How to Tell If a Ruby is Real
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Some of the beautiful engagement rings and pendant necklaces in the market have rubies. As with any nice gemstone, looking for the authenticity of your jewellery is significant. This is true, especially when shopping the jewellery from an independent or a nontraditional source retailer.
It’s a good idea to inquire from a qualified jewellery expert or a certified gemologist, but you can also use some methods (home tricks) to determine whether ruby is fake or real. Before looking at these methods, here is a list of fake rubies:
- Garnets
Garnets are attractive gemstone and can produce a piece of gorgeous looking jewelry and are readily available at a pocket-friendly price. The gemstones contain reddish silicate materials that are dark in color and are not precious in comparison to rubies. They are less durable as they have a Mohs ranking of 7.5. Rubies have a ranking of 9.
Garnets have a burgundy or mahogany hue and are somewhat dull in terms of appearance. A true ruby has a bright red and a deep color that is sometimes referred to as ‘stoplight red’.
- Tourmalines
This type of ruby is readily available in the market but not a valuable gemstone. It is made of clear silicates with dark red hues. Tourmaline is not hard and features a 7 to 7.5 Mohs scale.
- Ruby composite
These gemstones contain extremely low-quality rubies made of glass. When it comes to ruby composite, unwanted matter like debris and foreign materials are extracted from the low-quality corundum that’s reddish in color. After that, the spaces and cavities that remain behind after removing the foreign particles are filled using heated liquid glass.
- Red-Colored Glass
This gemstone is not valuable and doesn’t sound glamorous. Glass ‘rubies’ do not last for a long time and are cheap. Furthermore, they are hard to identify. When you perform a comparison between a red glass and the ruby, you can easily use your verdict to check whether they look the same. Make sure you hold the two things together close to light then check for the differences in appearance and structure. Doing this will provide you with some little indication.
Having known the fake rubies, here is a list of methods to use to see whether ruby is real or fake:
- Look For A Professional Assistance
A good way to know your stone’s origin is looking for a professional gemologist. He will be able to study the stone using his gemological instruments and later explain to you its origin.
To do this properly, make sure you look for a jeweler with a positive reputation. Sometimes it’s nice to look out for existing reviews available for your preferred professional and customer reviews concerning them.
Furthermore, ensure you ask the expert to give you an appraisal certificate that will provide proof concerning the value of the ruby.
- Perform A Scratch Test
Rubies are very stones with a range of 9 at the Mohs scale. It ranks second after diamond in terms of durability, which means only a hard object like a diamond can scratch it.
Scratch its surface using a coin, or a key then check properly check whether scratch marks have been formed. If you spot any, then your stone is fake. True ruby stone is hard and can’t be scratched easily.
- Look for Minuscule Flaws
A genuine ruby has small invisible flaws unless you use a microscope. Also, there are natural imperfection stains all over the stone. The reason being, biological rubies only exist in dangerous and erratic areas beneath the earth and are subject to debris and imperfections.
Mostly, rubies have tiny flaws that will force you to hire a professional gemologist to see them using the spectroscopy process. The process is possible under high magnification with special instruments.
Also, you can use a quality jeweler to study your ruby at home if you want to spot the flaws.
On the other hand, synthetic rubies don’t have flaws, so if your gemstone is flawless, then it’s probably an imitation or a synthetic stone
- Do a Rub Test
Here, you will be determining whether the ruby will fade its color or not. Pick your ruby stone then scratch it on a rough and smooth surface, such as on a glass surface. If you spot some red color streaks on the surface, then the stone is fake. A natural ruby never leaves color in such a manner.
However, one disadvantage with the rubbing test is that you can’t tell whether your ruby stone is natural and real if the test doesn’t produce some color traces behind. One can only be sure that it’s not a real ruby when it does.
- Size And Price
Genuinely grown rubies are too costly. To get some knowledge of price differences, a fake ruby is approximately 90% cheaper in comparison to a natural ruby, while a synthetic ruby is almost 20% cheaper. If you happen to land at a cheap ruby, it’s fake. When it’s sold at an overly low and reasonable price, then it’s perhaps a synthetic stone.
It’s hard to get a large-sized natural ruby (and if you get one, it will be priced exponentially). When the ruby is a bit large, there are high possibilities that it’s a fake or synthetic ruby.
How can you tell if a ruby is real at home?
Use the ruby to scratch a hard and yet smooth surface, such as a piece of glass. If there is a streak of red color left behind on the surface, then it is clear that your stone is a fake. A real ruby will never leave color in that way.
How much is a real ruby worth?
Colour | Carat | Price Per Carat (USD) |
---|---|---|
– | 2.0 – 3.0 | $10,000 – $25,000 |
– | 5.0+ | $80,000+ |
Vivid Red – Mozambique Unheated | 1.0 – 2.0 | $7000 – $15,000 |
Pinkish Red – Burma Unheated | 1.0 – 2.0 | $3000 – $12,000 |
How can you tell a quality ruby?
The finest ruby has a pure, vibrant red to slightly purplish red color. In most markets, pure red colors command the highest prices and ruby with overtones of orange and purple are less valued. The color must be neither too dark nor too light to be considered finest quality.
How can you tell the difference between a ruby and a garnet?
Are garnets worth any money?
What month is ruby birthstone?
What is the rarest birthstone?
Do all months have 2 birthstones?
While on the topic of alexandrite, this is currently the rarest gemstone on the birthstone list and can come at quite a cost. Black opals are also incredibly rare.
What does it mean if your birthstone is a ruby?
What is the ugliest gemstone?
The July birthstone, ruby, was regarded by ancient Hindus as the “king of gems.” It was believed to protect its wearer from evil. Today, the ruby’s deep-red color signifies love and passion.
What is the prettiest birthstone?
What is ruby color?
Is Ruby rarer than diamond?
How much is a 1 carat ruby?
Is Ruby expensive than diamond?
The method I used to determine the value is by first categorizing the stone based on the 4Cs + OT method.
How much does a 2 carat ruby cost?
How big is a 1 carat ruby?
Size | V. Fine | Mid. Range |
---|---|---|
under 1 ct. | call | $300-450 |
1 carat size | call | $450-650 |
2 carat size | call | $600-800 |
3 carat size | call | $600-800 |
What is a purple ruby?
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