Sapphire

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Sapphires are found in a variety of locations including Thailand, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Queensland in Australia, and Montana in the United States. They are usually found in association with rubies in what are called alluvial deposits. Sapphires occur in a broad range of colors: various shades of blue, pink, orange, yellow, green, purple, black, and colorless.   This webpage is designed to provide you with information on sapphire, the gem variety of the mineral corundum. It was created as an assignment for an online gemstone course from Emporia State University, Emporia, KS, USA.

Crystallography
 

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Sapphires are made out of aluminum (Al) and oxygen (O). They are classified in the oxides and are a gemstone in the Hematite Group, namely corundum (Al2O3). Sapphires belong to the hexagonal crystal system and are in the bar32/m crystal class. The rough crystals are usually tabular or prismatic with rhombohedral faces.  Sapphire has a hardness of 9 and a specific gravity of 4.02.

Blue sapphires are colored by iron (Fe) and titanium (Ti).  Smaller amounts of iron (Fe) causes the sapphires to be green or yellow and vanadium (V). Chromium (Cr) gives us the pink hues and a mixture of iron (Fe) and vanadium (V) give the orange hues. The rays that are seen in a type of sapphire called star sapphire are actually inclusions of rutile.

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Symbolism

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Sapphire is thought to help with creativity and imagination.  It is also thought to help with solving problems.  Dark blue sapphire is a symbol of loyalty and the belief by some is that for married couples, the stone can became dull if one is unfaithful.

A green sapphire is a symbol of good luck.  Yellow and orange sapphires are a very empowering stone.  Pink sapphires help people to deal with situations beyond their control.  A white (or colorless) sapphire encourages a person to not overlook themselves in life.

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References

David, Judithann H. and JP Van Hulle. 1990.  Michael's Gemstone Dictionary. Affinity
     Press, California, 416 p.

Klein, Cornelius and Cornelius S. Hurlbut, Jr.  1993.  Manual of Mineralogy, 21st edition.
     John Wiley and Sons, Inc., New York, 681 p.

Schumann, Walter. 1999.  Gemstones of the World.  Sterling Publishing Company, Inc.,
     New York, 280 p.

http://www.emporia.edu/earthsci/outreach/html.htm

http://www.theimage.com

http://www.gemsuite.com