Diamond & Jewelry News, Advice and Prices for Consumers
Diamond & Jewelry News, Advice and Prices for Consumers
September 8, 2010
My boyfriend bought me earrings with a pink gemstone in them, and he says the sales lade told him that they were sapphire. But I thought sapphire was blue. I'm confused. Did my boyfriend misunderstand? Did the sales lady try to pull a fast one on him?
May 2, 2011
Yes, they are both right and the colors don’t stop there! There are many different colors of sapphire, the color is dependent on the mineral s in the earth where the gem was formed. The possible colors vary from blue, green, yellow, pink, red, and orange each found in a different area of the world ( many of which are in Asia or Africa). As well, there is a very rare sapphire that changes color depending on the lighting in which it is viewed. The range of color for this sapphire differs from gem to gem, some changing to most colors of the rainbow, and others from a simple green to blue. The majority of these color changers are found in Tanzania. Another lovely sapphire is known as the star sapphire in which there is a white, needle like star design on the sapphire when viewed over a single light. Two of the most famous star sapphires are the Star of Bombay and the Star of India, both on display in museums.
September 16, 2010
The sales lady and your boyfriend got it right. Sapphire can come in myriad colors. The most common are blue, of course, but yellow and green sapphires are not rare and sapphires can also come in yellow, brown and colorless (used as diamond substitutes sometimes) and also in salmon color and different shades of pink. Actually, these pink shaded sapphires are the more expensive ones. The deeper the shade of pink (i.e. the closer its shade is to the red of rubies,) the more the jewel will cost.
September 14, 2010
Absolutely. Sapphires are a variety of what is called a corundum. These come in many different colors. Blue is the most popular, and thus when people talk about sapphire without mentioning their color specifically, they are usually talking about a blue sapphire. But corundums come in many colors, and actually rubies are corundums as well. Red corundums. Corundrums are referred to as sapphires unless they are red and then they're called rubies.
September 11, 2010
It's definitely a sapphire. The sales person was probably trying to sell you her most expensive piece of jewelry. If its shade is orange-pink, it's called a padparadscha sapphire, and its recently appeared in the market. It's mined in Sri Lanka, Africa, and Vietnam. It's extremely rare so its a very expensive gemstone.It's the only corundum other than the ruby that actually has a separate name, and is not just referred to as a certain color of sapphire.
