Still today it is the most well known and in demand colored gemstone. Royalty give sapphires over diamonds as engagement rings because they are known to be far rarer than diamonds.
Sapphires are rarer than diamonds, but not so much in comparison to fine-quality emeralds or rubies. However, it's important to note that some types of sapphire are extremely rare. This includes the Padparadscha – a scarce variety that showcases a mix of pink and orange tones.
Tanzanite is a shocking 1000 times more rare than a diamond. Discovered for the first time in 1967 and only found in the foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro, these gemstones go for about $1,500 per carat. Tanzanite has the ability to change color depending on the angle of light it is in.
Ruby: Untreated natural rubies are extremely rare. They are actually significantly rarer than sapphires, which is why they are even more expensive. Emerald: Like sapphires and rubies, emeralds are among the rarest of all gemstones. They are rarer than sapphires but not quite as rare as rubies.
The Rarest Birthstones
For example, April's diamond, though pricey, is less rare than rubies, emeralds, and alexandrite. 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.
Painite : Not just the rarest gemstone, but also the rarest mineral on earth, Painite holds the Guinness World Record for it. After its discovery in the year 1951, there existed only 2 specimens of Painite for the next many decades. By the year 2004, there were less than 2 dozens known gemstones.
A sapphire stone can always be re-cut, so clarity is probably more important. A top quality 1 to 2 carat stone might retail for prices between $800 - $1200 per carat. While quality 2 to 3 carat stones would sell for approximately double the price per carat, so that would be around $1600 - $2000 per carat.
Interestingly, this difference in the value is primarily due to good-quality rubies being rarer than sapphires. This can happen due to the following reasons… The deep red hue of this gemstone is caused by the presence of chromium – an occurrence that does not happen very often during its formation.
Amethyst vs Purple Sapphire
But purple sapphire is more expensive than amethyst too because its much more rare. Fine large examples can be thousands of dollars per carat.
How Rare is Amethyst? Not very rare, it is plentiful, but with all gemstones, the better the color the more rare it is.
Gem Black, Boulder, Crystal and White Opals are the world's #1 most valuable commercially available gemstone, yet they are complex with an exponentially large range of valuation characteristics than Diamonds, Rubies, Emeralds, Sapphires or Tanzanites. is actually 5000 times rarer than diamond.
Sapphires are rare gems, especially when compared to diamonds. The most common color is blue, but deeply saturated blue sapphires with high clarity are difficult to find in nature, making them incredibly valuable. Green emeralds and red rubies are harder to find in nature than sapphires.
They Are Second Only to Diamonds in Durability
The remarkable hardness of sapphires, which measure 9 on the Mohs scale, is second only to diamond. That's why sapphire is one of the few gemstones that make a great alternative for an engagement ring.
However, natural sapphires come in almost every color of the rainbow including pink, rose, violet, yellow, orange, green, blue-green, or white (colorless). The special color combination of pink-orange or orange-pink is known as Padparadscha sapphire, the rarest sapphire color, and a special rarity.
Once considered the main source for rubies, Myanmar (formerly Burma) is now one of several sources for both the pink and red ruby varieties. Pink rubies in particular are found in Sri Lanka more than any other country.
Pink is one of the rarest sapphire colours, caused by chromium trace elements inside the corundum crystal. The deeper the pink, the more chromium is present. Red corundum, however, is called ruby, another gem variety of the same mineral.
Sapphires can cost anywhere from $1,000 to $11,000 per carat, but you'll find good-quality stones at $450 - $1,200 per carat. Emeralds range from $525 to $1,125 per carat.
Blue Sapphires
Color has the greatest influence on a sapphire's value, and preferred sapphires have strong to vivid color saturation. The most valued blue sapphires are velvety blue to violetish blue, in medium to medium-dark tones. Sapphires with these qualities command the highest prices per carat.
Check For Blemishes
Natural sapphires have flaws and inclusions which prove that they came straight from nature. If you look at them with a jeweler's magnifying glass or loupe, you will see small spots and blemishes which occur naturally as the sapphire formed thousands of years ago under the earth.
Silica is one of the most common minerals on the planet, but precious opal is very rare – far more rare than diamonds. Precious opal is rare because the natural processes that create it rarely occur. Most (at least 95%) of the opal found by miners is common opal without gem colour.
Red Beryl. A cousin of emerald, aquamarine, and morganite, the red variety of beryl contains manganese, which imparts a bright red hue. Once called bixbite, red beryl is one of the rarest and most desirable gems.