Color

In ruby, sapphire, emerald and other gemstones color is the main criteria in determining it value. Most individuals when they inquire about ruby, sapphire and emeralds, they expect these precious gemstones to have similar color grading system as diamonds. Unfortunately, there is no standardized system that is used to derive the value of these gemstones. There is a good reason for this as is explained below.

The reason is simple: Gemstones such as Ruby, Sapphire & Emeralds have many unique colors, tones and hues which are numerous in quantity. Also, to make a judgment that which color, tone or hue is better is subjective and depends on who is observing the gem. Meanwhile, in diamonds it is very clear and straightforward to judge its color. Diamonds are graded on the basis of how colorless it is and not graded on tone, saturation or the type of color. In fact, this degree of colorless can now be traced by computers and thus a lot of the highly reputable laboratories use computers to grade the color of diamonds.

However, in gemstones such as ruby, sapphire and emeralds, it is not possible to do this. In gemstones there are three aspects of color which have to be evaluated: a) Color purity b) Saturation of color c) Color Hue . The issue in hand is that color interpretations of gemstones are unique and reflect the personal preference of an individual and thus there is no way of accurately determining which nuance of color or the type of saturation of color is superior to another. As a result, due to the many variations of color purity, color tones and hues and the difficulty in determining which variation is superior it is impossible to come up with a standardized system of grading color for gemstones.

GemsNY uses its own terminology to define various types of colors that exist among sapphires, rubies and emeralds.

Color (FOR BLUE SAPPHIRES)

Intense - This is the highest color grading for our blue sapphires. Color of these sapphires is as deep of a blue a sapphire can get without turning opaque or being overly colored. Brilliance of these sapphires is also excellent.

Vivid - Color of these blue sapphires is a shade less of a blue than intense. Such sapphires have extremely rich blue vivid color and are highly sought after.

Royal - Such blue sapphires have as rich of a color as intense blue but don't have as much brilliance as an intense blue sapphire. Such sapphires are still quite rare and in demand.

Medium - Such sapphires are very pleasant to the eyes as they are not too dark or too light and have very good brilliance to them. These sapphires generally have 50 to 70% color saturation.

Sky - Such sapphires are lighter than medium blue sapphires and generally have color saturation of 20-40%. These sapphires have excellent brilliance and exude significant white reflections and also often are referred to as pastel blue sapphires.

Navy - Sapphires of this color offer a great value as the color of the stones is a pleasant deep blue but have fair to good brilliance.

Midnight - These sapphires have bluish black color and are opaque.

Color (FOR YELLOW SAPPHIRES)

Vivid - This is the highest color grading for our yellow sapphires. Color of these sapphires is as deep of a yellow a sapphire can get without turning opaque or being overly colored. Brilliance of these sapphires is also excellent.

Intense - Color of these yellow sapphires is a shade less of a yellow than vivid. Such sapphires have extremely rich yellow vivid color and are highly sought after.

Yellow - Having a medium yellow color such sapphires are very pleasant to the eyes as they are not too dark or too light and have very good to excellent brilliance to them. These sapphires generally have 50 to 70% color saturation. .

Light - Such sapphires are lighter than medium yellow sapphires and generally have color saturation of 20-40%. These sapphires have excellent brilliance and exude significant white reflections and also often are referred to as pastel yellow sapphires.

Golden - These sapphires offer a great combination of golden and yellow colors. They are unique and are in demand.

Color (FOR PINK SAPPHIRES)

Vivid - This is the highest color grading for our pink sapphires. Color of these sapphires is as deep of a pink a sapphire can get without turning opaque or being overly colored. Brilliance of these sapphires is also excellent.

Medium - Color of these pink sapphires is two shade less of a pink than vivid. Such sapphires have good saturation of pink and are a great value as they are not as expensive as the vivid pink and still offer a good saturation. These sapphires generally have 50 to 70% color saturation.

Baby - Such sapphires are lighter than medium pink sapphires and generally have color saturation of 20-40%. These sapphires have excellent brilliance.

Soft - These are very light pink sapphires with color saturation of 15-20%.

Color (FOR PURPLE SAPPHIRES)

Vivid - This is the highest color grading for our purple sapphires. Color of these sapphires is as deep of a purple a sapphire can get without turning opaque or being overly colored. Brilliance of these sapphires is also generally excellent.

Medium - Color of these purple sapphires is two shade less of a purple than vivid. Such sapphires have good saturation of purple and are a great value as they are not as expensive as the vivid purple and still offer a good saturation of purple. These sapphires generally have 50 to 70% color saturation.

Light - Such sapphires are lighter than medium purple sapphires and generally have color saturation of 20-40%. These sapphires have excellent brilliance.

Purplish Blue - These sapphires offer a great combination of purple and blue colors. They are unique and are in demand.

Color (FOR WHITE SAPPHIRES)

Snow White - This is the highest color grading for our white sapphires. These sapphires are absolutely colorless! Meaning they are as pure of a white color as sapphires can get.

White - These sapphires have nice white color but sometimes can have a very slight touch of yellow in them. These sapphires offer a great value and are highly sought after due to their reasonableness.

Color (FOR RUBY)

Pigeon Blood Red - This is the highest color grading for our rubies. Color of these rubies is as deep of a red a ruby can get without turning opaque or being overly colored. Brilliance of these rubies is excellent.

Deep Red - Such rubies have as rich of a color as pigeon blood red rubies but don't have as much brilliance. Such rubies are still quite rare and in demand.

Red - Two step lighter than pigeon blood red rubies, such rubies offer tremendous value as they are significantly cheaper than the 'pigeon blood' rubies yet still offer a soothing red color.

Purplish Red - Most common color among Burmese rubies. These rubies have nice medium red color with a touch of purple to them.

Pinkish Red - Most affordable rubies we have. These rubies have an even mixture of pink and red.

Color (FOR EMERALDS)

Intense Green - This is the highest color grading for our emeralds. Color of these emeralds is as deep of a green an emerald can get without turning opaque or being overly colored. Brilliance of these emeralds is also excellent.

Vivid Green - Color of these emeralds is a shade less of a green than intense. Such emeralds have extremely rich green vivid color and are highly sought after.

Deep Green - Such emeralds are overly green (which is preferred by many people). Such stones generally don't have as much brilliance as the intense green stones, due to the depth of saturation of color, but are preferred by a lot of consumers because they are significantly less in price than an intense green emerald. Such emeralds are still quite rare and in demand.

Medium Green - Such emeralds are very pleasant to the eyes as they are not too dark or too light and have very good brilliance to them. These emeralds generally have 50 to 70% color saturation.

Soft Green - Such emeralds are lighter in color than medium green emeralds and generally have color saturation of 20-40%. These emeralds have very good to excellent brilliance.

So What Is The Right Color Grade For You?

Common sense and your subjective preferences in color will be the ultimate guide in choosing the right color. Something that looks very beautiful to you is most likely to appeal to other people as well, as people tend to have generally similar opinions in what shades of color seem to be nicer than others. As we have been selling sapphires for over 20years, we know that sapphires which are too dark and look more black than blue are going to be significantly cheaper than stones which are nice medium intense blue and have very good brilliance. This is how prices are set in the industry as well, the color shades which are more appealing to the general public are going to cost more than stones which are not.