Spinel gem and its characteristics
Spinel is a Spanish word and it is derived from the word spinaya epin. This rare gem was discovered for the first time in America, but today it can also be found in Germany, Italy, Russia, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Sweden. Spinel has the formula mgal2o4 and is considered a group of minerals
Spinel is one of the most famous red stones, which is very similar to ruby. These two gemstones are very similar and until the late 19th century there was no distinction between ruby and spinel. Sometimes these two stones have been found in the same place, but there are differences between them. According to some people, ruby was discovered earlier than spinel. For example, it is known that the ruby used in the royal crown of England was spinel
Spinel is a precious stone that has different colors. Pure spinel is colorless, but the impurities of this stone cause different colors of this stone. The most valuable and desirable spinel is a rich red color, although this stone has blue, yellow, pink and purple colors
Spinel often has fluorescent and ultraviolet light, and this can be helpful in its identification. A good ruby is often rarer than spinel, yet this gemstone is less valuable than spinel and nearly 30% cheaper than spinel
Identification of spinel
Spinel is often mistaken for other gemstones such as ruby or sapphire
However, spinel is special because of its crystal shape and its monorefringence
Also, its hardness on the Mohs scale is lower than ruby or sapphire
Lal Badakhshan, origin and sources
Spinel can be found alongside rubies and large deposits of it have been found in Colombia, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand
Other places like Afghanistan, Australia, Brazil, Madagascar, Nepal, Niger, Tajikistan, Tanzania and America have also reached this stone
Spinel color
The rarest and most popular spinel stones are ruby red, cobalt blue, clear pink and clear orange
Lighter colors like purple have a better price
Other popular colors are black, purple-blue, blue-green, gray, light purple, yellow, brown and pink
Clarity and brilliance of spinel
Quality lenses should not show imperfections
Irregularities usually reduce the value of the stone
However, some charms double its beauty
The inclusions in spinel can resemble the shape of octagonal crystals or human fingerprints
Spinel has a glassy luster
Spinel cut and shape
Spinel can be seen in shapes such as square, circle, octagon and shapes such as oval, pear and cushion
Badakhshan Roshan diamonds are rarely more than 5 carats in size
Clear to opaque stones are usually cut
The rare star spinel is also cut to reveal its beauty
What are the stones similar to spinel?
Red spinel can be similar in appearance to ruby, however, spinel has a lighter color compared to ruby and its color is more like brick red, while the red color of ruby is bluish and purple. However, the only way to distinguish these two stones is their optical properties and hardness. Red spinel is closely related to red amber, while the dark red specimen resembles garnet
Blue spinel may resemble zircon, topaz, and sapphire, and pink spinel may resemble morganite, pink topaz, and pink tourmaline. Purple spinel can look similar to amethyst in terms of color, although spinel usually has a more intense blue color than amethyst. The main difference between ruby and spinel is their hardness, so that ruby has a hardness of 9 and spinel has a hardness of 7.5 to 8 on the Mohs scale
Differences between spinel and ruby
Ruby is created by combining corundum with aluminum oxide, while spinel is made of aluminum oxide and magnesium
Ruby crystals are hexagonal, while spinel crystals are isometric and have a rhombic structure
The hardness of ruby is 9 on the mouse scale and spinel is 8, and therefore ruby causes scratches on spinel
The weight of ruby bit is 4.02 to 99.3 carats in the solution where the weight of spinel is between 57.3 to 63.3 carats
Famous spinels
As mentioned, spinel stone is particularly popular among kings and emperors and owners of large capitals. Below are some of the most famous spinel stones used in crowns and jewels of kings and emperors
Prince Black ruby
This spinel stone weighs 179 carats, was used in the crown of the Queen of England and is currently kept in the Tower of London
Spinel of the Samaritans
This famous spinel stone, which is said to be the largest spinel in the world, weighs 500 carats and is considered a part of the royal jewels of Iran
Mughal king’s necklace
In 2011, the spinel stone used in the Mughal Shah’s necklace was sold at Christie’s for $5.2 million. This necklace contains eleven spinel stones, the total weight of which reaches 1131.59 carats
Crown of the Russian Empire
The red spinel used in the Russian imperial crown weighs 398.72 carats, which is currently kept in the Moscow jewelry collection
Ruby Timur Lang
Timur Lang ruby, which is actually spinel, weighs 352.5 carats, which was considered the largest spinel until 1851. Timor Lang spinel is now part of the royal jewels of England
Gemological features of Lal Badakhshan
Chemical formula: MgAl2O4 magnesium aluminum oxide
Crystal shape: cubic, octahedral, binary, rhombic dodecahedral
Color: red, orange, yellow, brown, blue, purple, green, black
Hardness: 8 on the Mohs scale
Refractive index: 1.712 to 1.762
Density: 3.54 to 3.63
Cleavage: unknown
Transparency: transparent to opaque
Bilateral refraction or double light return: no
Transparency: Glass
Luminosity: red, strong: red, blue, weak: reddish, green
