From Princess Diana's engagement ring to the Star of India, the September birthstone has lived up to its legendary reputation as one of the world's four major precious gemstones. Best known for its rich blue color, sapphires appear in a variety of hues and cuts — each one perfectly designed for any type of special occasion. Whether you're thinking about taking the next step with your partner or want to celebrate that significant September birthday in your life, take a closer look at one of the world's most well-known gemstones.
What Are Sapphires?
Sapphires generally describe the blue variety of the naturally occurring mineral, corundum. However, these stones can come in a variety of colors, including yellow, pink, salmon, green, white, purple, and black, though blue is the most widely found hue. Much like rubies — their red corundum counterparts — sapphires rank significantly higher than many other stones do on the Mohs hardness scale at a 9.0, making them particularly great stones for everyday use. Yet, raw harvests of these gems don't often come jewelry store-ready, and most of them are heat-treated to both enrich the stones' natural deep blue colors and to remove inclusions in the stones that can muddle their clarity.
