Interesting Facts

Long associated with the island of Serendib (Sri Lanka or Ceylon), Sapphires are also found in quantity in Australia, Africa, Cambodia and Burma. While blue is the color most often associated with this gem, Sapphires actually come in a wide range of colors, known collectively as “fancy sapphires”. Of the fancy colors, padparadsha attains the highest prices. Padparadsha is a native Sri Lankan phrase, meaning the “lotus blossom” and refers to a specific pink/red-orange color.

Characteristics

With hardness just bellow of diamonds, Sapphires are one of the toughest gem stones and with no cleavage, breakage rarely occurs. Intense medium dark blue is the most sought after color for Blue Sapphires (Ceylon Sapphires). Violet Sapphires tend to exhibit color change, especially when viewed under daylight. The characteristic five or six rayed star of Star Sapphires is caused by titanium inclusions within the stone. Star Sapphires come in all shapes, sizes and color but black Star Sapphires are the most common.