Hardness 9, Specific gravity 3.96–4.03, Refractive index 1.76–1.78.

A sapphire is a corundum, a crystallized oxide of aluminum. It contains traces of titanium and iron, which are what give sapphires their blue color. If other mineral traces are also present, a sapphire may have a color other than blue, such as yellow, pink, orange, violet, or green. A corundum gem that is not red or blue is known as a “fancy sapphire.” Sapphires have strong refraction, which favors the use of the same brilliant cut that is used on diamonds. Sapphires have a moderate dispersion. They do not have as strong a dispersion as diamonds, and thus they do not share the diamond’s “fire.” Rubies and sapphires, both corundum, are basically the same gem, except that rubies are always red and sapphires can be various colors. But sapphires have the same hardness, specific gravity, and refractive index as rubies. Both sapphires and rubies are second in hardness only to diamonds. Sapphires are mined mainly in Australia, Myanmar (Burma), Kashmir, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Cambodia. Some of the best sapphires come from Sri Lanka. Australian sapphires are deep blue to nearly black. Montana, USA, has metallic blue sapphires. Many of the best blue sapphires come from Kashmir, but production has dropped off greatly due to political strife in that area. Kashmiri sapphires do not change color under electric lights, while sapphires from other places take a navy blue tint under electric lights. Small, needlelike inclusions called rutile silk often deepen the blue and soften the Kashmiri sapphires. Rutile silk often increases the quality of a gem, although it can sometimes cause the gem to lose brilliance, making them of little value. Sapphires usually occur in crystals of twelve-sided prisms. Most sapphires have faults, and some have silky-looking internal patches. It is believed that about ninety percent of sapphires and rubies are heat-treated to increase the quality of their color. This treatment is accepted as bona fide in the gem business, and it is unlikely the trend will change. Slight flaws are also sometimes burnt out of the gems. If a blue sapphire is to be used astrologically, it should not have been heat-treated but should be natural. The gem’s astrological potency is reduced when treated with heat, often to the point of making it useless. Darker stones usually do not have a good effect astrologically. One who wishes to purchase a sapphire should trust the seller to disclose information such as whether the stone in question has been treated or is in its natural state. A sapphire, especially a blue one, should first be worn only after trial. Even a perfect sapphire is sometimes unlucky and will cause trouble to the user. To test a blue sapphire one can wear the gem wrapped in a blue cloth bound around one’s arm for a week. One can also place it under his pillow for three nights. If there is any bad effect, the sapphire should be rejected. Blue Sapphire (Neelam) Cornflower-colored sapphires are considered the most valuable. Blue sapphires without flaws, with evenly distributed color, that are well-cut and brilliant, are the best. Astrologically, blue sapphires and rubies have the same effect, but the value of a blue sapphire is about one fourth the value of an equal quality ruby. Blue sapphires transmit the color violet. In Sanskrit, blue sapphire is known as sauriratna, “sacred to Saturn.”Blue sapphires are less valuable if they are tinted green, light sky blue, dark blue, or purple. Sapphires that are very dark, very light or colorless, have inclusions, external blemishes, internal feathers, or black spots are not good. Astrological Effects of a Blue Sapphire Blue sapphires are the gemstones for Saturn. An ill-placed Saturn in a birth chart can cause poverty and suffering. Wearing blue sapphires can be advantageous for those for whom Saturn is the lord of an auspicious house. If Saturn, as lord of an auspicious house, is afflicted or ill disposed, blue sapphire may help to neutralize its effect. Blue sapphires bring good effects if the right person wears them; if the wrong person wears them, his or her life can be ruined. Blue sapphires are touchy gems; even when they are worn by the proper people, they can bring negative effects on occasion. This is because some gemstones are unlucky. Therefore, blue sapphire should always be worn for a trial period to ascertain whether the particular stone you have purchased will do harm. It is believed that blue sapphires will change color to warn against an enemy’s attack.A good sapphire is brilliant, radiant, and transparent. Its rays should spread out from within, and it should not reflect any color other than its own. A good sapphire is solid. Such a stone will bring the wearer wealth, fame, a good name, health, happiness, prosperity, a long life, mental peace, and good children. Wearing a blue sapphire protects against danger, travel problems, terror, thieves, accidents and problems from storms, fire, or natural disasters. It can cause financial fortunes to change for the better, help with a person’s career, and make