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Ruby

Rubies are arguably the most precious and valuable of all colored gemstones. Rubies have been

important in many cultures for thousands of years. Ruby is characterized by its vibrant shades of red,

excellent luster (facets reflect light almost like a mirror), and hardness (it is difficult to scratch and

therefore resilient). Very fine large gemstones of ruby are exceedingly rare.

6 Things You Should Know Before Buying a Ruby

1.  Color: The closer the color is to bright blood red, the more valuable it is. Less valuable

rubies can be dark wine color, or pink. Learn more about how COLOR affects the value

of ruby 

2.  Size: The more carats a ruby gemstone is, the more valuable it is. A 1 carat ruby with

good color and clarity is already quite valubale. Rubies larger than this a rare and very

expensive.Learn more about How SIZE affects the value of a Ruby 3.  Clarity: Most natural rubies have some cloudiness or imperfections inside: very few are

perfectly clear. Better quality rubies are transparent, not opaque. Learn more about 

how CLARITY affects the value of a Ruby 

4.  Cut: The quality of a ruby’s cut determines how well it sparkles. Perfectly cut rubies are

very valuable and hard to find. Learn more about how CUT affects the value of ruby 

5.  Treatments, Synthetics and Imitations: Almost all rubies are treated to improve their

clarity and color. Heat treatment is standard and widely accepted. The treatement that

the ruby receives can affect its value and quality.In addition, lab created rubies are

widely available and are worth much less than natural rubies. Some dishonest sellers

might try to sell you a fake ruby. Read here to learn about ruby treatments, synthetics

and imitations and how to tell the difference.

6.  Meaning and Symbology: Rubies have been sacred to many cultures for centuries.

Learn more about the meaning and symbology of ruby to see if it’s something you relate

to.

The Most Valuable Ruby 

The most valuable ruby is an intense, bright red, large in size (over 5 cts.), fairly clear andperfectly cut (faceted).

Here is a Summary of Rubies of Different Levels of Quality and Value:  

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Price level:

Understanding Gemstone Prices

To give you a sense of how much these gemstones cost, we have created a 5 star system. Allgemstones are ranked according to price, 1 being the lowest and 5 being the highest. Here is a

 breakdown, more or less of what the stars mean in terms of dollars.

 A particular type of gemstone will vary greatly according to its level of quality, so we have includedthe lowest and highest ends of the spectrum among faceted 1 carat gemstones.

 You will see the greatest difference on the high end. Note: some gemstones are never faceted. Inthose cases, the prices are for "gem quality" stones.

Number of Stars Lowest Quality Faceted Highest Quality Faceted

$300 $50,000

$150 $10,000

$50 $1,500

$25 $350

$1 $35

Ruby Color

The color of ruby and how it affects a ruby’s value 

Rubies range from dark pink, to near blackish or browninsh red, to bright red, to orangish red. Aruby is always red. If it is any other color, it is called a sapphire. An excellent color can make the

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difference between an amazing ruby and an average ruby. The most valuable color of ruby isfamiliarly called, “pigeon blood red.” It is not the most glamorous name, but the color is one of 

the most heart stopping colors found in the gemstone world.

An illustration of how color affects the value of ruby.

Too Dark: This

ruby is a very

dark wine-likecolor. Rubies of 

this color are

fairly common

and less valuable 

Too Light: This

ruby is almost

too pink and paleto be called a

ruby, but instead

a pink sapphire

(much less

valuable than

ruby) 

Too Pink: Here is

an attractive,

intense color.However this

color is still a

touch pinker

than ideal for a

ruby. 

Best Color: This

ruby is bright,

pure red. This isthe most

valuable and rare

color of ruby. 

Ruby Size

How the Size of a Ruby Affects its Value 

In the wholesale gem trade, rubies are sold on a price per carat basis. Therefore, it would makesense that a 5 carat ruby would cost more than a 1 carat ruby, all else being equal. However, anaditional factor is that it is rarer to find a 5 carat ruby than a 1 carat ruby. Therefore, not only isthe total price higher, but the price per carat is also higher because of the added rarity factor.

