All you need to know to resell your sapphires

In ancient times, the term "sapphire" (from the Hebrew sapphir, "blue stone") was used to designate various blue gems. From Antiquity to the Middle Ages, sapphire most often referred to lapis lazuli. Around 1800, it was discovered that sapphire and ruby were varieties of corundum (as was ruby).

Crystallochemistry: Al₂O₃ (Aluminum oxide)

Subsequently, only the blue variety was called sapphire, and the other corundums - with the exception of red - were given misleading names, now banned, such as "oriental peridot" (green) or "oriental topaz" (yellow).

Today, the name sapphire refers to all gem-quality corundum that is not red. Red corundum is called ruby. Other colors are specified by a qualifying adjective: green sapphire, yellow sapphire. The word "sapphire" without a qualifier is always reserved for blue sapphire. Colorless sapphire is called "leucosaphir" (from the Greek leukós, "white"), orange sapphire "padparadscha" ("lotus flower" in Sinhalese).

There is no precise boundary between the two varieties, sapphire and ruby. Light-red, pink and violet corundum are generally classified as sapphires, as they have their own appeal compared with corundum of other colors, whereas they would be considered rubies of mediocre quality. Sapphire's blue color is attributed to the presence of iron and titanium.

Most sapphires used in jewelry are heat-treated, i.e. they are heated to high temperatures to improve their color or purity. This heating can be detected by an expert. The presence of treatments can impact the price of your stones, depending on the degree and quality of heating.

There are also a large number of synthetic sapphires fraudulently mounted and sold as natural sapphires. Only an expert appraisal by a gemmologist can help you determine the nature of your stone.

Selling sapphires in Walloon Brabant, Liège or Charleroi

Reselling your sapphires can be complicated, and it is advisable to approach a professional for your transactions.

Caraor has an in-house network of gemologists in Liège, Charleroi and Rixensart who can help you appraise your stones correctly, taking into account various characteristics such as color, nature, potential treatments, saturation, purity, caratage, etc., and give you the fairest possible price.