Sapphires come in all kinds of cuts and sizes, from small calibrated gems to large outstanding collector’s items. Padparadscha is a rare and valuable sapphire in a pink-orange colour, named from the Sinhalese word for lotus blossom. This new supply has increased the availability of colours such as yellow, orange, pink and purple. While blue sapphire is the most widely known and most popular colour, new deposits of ‘fancy’ colours found in East Africa and Madagascar in the 1990s has created new interest in these additional colours. Colourless sapphire does occur naturally, it’s just less popular. Trace elements are what colour corundum and make sapphire a gem that comes in so many colours. As silicon is naturally abundant, it makes corundum quite rare. Sapphire is composed of the mineral corundum, a hard combination of aluminium and oxygen in an environment free of silicon. Sapphires can even be white, grey, black, or brown. Some stones exhibit the phenomenon known as color change, most often going from blue in daylight or fluorescent lighting to purple under incandescent light. Colours include blue, violet, green, yellow, orange, pink, purple, and intermediate hues. Sapphire A much loved gem, the sapphire is second in hardness to a diamond and comes in a rainbow of colours, making it a versatile gem with excellent longevity and suitable for all jewellery.

Padparadscha sapphire for sale