The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-11-03
BY GEORGE T. KUNZ.

Copyright, 1895, by George F. Kunz9
Next in Importance to the diamond
comes what may be called the group Of
corundum gems, embracing the true
ruby and sapphire of various shades of
color. This mineral is found in almost
all the colors of the rainbow; and its
transparent varieties rank among the
choicest and most valuable of gems.
The name sapphire is generally ap-
piled in jeMelry to the blue variety, the
red being called ruby; the emerald
green. Oriental emerald; the leaf green.
chloro sapphire; the purple, Oriental
amethyst; and the yellow, Oriental to-
paz, or yellow sapphire. The most
valuable of these is the ruby. though
the green and purple varieties are the
rarest, and are both rich and beauti-
full gems. a colorless variety, called
white sapphire. is sometimes mistaken
for the diamond.
AS with the dia mond, the various
forms of corundum unfit for gem use
are of much value industrially. She
finest watch jewels. phonograph points.
and wire drawing plates are made from
small or poorly colored ru6fes and sap
phires, while the ruder varieties of CO.
rundum, and the massive granular
form known as emery, which is mingled
with magnetic oxide of iron, are well
known as the most important Of abrad-
ing and polishing materials, and are
largely employed for cutting wheels,
emery paper and similar purposes.
The kinds most used in jewelry are
the following:
The Most Precious of All Gems.
First-Ruby, the red variety. when
fine, is the most precious of all gems;
,g1i1 Of four .aar
ats weight, or more, being valued at
from five to ten times as much as dia-
monds of the same size and quality, or
at from SIS, 900 to $4,000 for a four
carat stone A ten carat gem recently
sold for nearly 1000, which would
give US value of over 100000 an
ounce.
The chief locality for rubies is in
Burmah in the valley of the Mogok,
fifteen miles from the Irrauady. and
forty miles from Mandalay. All the
finest stones have come from this sec
ton, and here alone are found rubies
of the peculiar intense color known
as pigeons blood In Ceylon, in the
Ratnapura district. beautiful stones are
found of lighter shades, sometimes al
most pink, occasionally with a tinge Of
purple, or the color of currant wine.
These, however, though often navel
ously beautiful and brilliant, are less
priced than the Burmese.
Recently Siam has also yielded many
fine rubies, which, however, tend to
very dark shades, more of a garnet
red. or inclining to brown. Small ru-
bies have been found in Franklin coun-
ty, North Carolina. in the government
of Perm in Russia, and pale colored
ones in Montana.
The "Kfng of Rubies" and His Col.
1Pctjnn-
The war of 1886 gave England the
control of the long famous Burmese
mines and of the treasures of King
Thebaw, who had been called the
king of Rubies," and was reported
70 possess dishes OF rubies among the
crown jewels SURPRISING anything
known in the world. This collection
was found to have little marketable
value on account of its inferior quality.
It contained rubies, emeralds, cats
eyes, etc, Of unusual size, but not
very choice. The whole suite is now
exhibited at the South Kensington
museum, under an ordinary glass case
and with no unusual precautions
The Finest Sapphires-Whcre Found
Sapphire proper, the blue variety oil
transparent corundum, ranks next in
value to the diamond. fine stones being
sold at about the same price as dia.
rnonds of like size. The crystals OF
ruby are usually small, rarely over hall
en- inch long; those of sapphires are
often much larger, even up to three
inches in length. The kind most prizeo
is a bright medium shade known as
''corn-fower,' the tint of the national
flower of Germany, and a very rich
deeper shade known as the velvet blue
The tastes Of different countries vary
London and Vienna preferring tht
darker sapphires. Paris rather lighter
shades. and Lyons and Marseilles being
the chief market for light colorec
stones.
some varieties of sapphire have 6
eerni-transparent or nilky-blue; these
are somewhat abundant in Australia
and some, both sapphires and rubies
have the peculiar character known az
asterisn. presenting "a, star-like patterl
az interesting Zines Of light when GU
across a prism.
Cut sapphires are often a fine ever
blue if received in a setting, but whe1
unnaounted are almost white, except a
the lower point; in other words, blue
e viewed from above Inscription:
dealers sometimes paint or enamel tn,
inside Of a setting and give the ston,
a blue color Of apparent value, when
In reality, it is Of little worth.
The fine blue eapphires come from