For example, a 1 carat ruby of excellent quality might cost $1000. A 5 carat ruby of the samequality would NOT cost $5000 (5 X 1), rather it might cost $10,000.

Here is a comparison of rubies. They have similar color, so we can see how their size affectstheir value. Note: We are comparing only the main stones, not their settings.

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Very small: Rubies of 

this size are not rare.

By themselves, they

would be worth less

than $100. 

Average: This size ruby

(about 1 ct.) is more

valuble but still easy to

find. It would cost about

2 or 3 times the value of 

the stones to the left. 

Large: Rubies this size

(over 3 carats) are very

rare. A stone of this size

can cost between 7 and

10 times the price of 

the one before. 

Very Large: Rubies of this

size (over 7 carats)

usually belong to queens

or in museums. The price

of one would be 2 to 4

times the value of the

previous ruby. 

Ruby Clarity

How Clarity Affects the Value of Ruby 

It is very rare (nearly unheard of) to find a ruby with natural perfect clarity. 99.9% of rubies areheat treated or irradiated to improve clarity, diminishing the appearnace of the many inclusions.The most common form of inclusion in ruby is white whispy wavy deposits of rutile.

Terrible Clarity: This

ruby is very included:

we can see large white

inclusions inside it and it

has an overall opaque

appearance due to

many small inclusions

that make it cloudy.

Poor Clarity: This ruby

is not very clear either.

It has better clarity

than the first though,

because there are no

obvious large inclusions

and the stone is still

more transparent than

Typical Clarity: A ruby

like this is what is most

commonly available in

 jewelry. It is too cloudy or

included to see

completely into the

stone. However, it is clear

enough that we are able

Very Good Clarity: In a

natural ruby, this is as

good as it gets. A ruby

this clear is very rare.

It is not perfectly clear:

there are some visible

inclusions, but in all,

the clarity alone

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Rubies of this clarity are

not precious and should

never be very expensive 

opaque. However, it is

not clear enough to be

faceted. 

to see some light and

sparkle. A ruby of this

clarity can be valuable if 

it is also very large and of 

excellent color. 

makes this ruby very

valuable. 

Sometimes Inclusions make a ruby more special:

This is a “star ruby”. It is a ruby heavily included with rutile (another mineral). The

rutile inclusions aligned in this gemstone to make a six pointed star when light hits it

at a certain angle. This rubies are special and valuable. The most valuable star rubies

have very pronounced white stars with the rest of the stone being bright red. 

If a ruby has been made into a bead or a cabochon, you know the clariy is poor. (For more infoon different ways of cutting gemstones, see general gemstone information). As a rule, only thehighest quality gems are faceted.

Ruby Cut 

How Cut Affects the Value of Ruby 

It is nearly impossible to find a perfectly cut natural ruby in the marketplace. There are tworeasons. One is that rubies are very expensive, precious and rare, so there is a hesitancy to cut off any more stone than absolutely necessary during the faceting process. The other reason is thatruby forms in the earth’s crust as octahedral crystals, that are usually wide and flat. These two

facts mean that cut rubies found in jewelry are usually cut too shallow. You can sometimes seethrough them (called “fish eye”), where if it were cut at the proper angles and proportions, you

would only see light and glitter reflected back to you.

A well cut ruby is exceedingly beautiful and hard to find. You will know a well cut ruby whenyou see it because it will dazzle you with its sparkle. This is because when the facets are cut atthe proper angles, they act as mirrors and bounce light all around the inside of the stone.Unfortunately, cutting a ruby at the proper angles usually means grinding away a large part of the ruby (a very skilled cutter will cut away even 60%). And since rubies are such valuablegemstones, most of the time gemcutters ere on the side of keeping the gemstone as large aspossible, instead of being cut at the proper angles. When you are looking for a ruby, you can use

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the following guidelines to help you assess the cut. (Though, you should go in expecting a poorone.)

