Sapphires are what is called a “corundum”. It is said this word originates from an Indian word “Corund”, which is a term once used to refer to an unknown mineral or gem. It is not surprising when you consider how vast the range of corundum colours are, that it was sometimes difficult to identify what a gemstone was.
Corund is an aluminium oxide that appears in forms as varied as “Emery” – yes that is where the term “emery paper” comes from, but also includes Ruby. In fact you could say a Ruby is a red sapphire and a sapphire is a blue ruby. A pink sapphire simply is a gemstone that is not red enough to be called “Ruby”. We even see sapphires that have more than one colour in them – blue and green together for example.
What Colours Do Sapphires Come In?
People often think of sapphires as only being blue, however they can in fact be just about any colour you can think of. It is just that blue is one of the most popular and most abundant colours. Other colour sapphires are just as beautiful as the blue option in their own right. Personally I love Green sapphires, but all colours have their own beauty.
Ever increasing demand for sapphires means that supply of the best coloured stones is limited. We doubt this situation will improve as demand worldwide will outstrip supply.
We like to use sapphires and diamonds rather than other coloured gemstones in the engagement rings we make. This is because sapphires have such variation in colour, but also because sapphires are one of the most resilient of all gem types when it comes to hardness. In fact, sapphire is second only to diamond in that area.