Rebecca Zemans Jewelry Blog — Sapphire

The sapphire is often referred to as the ruby's sister. Why? Because they are both made out of the same material, the mineral corundum. Gemstones that belong to the corundum family, which are the hardest besides diamonds, consist of pure aluminum oxide, which over many years crystallized into beautiful colorless gemstones. Other elements such as iron and chrome are responsible for the sapphire's beautiful coloring. The word "sapphire" derives from the Latin "saphirus" and the Greek "sapheiros", meaning "blue." Although mostly known for its deep blue color, the sapphire can come in many other colors including red, orange, yellow, green and...

The word ruby comes from the Latin word "ruber" which means red. The ruby is a red variety of the mineral Corundum, which is one of the hardest minerals known to us and is found in metamorphic rock. Unless the gem is the color red, which it gets from traces of chromium, it is considered a sapphire. The ruby stands for heat and power and was often used as bullets for blowguns, to heat water or as a cure for indigestion. The ruby, which in Sanskrit is called "ratnaraj" meaning "King of Gemstones", was in ancient Indian thought to protect against misfortune...