Besides blue sapphire and ruby, the corundum family also includes “fancy sapphires.” They come in violet, green, yellow, orange, pink, purple, and intermediate hues. Shown here is the rarest of all, the Padparadscha. Some stones exhibit the phenomenon known as color change, most often going from blue in daylight or fluorescent lighting to purple under incandescent light. Sapphires can even be gray, brown, black, or white.
These sparkly blue sapphires are Ceylon, displaying the true light cornflower blue color. Sapphires are mined in many locations, including Montana. Sapphires come in a wide range of colors, and each color has its own quality variations. The more intense the color and the fewer the distracting zones of unattractive color, the more valuable the stone.
This lovely teal-green color sapphire is a natural gemstone from Montana. Available for custom orders or collectors.
Sapphire is one of the two gem-varieties of corundum, the other being ruby. Although blue is the best-known sapphire color, they occur in many colors, including purple as shown here in these earrings. A pinkish orange variety of sapphire is called padparadscha. Sapphire, being 9 on the Moh’s hardness scale is a perfect gem for engagement rings and other wedding jewelry.
Sapphire is 9 on the Moh’s Hardness scale, making it a superior gem for jewelry. It is second only to diamond, which is a 10 – the hardest mineral on earth. It comes in all the colors of the rainbow, except for red (ruby) making it a great design inspiration. Shown here is a necklace of pink sapphire faceted rondelles.
Sapphire is the birthstone for the month of September and the traditional gift for a 45th wedding anniversary. It is a variety of the mineral corundum. It is typically blue, but natural fancy sapphires occur in yellow, purple, orange, and green. It is even found in brown, black, and white. The only color which sapphire cannot be is red – as red corundum is ruby.
Padparadscha Sapphire Ring with Diamonds, 18KY.
Sapphire is the perfect engagement ring stone because of it’s hardness. Our hand made jewelry is also made to last a life time.
Padparadscha is the rarest type of Sapphire. The word means “The color of the lotus”. Sapphire is a wonderful ring gemstone because it has a hardness of 9 on the Mohs scale making it less susceptible to damage than any other gem except diamond. And it comes in every color of the rainbow except red when it is considered ruby. We have a large collection of sapphire jewelry and loose sapphire gemstones available for purchase in our gallery or our online store.
Blue Sapphire, 2.96 carat.
If your birthday falls in September, you are one of the lucky ones who can claim Sapphire as their birthstone. It is also the gem of the 45th wedding anniversary.
Sapphire is typically blue in color, but natural “fancy” or “parti colored” sapphires occur in yellow, purple, orange, green, and brown, Sapphires may also be black, gray, and colorless. The pinkish orange variety of sapphire is called Padparadscha.The only color which sapphire cannot be is red, which would make it a ruby.
Sapphire is 9 on the Mohs hardness scale making it (corundum) the third hardest mineral, after diamond (10) and moissanite (9.5). Why does this hardness matter? Because your sapphire will not scratch as easily as other gemstones, it makes sapphires perfect for ring stones, especially engagement rings.
Sapphire is found in Eastern Australia, Thailand, Sri Lanka, China (Shandong), Madagascar, East Africa, and in a few locations in North America, mostly Montana. Sapphire and ruby are often found in the same geological setting. Our sapphires come from these locations.
Loose Colored Gemstones are Art.
This Green Sapphire is a Fantasy Cut Gem Carving by Cutting Edge Award winning gem cutter John Dyer. It would make a beautiful engagement ring flanked with two trillion cut diamonds!
The trend of innovative gem cutting began in both Europe and America, and many attribute it to a German cutter named Bernd Munsteiner (b. 1943). He began in Idar-Oberstein, a region of Germany that has been famous for over 500 years for its tradition of fine gem cutting. Munsteiner’s style was geometric, abstract and thoroughly modernist. He would leave parts of a gem raw and unpolished to produce a stark contrast with the cut and polished sections. Often he would cut and facet only the back of the gem, making the design appear to be embedded in the gemstone. Sometimes he would integrate inclusions into the design.
The gem cutting establishment in Idar-Oberstein rejected his work but international critics were enthusiastic and Munsteiner went on to receive many international awards. Following the introduction of “Fantasy Cut” gemstones by Munsteiner in the 70’s, many lapidary artists have begun producing this style of gem cutting art. Bernd’s son Tom continues this tradition along with many other lapidary artists, some of whom are represented in our gallery. Other Cutting Edge lapidaries in our gallery include Larry Winn, Steve Walters, Michael Dyber, and John Dyer.