Rubies

Ruby is the red gem variety of the mineral corundum. Varieties of corundum are called sapphires if they are blue and fancy sapphires if they are any color other than red or blue. Chemically, corundum is an aluminum oxide. Rubies get their red color from traces of chromium in the aluminum oxide. The red of most rubies has a brownish or yellowish tint. But the most highly valued rubies have a bluish tint called pigeon's blood red.

Rubies and sapphires are second only to diamonds in hardness, and fine-quality rubies are among the costliest of all gems. The finest rubies come from Burma. Today, commercially important deposits are mined in Thailand. India produces many rubies of lesser quality, but its star rubies are excellent. A star ruby appears to have a six-rayed star within it when seen in a bright light. Rubies from Sri Lanka are generally pale in color.

Millions of carats of inexpensive synthetic rubies are produced each year. However, a demand of real gems has allowed the natural stones to maintain their high value. It can be difficult to distinguish between natural and synthetic rubies, even for experts. Red garnets are sometimes substitutes for ruby, and they may appear under such misleading names as Arizona ruby or Cape ruby. The ruby is the birthstone for July.

Other Interesting Finds

TV stands furniture
AZ refi
tiffany lamps
air horn
Indianapolis Lawyers
baby girls clothes
paralegal work
fat loss diets
antivirus firewall software
Save Money on Groceries