Red Ruby Stones

The word ruby comes from the Latin rubens, which means red. Rubies are found in many shades of red, from rich darkish red to pigeon blood red and pinkish red. The red hue comes from traces of the mineral chromium. Ruby is the same chemical structure as sapphires, known as corundum, but only the red corumdum is known as ruby, all other colours are known as sapphire – but yes, they are the same mineral!

As with all colours, individual perception may differ and it is sometimes hard to determine by which name it should go. Pink is the boundary line between rubies and sapphires since pink is commonly considered a light tone of red, so you will often see some of the reddish pink looking stones, or red stones with other colours mixed in, being called either way.

“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” – W. Shakespeare

And just like sapphires, almost all rubies have flaws – rubies without imperfections are exceptionally rare. In fact, that is one way that a ruby is authenticated – if it has no inclusions, it is likely not a genuine ruby!