The Luxe Balcony

This item was handcrafted with care and may have minor colour or decoration anomalies or defects. These inconsistencies are the consequence of human intervention in the process, and they add to the completed product’s charm while insuring you get a one-of-a-kind piece.

One of the most popular traditional jewelry stones, ruby is exceptionally durable. Its colors — always red — can reach vivid levels of saturation. Fine-quality rubies are some of the most expensive gemstones, with record prices over $1,000,000 per carat. However, rubies are also subjected to more treatments than almost any other gem.

Large, gem-quality rubies can be more valuable than comparably sized diamonds and are certainly rarer. In fact, smaller blue sapphires (1-3 cts) are relatively abundant compared to small, gem-quality rubies. As a result, even small rubies have relatively high values.

The vast majority of rubies are “native cut” in their country of origin. High-value ruby rough is tightly controlled and rarely makes its way to custom cutters. Occasionally, such native stones are recut to custom proportions, albeit at a loss of weight and diameter. Custom-cut and recut stones usually have higher values per carat than native or commercial-cut stones.

Inclusions
Inclusions can also help identify the source of a ruby. See our article on identifying the origins of rubies and sapphires for more information.

Synthetics
Lab-created ruby can be manufactured by several different methods, including flame fusion, the Czochralski process, flux, and hydrothermal.

Ruby Sources
Although Asia has historically been the major producer of ruby gems, there are many other sources including the United States, Australia, and, most recently, Africa. Origin definitely affects the value of rubies.

For more information on rubies from these and other parts of the world, see our article on identifying the origins of rubies and sapphires.