1.  Uneven facets: Rubies are usually given mixed or cushion cuts. Most of them are cut in south

Asian countries by hand without the latest lapidary machines. Look for some of the facets to be

strangely shaped or for facets which “overlap”, meeting at a line instead of one single point.

These are signs of a poor cut.

2.  “Fish eye”: if the bottom ruby is not cut at the proper angles, you will be able to see through the

ruby rather than seeing light reflected back to you.

3.  Dullness: Basically, you can tell how well a ruby is cut by how well it sparkles. (This can also be

affected by clarity, however)

4.  Shallow of Flat Stones: If you are able to see the ruby from the side and it is significantly wider

than it is tall, you are looking at a typical bad cut.

Here are some illustrations of how the quality of cut affects the value of a ruby. 

Poor Cut: This is an

example of a “fish eye”.We can nearly see

straight through this

ruby instead of seeing

the sparkle of light

reflected back to us. 

Typical Cut: This cut

is similar to whatexists in most jewelry:

there is some sparkle

but the facets are

uneven. 

Perfect Cut: This is a

perfectly, beautifully cutruby. The lights play and

reflect from every facet.

We cannot see through

it: we only see sparkle.

Every facet is even and

symetrical. 

Ruby Treatments and Synthetics

Ruby Treatments 

About 99% of rubies on the market are heat treated. Exposing the rubies to extremely high heatimproves the rubies’ clarity and in some cases, color as well. This treatment is so common, it istaken as a given. There is nothing suspicious at all about a heat treated ruby. In recent years,

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more sophisticated treatments have arisen such as glass filling and flux healing. Basically, thesemethods melt out the natural inclusions and fill them with either glass are a kind of synthesis of the ruby crystal. This improves clarity as well, though these treatments are more expensive, morecontroversial, and less common. (For a gemstone treatment to not diminish a gemstone’s value, itmust be “permanent.” See General Gemstone Information.) 

Synthetic Rubies 

In recent years, synthetic rubies have become very available on the market. They go by labelssuch as “created, “lab,” “synthetic,” “Chatham” (a large producer of Synthetic rubies). They are“real” rubies in the sense that they are the same mineral, the difference is they were made in a

labratory instead of in the earth. Synthetic rubies are usually much clearer than natural rubies:fewer inclusions. Synthetic rubies are cheaper than natural rubies, all other factors being equal.

Heated: This is a very

clear natural heat-

treated ruby. Heat

treated rubies are the

most common and range

considerably in their

levels of clarity.

Generally, though they

are usually cloudier than

man made rubies. 

Created: This ruby is

too good to be true:

the first sign that it is

probably synthetic is

that it is very clear.

These rubies are less

valuable. 

Untreated: Only a

handful of rubies in the

world are untreated.

Large, clear rubies of 

good color that are

untreated command

extremely high prices

and can only be found in

the most expensive

 jewelry stores. 

 Alexandrite Synthetics

Alexandrite is so beautiful, so captivating in its color change phenomenon that many peoplewant it. The most beautiful, strongly colored, large-enough-to-see gems are in museums andbank vaults – and the rest cost 2 or 3 digits more than what most can afford. All of this combines

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to inspire a very developed trade for synthetic alexandrite. Synthetic alexandrite has also beengiven its own name, to reduce confusion = “Zandrite” 

Synthetic Alexandrites are grown in labs –  they are “real” alexandrites – chemically andphysiologically identical – the only difference is that they are man made instead of mined from

the earth. A synthetic alexandrite is like a strawberry that is grown in a massive field by acommercial farmer. A natural alexandrite is like a strawberry you are lucky enough to find in theforest. One is more valuable than the other, but they are both strawberries.

If you own a large (over 2 carats) Alexandrite with beautiful color and strong color change – andyou do not have insurance papers for it, it is 99% probable that it is synthetic – no matter whatyour grandmother told you.