July Birthstone - Ruby

Buying and Caring tips

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Tips for Buying Ruby Jewelry

For a one-carat stone of average-to-good quality you can expect to pay between $250 and $10,000 per carat. Of course, truly fine gems will cost more. There are not many stones that can be confused with this july birthstone (spinel has a much lower RI and tourmaline is strongly doubly refractive). In earlier times all of the synthetic rubies were made by the flame fusion process where powdered aluminum was passed through a very hot gas flame. The Aluminum melted and combined with Oxygen to produce synthetic corundum. These stones all had curved growth lines, gas bubbles and flecks of aluminum powder in them. They were easy to spot. There are some synthetic (now called created) rubies that are grown in bombs or crucibles of various kinds that are much more difficult to detect. Diffusion treatment may impart a red to colorless or pale corundum. KashanTM rubies are a flame grown form. DourosTM synthetic rubies are produced in Greece.

Tips to take care of Ruby Jewelry

Clean with soapy water or commercial solvent and brush. Mechanical cleaners are safe, except for heavily included gems.

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