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Sapphire

The name “sapphire” can also apply to any corundum that’s not ruby red, another corundum variety.

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Madagascar Beauty

This 7.04-ct. oval sapphire is from a new source, the island Madagascar.

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Blue Velvet

Deep, intense, velvety blue describes this sapphire’s color.

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Best in Daylight

Blue sapphire looks best in daylight and fluorescent light.

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Spindle Shape

This spindle-shaped crystal from Sri Lanka weighs 70.10-cts.

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Color Zoning

Blue color distribution in sapphire crystals is often uneven.

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Twinned

There is a second sapphire crystal growing into the larger one.

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Tools

Research

Figure 1. Color-calibrated photo of studied natural corundum crystals from various deposits ranging from 0.44 to 1.28 ct before heating. Photo by Sasithorn Engniwat.
Low-Temperature Heat Treatment of Corundum and the Behavior of the 3161 cm–1 Infrared Band

A study analyzing the thermal behavior of the 3161 cm–1 IR feature in 10 natural corundum samples from various deposits.

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Figure 1. Face-up appearance of a quench-crackled and dyed laboratory-grown colorless sapphire, measuring 13.10 × 12.73 × 7.51 mm. Photo by Adriana Gudino.
Quench-Crackled and Dyed Laboratory-Grown Sapphire

The Carlsbad lab receives a laboratory-grown colorless sapphire with weblike fractures containing concentrations of dye.

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A sugar plum–like frosted zircon cluster in blue sapphire. Photomicrograph by Taku Okada; field of view 1.05 mm.
“Sugar Plum” in Titanium-Diffused Blue Sapphire

A sugar plum–like frosted zircon cluster is observed in a blue sapphire.

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Figure 1. The 2.65 ct sample in immersion with brightfield illumination showing the typical spiderweb effect of diffused stones. Photo by Féodor Blumentritt.
Diffusion-Induced Blue Spinel-Like Layer on Natural Sapphire

Three natural sapphires exhibiting a surface layer of gahnite are studied at the GGTL laboratory.

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Gabriela Farfan (right), Coralyn W. Whitney curator of gems and minerals for the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, accepts the original Gems Keep Giving pin from Hayley Henning, chairperson of the organization. Photo by Jennifer Stone-Sundberg.
Gems Keep Giving

The nonprofit organization Gems Keep Giving aims to improve global small-scale mining and gem-cutting communities.

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Prismatic elongated zircon in Kashmir sapphire. Photomicrograph by Narint Jaisanit; field of view 2.88 mm.
Prismatic Zircon in Kashmir Sapphire

Elongated zircon inclusions display attractive birefringent interference colors in a blue sapphire from Kashmir.

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Figure 2. An assortment of rough sapphires (5–10 mm in diameter) extracted from the new mining area displaying characteristics typical of stones from the Rock Creek deposit, including many with a yellow “yolk” at the center. Courtesy of Potentate Mining.
Update on Montana’s Rock Creek Sapphire

Potentate Mining expands its mining operation and hosts the first Montana sapphire tender in Bangkok.

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Synthetic sapphire before exposure to short-wave ultraviolet radiation. Photo by Jian Xin (Jae) Liao
Irreversible Photochromism in Synthetic Sapphire

The first documented case of corundum with irreversible photochromism encountered at GIA.

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Figure 1. This Mozambique ruby contains needles and bands of particles before heating (left). The inclusions did not show any signs of alteration after heating at 900°C for 5 hours in air (right). However, the development of the 3309 cm–1 series in the FTIR spectrum was detected in this stone after heating, providing evidence of low-temperature heat treatment. Photomicrographs by Suwasan Wongchacree; field of view 1.75 mm.
The 3309 cm–1 Series in Sapphire and Ruby: A Focus on FTIR Peak Position Variation

Investigates the correlations between peak positions in the 3309 cm–1 series with trace element concentrations for ruby, metamorphic and basalt-related blue sapphire, and laboratory-grown sapphire.

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Green musgravite crystals observed in a faceted green sapphire. Darkfield and fiber-optic illumination. Photomicrograph by Titapa Tanawansombat; field of view 1.8 mm.
Rare Musgravite Crystal in Green Sapphire

A surface-reaching crystal in a green sapphire is identified as musgravite.

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