September Gemstone: Sapphire
September Birthstone Color: Deep Blue 
The striking deep blue of a quality sapphire is reminiscent of a cloudless night sky.  Ancient civilizations believed that the world was set upon an enormous sapphire, which painted the sky blue with its reflection.  This legend, as well as the belief that the ten commandments were inscribed upon tablets made of sapphire, gives September’s birthstone a royal place among gemstones.  

Sapphires come from Sri Lanka, Thailand, Australia, and Cambodia. Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania, China, Vietnam, Madagascar.

The most famous sources for sapphire are Cashmere and Burma, now known as Myanmar.
Cashmere sapphire has a rich velvety color prized by connoisseurs.
Burma sapphires, from the same region that produces fabulous rubies, are also very fine.

Most fine sapphire on the market today come from Sri Lanka and Madagascar, which produce a wide range of beautiful blues, from delicate sky blue colors to rich saturated hues.

Sri Lanka and Tanzania are also a major supplier of fancy colored sapphires, such as the famous padparadshah (orange-pink color).
Science of sapphire
Sapphire is a form of the mineral corundum, and it exists in a range of colors from light to dark blue. Corundum is the second-hardest mineral after diamond and occurs in a wide variety of colors. Sapphire is any form of corundum that is not red, as red varieties are called rubies. Sapphires can be formed in crystalline limestone, gneiss, schist, and other crystalline rocks. Gem varieties occur chiefly in placer (river gravel) deposits.

0 comments:

Post a Comment

Powered by Blogger.

Popular Posts

Blog Archive