How much is a ruby?

Rubin is very beautiful, many legends go about him. It is believed that the owner of the stone becomes happy in love. Red gem is able to warn the owner of the danger by changing color. In a magical way, a person constantly in contact with a ruby ​​amplifies all the positive qualities.

It is not surprising that there are no fewer people wishing to receive jewelry with a noble mineral. For those who buy ruby ​​for the first time, a natural question arises about its value.

In order to find out the value of a jewel, you need to consider a lot of characteristics.

Here are the main ones:

• the origin of the mineral;
• stone color;
• the presence of cracks;
• the presence of inclusions, bubbles and blackouts;
• mineral weight;
• faceting;
• treatment.

Deposits of rubies are found on each of the continents, with the exception of frosty Antarctica. On an industrial scale, gems are mined in Asia: in Ceylon, in Vietnam and in Thailand.

Famous African deposits are located in Kenya, Mozambique, Madagascar and Tanzania. Russia has been searching for stones relatively recently. After the war, mining is carried out in the Polar Urals and in the Pegmatites of the Pamirs.

In Myanmar (formerly Burma), the most famous, largest, highest quality and most expensive specimens of radiant mineral have been discovered.

The largest stone of 400 carats was found in Burma. Unfortunately, it has not been preserved in its original form. It was divided into three parts.

By now, Burmese mines are impoverished. Subsoil for many centuries gave the world beauty and pretty exhausted.

A promising region for production is India. It is known that rubies are found in the same place as sapphires. And the Kashmir deposits are rich in sapphires. Along with the main mineral, rubies are also found. Perhaps in the near future, India will become a new major supplier of raw materials for the jewelry industry.

We give an example of cost depending on origin.

For one carat of Burmese large ruby, they pay from two to 90 thousand US dollars. And not heated stones from Mozambique are much cheaper. With a weight of 4-5 carats, a high-quality ruby ​​will cost the buyer from $ 500 to several thousand.

In nature, ideal stones are extremely rare. Most have various defects: inclusions, voids and cracks. High quality are possessed by those nuggets that have indistinguishable flaws or none at all.

Some inclusions give rubies great value. For example, the presence of microcracks in the shape of a star with six rays inside a stone significantly increases its cost. Such instances are extremely rare, therefore they are very highly valued.

A quality measure is cleanliness. By purity, minerals are divided into 3 categories:

• the first includes pure stones and those that have tiny impregnations or thin stripes-cracks;
• the second includes corundums with small defects and thickening;
• the third consists of opaque specimens or stones with large opacities.

Significant impact on the price of processing. Cutting with the right shape and proportions is much appreciated. After faceting, there should be no recesses and chips, scratches and scratches on the stone.

In an effort to preserve the size of the ruby, the cutters stretch its lower part, called the pavilion. Such actions worsen the appearance.

Crystals of the round form have the best form, their value is higher than that of pear-shaped "congeners" and cuts of the "Marquis" type. Cabochon cutting is used for minerals with a large number of inclusions and stains, called in the professional language “star”.

To improve the quality of gems, their purity and color, heat treatment is used. The operation is called gentrification. The source material is placed in special chambers and heated to 800-1900 degrees. Under the influence of heat, the color changes, the shades are eliminated. The inclusions inside the ruby ​​melt, the purity increases.

If we compare the stones that have undergone heat treatment, and ordinary, the prices of the latter are twice, or even three times higher, with other things being equal.

Improvement often ends with an abundance of cracks. Defects are eliminated by filling with lead glass. It looks like a clean beautiful stone. However, such rubies are classified as the cheapest. They are most often found in jewelry stores, along with synthetic counterparts. The cost of “patched” corundum varies between 1-20 US dollars per carat.

With regard to precious stones, it is customary to talk not about size, but about weight. Mass is the most significant characteristic. Weight is measured in special units - carats. For a better comparison with conventional weight measures, you need to know the ratio: 1 carat = 0.2 grams.

The price of the mineral is set for 1 carat. However, here everything is ambiguous. Small stones have less carat cost than large gems. There is no direct correlation between weight and carat cost. All individually.

Price is tied to both the size of the stone and its quality. But the larger the size, the less the likelihood of impeccability. So, it is known that rubies of three or more carats are extremely rare. And a 5-carat mineral that has no defects is simply impossible to find. If possible, it will be a sensation. It is believed that ideal stones weighing no more than one carat are on sale.

Equally important in determining the value of the color of the ruby.The main color is red. The saturation varies from pale to bright saturated. There are gems with pink, purple and orange hues. Deviation from the base gives natural inclusions.

An expert opinion is drawn up for the most valuable stones. It indicates the color. Pure bright red ruby ​​is referred to as pigeon blood.

According to the color classification, rubies are:

• bright red;
• normal to medium red;
• light red.

Estimated cost of crystals is set by specialized organizations.

The results are printed in the appropriate magazines.

• Low quality stones ranked by origin. One carat can cost both 75 and 3,500 US dollars. Burmese corundums are more expensive, African ones are cheaper.
• For medium quality rubies from Myanmar they ask from 5 to 12 thousand dollars. Gems from Mozambique are slightly cheaper - from 2 to 5 thousand dollars. The cost of processed stones is even lower - from one and a half to four thousand dollars.
• Real Raw Ruby very good quality from Burma is estimated at between 16 and 40 thousand dollars. From other deposits - from 5 to 9 thousand dollars.
• The average price of a heated crystal excellent quality $ 12,000-23,000. Mozambique and Burmese species cost more: $ 20000-30000 and $ 40,000-70000, respectively.

Large stones weighing 4 carats or more are valued at hundreds of thousands of dollars. They can be bought at auction for 60-90 thousand dollars. If you take the average value, a gem weighing 1 gram will cost the buyer $ 375,000.

The industrial production of artificial rubies is established in the USA, Great Britain, France, Switzerland and Germany.

The stone is obtained from molten corundum. The product originally obtained is transparent. Additives give him any color he wants.

Despite the fact that an unnatural ruby ​​looks better than natural, it costs half as much.

The Russian classification of rubies distributes them into 3 quality groups, depending on defects and colors.

• The first includes those in which a minimum of defects. Small stripes or dots are scattered throughout the volume, and not grouped in one zone, and you can only see them with the “armed” eye. High quality is estimated at a minimum of 800, a maximum of $ 1,500. In free sale are not found.
• The second category allows the presence of visible defects and minor inclusions in different zones of the stone. The cost is 500-800 $.
• Rubies muddy and having many defects make up the third category. Their cost is 200-500 $.

Prices are for 1 carat.

Abroad, when setting the price of precious stones, their origin is primarily taken into account. The stones from Burma (Myanmar) are rated above others.

The sale of ruby ​​at a record price is shown in the next video.