For all you September babies out there, Sapphire is celebrated in your month, giving a beautiful blue aura synonymous with a bright spring day.
Depending on the minerals present in the gem, Sapphires come in every colour of the rainbow, from clear whites to deep blacks, & everything in between, (except red, that’s reserved for Ruby).
In general terms, hard gems on the Moh’s Scale are defined by their resistance when tested for scratch hardness, durability & stability; Sapphires are defined at 9 on the Moh’s scale, making them one of the few gemstones that can withstand being worn every day. Sapphires are just sumptuous in all forms of jewellery.
When the market for Sapphires expanded in 19th century Europe, to include gemstones that had been mined from the ancient Far East mines, Sapphires took on different names, some you may have heard of before:
"Gemstone name" | Gemmological name |
Blue Alexandrite | ​Colour change Sapphire |
​King’s Topaz | ​Yellow Sapphire |
​Oriental Amethyst | ​Violet Sapphire |
​Oriental Hyacinth | ​Pink Sapphire |
Oriental Topaz | ​Yellow Sapphire |
​Palmyra Topaz | ​Brown synthetic Sapphire |
These names where used based on market familiarity of other coloured gemstones known in Europe, as at that time buyers were not familiar with the range of colour that Sapphires could naturally occur in. Us modern folk know full well and love them all the more!
Sapphires are from the Corundum species & are usually faceted to suit the quality of the gem. Others are cabochon cut to accentuate fine rutile needles that create an asterism, more commonly known as a Star Sapphire. The most desirable Sapphires are cornflower blues & Padparadsha pinks are from Sri Lanka. Within NZ we are particularly used to seeing Aussie deep ink blues to beautiful Parti colours with Greens & yellows, but colour is key with the hue, tone & saturation being valued the most. Most Sapphires are treated in some manner before they are cut and has been a practice of the Sapphire trade for hundreds of years.
Taking care of your Sapphire:
With being worn everyday it will over time form a white lines or scuffmarks, on the top facets if they become abraded.
Keep Sapphire jewellery away from other gems, so they do not damage softer gemstones.
All professional jewellery cleaning techniques are acceptable for Sapphire jewellery.
If you clean your jewellery at home, see our blog, "What is the best homemade jewellery cleaner?" & follow the 5 easy steps to keep your jewellery clean at home.
