WHAT IS THE COLOR OF A RUBY?

Corundums with a color are called sapphire. Therefore, there are several colors of sapphire such as blue (generally the most known color), yellow, purple... All are named sapphire except for red, which is called ruby.

Its color comes from tiny traces of chromium that replace the aluminum in its structure. The chromium rate thus defines the intensity of the red. However, rubies with brown tones also have traces of iron.

Red comes in all shades. Rubies from the same deposit do not systematically present the same intensity and therefore do not determine the origin. Light rubies are less valued than red ones. In the past, the Burmese discarded pale or pink stones, as they did not find them "ripe" enough.

The most sought-after ruby has a strong, clear red, as well as a slight hint of blue to darken it. This perfect color is called "pigeon's blood". However, there are other red colors with the names cochineal red, ponceau red, gillyflower, incarnadine or vermilion...

The red color of the Ruby is due to chromium, unlike its cousin the Sapphire which owes its blue color to iron and titanium.

The most sought-after color for a Ruby is the 'pigeon's blood' color, which is also the rarest and was only found in the Mogok valley in Burma, which happens to be the historical valley of Rubies.

The second most sought-after color is Royal Red or 'rabbit's blood'. Rubies of this color come from Cambodia and Mozambique.

Beware of Mozambique rubies: It is important to be careful when buying a Ruby, as in recent years Mozambique has become the main ruby producing country and many stones are dark pink and many sellers try to pass them off as Rubies when they are actually dark pink sapphires.