscha (Sinhalese word for lotus blossom) exclusive to Sri Lanka.
Sapphires naturally occur with inclusions. But as compared to emerald and ruby, sapphires possesses higher clarity values. Flawless sapphires are found rarely and are very valuable.

Treatment

Almost all the sapphires are heat treated to improve the appeal of the gemstone. The heat treatment is an accepted routine in the jewelry industry. Treated gemstones do not require any special care and neither does the treatment make any difference in the price of the gem.

Nidhi Nangia is a writer for gemstones and jewelry working with www.angara.com, an on-line jewelry firm that has a fine collection of diamond and gemstone jewelry.
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