Sapphire – Heaven’s Gem

There are a multitude of gemstones in the world available today that it’s hard sometimes to decide. Generally speaking, even though DeBeers and the powers that be push the diamond engagement ring as the standard for the engagement ring center stone, you have the liberty of selecting any stone you love! Sapphire is one of the most beautiful precious stones in the world. Its heavenly blue color is truly a marvel to behold, especially when it is perfectly cut. Although it is a common thought that diamonds are the most expensive precious stones out there, this is not necessarily always true, as some sapphires, depending on its value according to the 4C’s, and depending on the stone’s rarity, can be more expensive than a diamond. The Padparadscha Sapphire which, unlike the traditional blue sapphires, has a pinkish or reddish to brown color, is a great example of this. Its incredible rarity makes it an even more expensive gem than diamonds generally speaking. Sapphires represents, among newer additions, the birthstone of people born in the month of September.

THE BIG THREE(SAPPHIRES, RUBIES AND EMERALDS)

To gain a little context, let’s discuss the idea of “The Big Three.” Rubies, sapphires and emeralds are generally known as “The Big Three” in the jewelry industry.  This is merely a term that is used to describe the fact that these three gemstones are, in general, right below diamond, in value.  As we will see below, however, there are exceptions to this rule. The rarer a stone is, the higher the value. Some Colombian Emeralds and Burmese Rubies, and Kashmir Sapphires, for instance, can indeed be more costly per carat than diamonds.

Sapphire is a variety of the mineral known as corundum, and can come in almost any color of the rainbow, but its most common color is blue, and the least common are those of the Padparadscha Sapphire, which can look very much like a ruby, another variety of corundum. Sapphire are also very hard, scaling up to 9 on the Mohs hardness scale, making it a great choice as center stone for any wedding band or engagement ring you might want to consider buying. The Mohs hardness scale is kind of like the Richter scale, where each increasing number value represents an exponential increase in the stone’s hardness or durability. Just like diamonds, a sapphire’s value is also determined using the 4C’s, meaning its cut, clarity, carat weight, and color.

SAPPHIRES AS AN ENGAGEMENT RING CHOICE 

Sure enough, diamonds are the most popular choice for people when choosing the center stone for their wedding bands or engagement rings. However, this does not mean that anything else would be a second-rate stone or less special. It’s ultimately a matter of one’s stye and personal preference. As I mentioned earlier, a stone’s value is determined by its grading according to the 4C’s, as well as the particular stone’s rarity. This makes sapphire just as excellent of a center stone for a ring as a diamond is. In fact, more and more people are choosing sapphires for their ring’s center stones over diamonds, especially with the Queen of England passing down her Royal Ring to her heirs recently.

Note: the most important thing to remember when choosing the center stone or pendant for any piece of jewelry you are looking to buy is this: it’s not the price tag that matters most, but the symbolism and meaning behind it. This is precisely where sapphire is very known for. Sapphires are the birthstone of people born in the month of September, and it is commonly referred to in many cultures as Heaven’s Gem, not only because of its heavenly blue color, but for all the other symbolisms associated with the stone itself, as well as the month of September.

SAPPHIRE SYMBOLISM

In the northern hemisphere, September signals the start of the autumn, otherwise known as the fall season, when leaves turn yellow, orange, and brown, and fall to the ground, beautifying the landscape as they do so. To many cultures, this symbolizes the shedding of one’s past negativities, learning from life’s lessons, as they get ready to arm themselves with mental, physical, and spiritual fortitude to make it through life’s winter. This is quite an accurate analogy, since trees are also doing quite the same thing when they shed their leaves during the fall. The reason why leaves fall off of trees during fall is because the trees are taking all its nutrients that are in the leaves to absorb it and then discarding the leaves, thus conserving energy to last them through the winter since these leaves won’t be of much use to them during that season, and having leaves would only mean that the trees would only be using extra nutrients for nothing.

In the South, however, September is the start of the spring season, which is right after the winter season. This is the direct opposite of autumn because in the spring, new leaves grow on trees, and the entire landscape starts to turn green again as new life emerges everywhere. Animals come out of their caves and holes to end their winter hibernation and start breeding, while flowers start to bloom and add more color to the world. This season, to many cultures, represents the renewal and refocusing of our energies, both physical and spiritual, into something new, beautifying our own lives as well as others’ as we go. It symbolizes survival after suffering, and regaining of strength to go on and push further through life. This month has truly beautiful representations, symbolisms, and meanings to it.

And it is all a perfect tribute to the beautiful sapphire, the blue stone of the heavens. To the ancient and medieval world, sapphire signifies the epitome of celestial hope and faith. These early civilizations believed that this heavenly blue stone would bring them protection from evil and poisoning, good fortune to themselves and the community, and spiritual insight. It is also associated with healing magic from the gods, and royals would oftentimes don them, not just for healing and protection, but also for spiritual guidance, kindness, and wisdom. The Ancient Persians even believed that the world was created on top of a very large sapphire, and some myths and lore would represent the waters and the sky with a sapphire as their gem of power. To them, sapphires hold within them the power of the tides and the heavens, and that the gods gave humans these precious gems as a token of good will, deliverance, and companionship. Aside from those, sapphire is also said to symbolize virtue and holiness for both royals and common folk alike, and the very color blue itself, which is the most common color for sapphires, is said to represent depth of thought or wisdom, stability, trust in both gods and men, confidence, intelligence, truth, and calmness.

When set as the center stone for an engagement ring, the sapphire symbolizes the wearer’s sincerity in their words and promises, and their faithfulness to their partner. Its brilliant blue color also signifies purity, hope, and innocence.

 ANGELUCCI JEWELRY, YOUR SAPPHIRE EXPERT

So, the next time you want to purchase a gemstone as a pendant or center stone for a ring, consider choosing sapphire. Not only does it hold beautiful meanings and symbolisms, but its very appearance is a true marvel of magnificence. At Angelucci Jewelry, we have some of the finest sapphires you have ever laid your eyes on, and all our items are conflict-free. We can custom design and make any sapphire jewelry piece you envision. We employ a very simple custom design process. We also let you design and build your own rings according to your very own idea of perfection, and we aim to educate you, our clients, as much as we can about jewelry knowledge, because we believe education is empowerment. So please don’t hesitate to contact us. As always, stay safe, stay educated.