Ruby And Sapphire Mineral

As being found in macon county personal communication with the nc geological survey western office.

Ruby and sapphire mineral.

Several of the most spectacular spinels ever discovered have been mounted in crown jewels and other jewelry of significance under the assumption that they were rubies or sapphires. Ruby gets its red coloring from trace amounts of chromium. Corundum ruby and sapphire is aluminum oxide. Gems generally get their colour because of certain metals or impurities contained in the mineral.

The impurities in corundum gems produce the large range of colours found. Sapphire is also only used to describe the gem variety. Sapphire is far more common variety as ruby requires a specific element and an appropriate host rock to supply its essential chromium. Ruby is the red variety and sapphire is the variety that encompasses all other colors although the most popular and valued color of sapphire is blue.

Ruby is the red variety of the mineral corundum. Pink corundum is sometimes referred to as pink sapphire and other times is referred to as pink ruby depending on the hue region and personal opinion. So all i had to do was to take hagner s book and visit all of the vermiculite deposits i could in wyoming. Since they are the same mineral sapphire and ruby are often found together.

For all practical purposes it is the hardest mineral after diamond making it the second hardest. Both of these gemstones have the same chemical composition and the same mineral structure. The ruby and sapphire impostor spinel is a gemstone mineral that has been confused with ruby and sapphire for over 1000 years. Sapphires and rubies are both gem varieties of the mineral corundum.

Corundum is a very hard tough and stable mineral. Trace amounts of impurities determine if a gem corundum will be a brilliant red ruby or a beautiful blue sapphire. Corundum comes in many other colors but those colors are classified as sapphires. Sapphire the other gem variety of corundum encompasses all colors of corundum aside from red.

Corundum gemstone family corundum is a mineral species that includes two world s most precious gemstones ruby and sapphire. Sandpaper and gave work to many men. Corundum and other minerals such as mica and kaolin were hauled to the railroad by horse and wagon and shipped out of macon county in large quantities. In essence ruby is a red sapphire since ruby and sapphire are identical in all properties except for color.

Rubies are made of corundum. The geologic literature does not mention emeralds topaz aventurine sodalite etc. Ruby sapphire and fancy sapphire most people don t realize that ruby and sapphire are both gems of the mineral corundum. Called corundum low grade rubies and sapphires were mined commercially for abrasives i e.

Otherwise it is simply called corundum. A large sapphire or ruby at the native mines start at about 10 carats and a big haul of stones is about 50 to 100 carats in a day.