Rubies as Beads

When I travel to the shows, I always look at the fancy beads. Rubies are one of the beads that I am always attracted to. Lately I have come across a lot of cheap Ruby beads, I ask the vendor if these are treated, if they do not know I just walk on. Quite a few vendors are telling me that some of the Rubies that they have in stock are dyed to enhance their look. Because of the density of the material that Rubies are made from, they can only be dyed on the surface, this will quickly wear off.

Any time that you see Ruby gemstone beads on my website you can be sure that I have asked enough questions to be sure of their color and treatment.

---

For thousands of years Ruby has been considered on of the most valuable gemstones of our Earth. It has got all it takes for a precious stone: a wonderful color, excellent hardness and an overwhelming brilliance. Besides, it is an extremely rare gemstone, especially in the finer qualities.

For a long time India was considered as the classical country of Rubies. The literature of India contains a rich and varied knowledge collected and handed down for over two thousand years. Even the term "corundum" which we use today is derived from the Sanskrit word "kuruvinda". In the Sanskrit language Ruby is called "ratnaraj", which does in fact translate as "King of Gemstones". And it was a royal welcome indeed which used to be prepared for this King of Gemstones: Whenever a spectacular Ruby crystal was found, the emperor sent out his notables to meet the precious gemstone and welcome it in appropriate style. Today Rubies decorate the insignia of many Royal Houses. However, are they all Rubies?

Ruby is the red variety of the corundum mineral, one of the hardest minerals on Earth, which also includes Sapphire. Pure corundum is colorless. Slight traces of the color creating elements such as chrome, iron, titanium or vanadium are responsible for the color. These gemstones show an excellent hardness. On the Moh's Scale, they achieve a hardness of nine, second only to diamonds. Only red corundum may be called Ruby, any other color is denominate as Sapphires. The close relationship of Ruby and Sapphire has been known since the beginning of the 19th century. Up to that time, also red Garnets or Spinells were thought to be Rubies - and due to this misclassification the so-called "Black Ruby" as well as the "Timur Ruby" decorating the British Crown Jewels are probably actually no Rubies at all, but Spinells.

---

Care of Rubies:  Rubies are a tough and durable gem, but it is still subject to chipping and fracture if handled roughly.

Enhancements: Most rubies on the market are from Thailand, and these rubies have a brownish hue. They can be heat-treatmed to improve color. Heat-treating a ruby can also increase its transparency by removing tiny internal flaws.
Rubies were first synthesized in 1902. The process of creating synthetic rubies is known as the Verneuil process. Many rubies on the market are synthetic. Only experts can distinguish between natural and synthetic rubies.

A Disclaimer:  Effort has been made of including information that is found in at least two sources. I can make no claim on the accuracy of this information. I am not a Geologist or Gemologist. I make no guarantees and infer no warranties. For more information, please refer to the bibliography.

---

Copyright Information:  Although I have included a bibliography, but no attempt has been made to give credit to individual passages. If you are an author and feel that I have infringed on your copyrighted material please let me know. With that in mind, all material and information, retain their respected Copyrights.

---

I encourage the reader to pursue the further study of any topic that they find particularly interesting. A good place to start is your local library.

---

Bibliography: 

• The curious lore of precious stones - Author Kunz, George Frederick, 1856-1932.
• Gem identification made easy - Matlins, Antoinette Leonard.
• Gems: Their Sources, Descriptions and Identification - By Robert Webster, Peter G. Read (Editor).
• Gemstone Enhancement: history, science and state of the art - by Kurt Nassau.
• Gemstones of the world - Walter Schumann ; translated by Evelyne Stern.
• Gems, Minerals & Lapidary Links
• Have you ever sent he inside story of a modern bead factory in India? I asked one of my suppliers to send me back some pictures. Check out the Tour.