I have always loved sapphires more than other precious gems because it is the most fancy stone in the family of precious gems! This stone comes in different blues (cornflower blue, kashmir blue, midnight blue, royal blue and the list goes one) yellow, pink, orange, green, lavender, lilac, white and a whole spectrum of off-whites on top of colour-change sapphires. Now, how fancy is that?!
This one in the photograph is a 6 stone pink sapphire ring set in white gold, shaped in a laurel. Pink Sapphires come a host of different shades of pink. From light, off white-pink to deep reddish pinks... I have even seen some that are peach in colour.
Treatment of Sapphires:
You have to know that almost 95% of Sapphires that you now see are heated and this form of treatment is internationally accepted. Of course if you have a certified natural, untreated sapphire, it only means that the value if much greater because of its rarity. But having said that, even reputable labs have made mistakes during identification. Horrors of Horror!
Technically, Sapphires are Aluminium Oxide, though I personally prefer the former name. It is a rather tough stone (9 on the moh scale) but please do not try knocking on glass table tops and on stone walls with a sapphire ring on. Not even with Diamonds!
Diffusion: Cosmetic Surgery of Gems!
Diffusion of sapphires is a treatment that is rather common. In fact, the technique was patented in the mid 1970s. Diffusion is a treatment during which a colour causing chemical is used to coat a colourless or a light blue sapphire to give it great colour. Much like a coat of permanent concealer or painting blue on a white or light blue wall.
One can, and should only find out if diffusion has been done on a sapphire through tests at a reputable lab. You can always re-cut a sapphire and if it has been diffused, the inside will be a different colour. But who in the right mind will re-cut a sapphire just to find out if it has been diffused?
Now there are also techniques known as deep surface diffusion techniques and super deep surface diffusion techniques which only means that you have to dig deeper for the truth! Literally!
Back to Pink Sapphires:
In the many hues of Pink Sapphires, I personally feel that fuscia pink sapphires should be the colour that one goes for, though some out there tend to go for the deeper pinks close to red.
My rationale is, if you want such a deep pink Sapphire then one should go for a Ruby. Technically Rubies and Sapphires are both Corundum. At the end of the day, I think what is most important is how the stone makes you feel. If it is a light pink that turns you on, then who is to say that it is less precious or valuable? This ring just makes my heart glow with a smile when I wear it.
Color:
Colour in Gems are brokendown to hue, saturation and tone. Hue is most commonly understood as the colour of the gem while Saturation refers to the brightness or how vivid the stone is. Hue indicates the lightness to darkness of the stone and it is not uncommon for one stone to have a mixture of colours, the primary colour, the secondary colours, various tones, shades and different levels of saturation.
For different colours of Sapphires, different colours are coveted and conisdered premium. That I will leave to a later post.
(Credits: Info: http://www.ruby-sapphire.com/)
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