Sapphire

Gem corundum of any color except red. Blue sapphire gets its color from iron and titanium.

Sapphire specimen — Photo: James St. John, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

How to identify sapphire

Hardness 9 — only diamond scratches it.
Barrel or tapered six-sided crystals.
Heavy for its size.

Often confused with

Iolite
Iolite is much softer and changes from blue to almost clear as you rotate it.
Compare side by side
Tanzanite
Tanzanite is softer and more violet.
Compare side by side
Kyanite
Kyanite forms blades and is scratched by a knife along its length.
Compare side by side

Where it's found

Sri Lanka
Madagascar
Kashmir
Yogo Gulch, Montana

Uses

Gemstones.

Rock tumbling

Can be tumbled with care. Very slow to round.

Did you know?

Kashmir's legendary velvety-blue sapphires were mined mainly in the 1880s.

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