Natural Ruby (Yaqoot) Stone in Pakistan

Start with the colour

Most of a ruby's value is in its red. The stones everyone wants are a pure, vivid red or a red with a slight purple touch, the shade the trade calls "pigeon blood". Orange-red, pinkish and brownish stones sit lower, and very dark rubies lose value because they look nearly black in normal light. Once you are happy with the colour, look at:

• Treatment - heating is routine and accepted. Glass-filled (lead-glass) ruby is a different, much cheaper product and has to be declared clearly.
• Clarity - fine silk and small crystals are normal and can soften the colour nicely; cracks and milky patches are what pull the value down.
• Cut - good proportions spread the red evenly and bring out brilliance.
• Size - fine rubies above a carat or two are scarce, so the per-carat rate rises sharply with weight.

Each listing shows the price of that particular ruby; divide by carat weight for the per-carat rate.

Where rubies come from

Burmese ruby from Mogok in Myanmar is the classic benchmark and tops the market. Afghan ruby from Jegdalek and ruby from our own Hunza valley grow in marble and are known for a bright, often pinkish red. Madagascar and Mozambique now supply much of the world's ruby, with good colour at more reachable rates. If we know a stone's origin, the listing says so.

The science in one line

Ruby is aluminium oxide coloured by chromium; at 9 on the Mohs scale it is second only to diamond in hardness, so it is very well suited to a ring you wear every day.

Keeping clear of fakes

Red glass, lab-grown ruby, glass-filled ruby, and red spinel or garnet passed off as ruby are all common in bazaars. Be careful with a flawless stone at a low price, round gas bubbles, or a bluish flash inside cracks, which can point to glass filling. Natural ruby feels cool and heavy for its size and often shows fine silk under a loupe. For an important purchase, independent lab testing is worth having, and our authenticity page explains how we check stones.

Yaqoot and the Sun

Ruby is the July birthstone. In Vedic astrology it is the stone of the Sun (Surya), traditionally set in gold or copper and worn on the ring finger for confidence, vitality and leadership. These are traditions, not guaranteed results; if astrology is why you are buying, ask an experienced astrologer about weight, metal and finger.

Care

Warm soapy water and a soft brush are enough. Keep glass-filled or heavily fractured stones away from ultrasonic cleaners.

Buying ruby from Authentic Gems

We check every ruby before it goes online and state known treatments. Delivery is a flat Rs. 500 by insured, tracked courier: Karachi usually 1 to 2 working days, Lahore, Islamabad, Rawalpindi and other major cities 2 to 4, smaller towns up to about 7. With Cash on Delivery you open the parcel and look at the ruby before you pay, and unused stones can be returned within 7 days under our return policy.