The Man Made Diamonds

Star sapphire belongs to the family of corundum, an enormously hard aluminum oxide that sometimes contains magnesia, silica, and iron.

This stone contains unique minute needle-like insertions of rutile. The needle-like rutile intersects at various angles that produce asterism or a star-pattern.

This stone’s color ranges from various tones of blue, to orange, pink, green, lavender, yellow, gray to black that are caused by the mineral content.

Among the color shades of this stone, the strong blue color is the most popular. Sapphire’s cut is usually cabochon cut that is with a rounded, convex surface, which is polished, but not faceted and the bottom is flat.

During the ancient period, Star sapphire was regarded as a very powerful amulet for protection seekers and travelers. The power of the stone stays with the original wearer even if the stone has been passed on to another individual.

The current major places where this stone is found are in Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Australia, and Thailand. This stone is also found in Cambodia, Kenya, Brazil, China, Malawi, Pakistan, Nigeria, Madagascar, Tanzania, Rwanda, the United States, Zimbabwe, and Vietnam.

Nowadays, synthetic sapphires that very much look like real sapphires are being manufactured and made into jewelries.

Some of the famous star sapphire in the world are of outstanding size and color, and are very brilliant even without being faceted unlike diamond that needs to be faceted in order to see its brilliance.

The Star of India weighting 563.35 carats, which was discovered 300 years ago in Sri Lanka is the biggest the world. The unique feature of this stone is the presence of stars on both its sides.

The 104 carat Stuart Sapphire now mounted in the state crown of Queen Victoria that dates back to 1214 is one of the oldest sapphires.

Since this stone is extremely attractive and unique due to the inclusions of rutile; it is popularly used in making necklaces, rings, and bracelets.  To enhance its brightness and color, it is sometimes subjected into a special heating process.

Due to its hardness, sapphire is also commonly used as a substrate or under liner in high frequency circuits. Silicon-on-sapphire chips are used in items such as computers, LEDs, and satellite communication systems. Also, due to its durability and hardness, sapphires are used as an abrasive such as for jewelry-making tools and drill bits.

Star sapphires are extremely durable gemstones, but that doesn’t mean that it should not be cared for? Before undergoing any strenuous activity or contact with strong chemicals, make sure that you remove them and place them in a safe place.  You may use soapy warm water for cleaning your sapphire.

After washing, use soft cotton to pat dry in order not to scratch the stone. For deep cleaning, soak the stone in soapy warm water for about ten minutes and use soft brush to removed dirt, wash and dry. Storing star sapphire in a jewelry box that is lined with cloth will help to retain its brilliance.