the wearer rich. It can free one of mental anxiety. It helps make one detached, and protects against envy. It can be worn for good luck and for protection against evil spirits. Since Saturn rules the nervous system, blue sapphires help problems of the nerves—tension and neuroses—diseases caused by an afflicted Saturn. Because Saturn is the slowest moving planet, it tends to cause chronic disease. Wearing a blue sapphire may help cure bad blood, mental problems, headache, vomiting, deafness, fainting, and may make the bones stronger. It can be worn to protect against heart problems, or by a person suffering from alcoholism. But beware of flawed sapphires. A cracked gem may attract accidents. A stone with a depression may cause ulcers or boils. A milky stone may cause poverty. If a stone is two-colored, there may be trouble from an enemy. If it is dull or opaque, it may cause family problems. If it is marked with white lines, it may cause eye troubles. If it has red dots, it can cause poverty. Those who choose to wear blue sapphires should choose stones that are at least two carats—and ideally at least five carats. Such stones should be set in rings made of steel (iron), and if necessary, ashta dhatu, an alloy of eight metals, which are gold, silver, copper, tin, zinc, mercury, lead and iron. They can also be set in rings of gold and silver. The proper rituals should be performed to install the gem. The ring should be worn on the middle of the right hand on a Saturday, two hours to two hours and forty minutes before sunset. A ring should be made when Saturn is in its exalted, well-placed sign—Libra—or in a friendly constellation. The gem should not be worn if Saturn is debilitated in the birth chart. Blue sapphires can be worn during an eclipse. The mantra to be chanted for blue sapphire: Om sham shanaischaraya namaha (chanted 108 times). It is also good to chant Om shanti shanti shanti. The stotra of invocation: Om nilanjana samabhasam, ravi putra yama agrajam, chaya martanda sambhratam, tam namami sanaiscaram. The substitutes for blue sapphire are: blue zircon, blue tourmaline, amethyst, indicolite, blue spinel and lapis lazuli. If lapis lazuli or amethyst are used, the stones should be at least five to ten carats—as they are weaker than blue sapphire. Because Saturn is not compatible with the Sun, Moon, and Mars, blue sapphire and its substitutes should not be worn with ruby, pearl, or red coral. Some also say a blue sapphire should not be worn with a yellow sapphire. The exception is when the setting includes the Navaratna (Nine Gems). The cosmic number relating to blue sapphire is eight. Sapphire deals with air, touch, skin, and the nervous system. It is related to the fourth chakra, Anahata (lower chest). Black cloth, a black thread, a black pearl, and the number eight can also sometimes help ease an afflicted Saturn.   Yellow Sapphire A good quality yellow sapphire should be flawless, have a lemony color, have no spots, feel smooth when touched, be evenly colored, feel heavy when held in the palm, and should look clean, solid, without layers, and have a good shape. A light-colored, transparent yellow stone will have a good effect. A good quality gem looks better when it is rubbed on a testing stone. If a yellow sapphire is dull, does not possess a yellow radiance, looks dried up, has a blackish or brownish tinge to its yellow color, or is a mixed red and yellow or a whitish yellow, is not symmetrical, or when touched, feels rough like sand, it is not considered a good gem. Also, if the yellow sapphire has black, droplike spots on it, it is best not to purchase that stone. Good quality yellow sapphires come from Brazil, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Myanmar (Burma), Cambodia, Australia, Africa, Tasmania, Japan, and Mexico. Sri Lanka and India (selling Sri Lankan stones) are generally the best places to purchase natural, untreated yellow sapphires.   Astrological Effects of a Yellow Sapphire Yellow sapphire is the gemstone for Jupiter and is ruled by Jupiter. Wearing a yellow sapphire attracts Jupiter’s blessings. If Jupiter is lord of an auspicious house, then yellow sapphire will be useful. An astrologer may prescribe yellow sapphire for those who have a weak but well-placed Jupiter. They are good for persons born under the solar sign, Sagittarius. If in a birth chart, Jupiter is in any constellation that the Sun is transiting, such as Kritika, Phalguni, or Ashada, a yellow sapphire may be recommended.Yellow sapphires are often heat-treated to make them a darker golden yellow. While this makes them more saleable, it makes them basically useless for astrological purposes. A good quality yellow sapphire gives the wearer happiness, fortune, prosperity, intelligence, fame, good name, wealth, comfort, good health, a long life, and blesses women with good children. There can be an immediate financial change for the better shortly after putting on a yellow sapphire. Yellow sapphires can also give one a more philosophical attitude toward life, and aid meditation and concentration. Yellow sapphire protects its wearers from evil spirits. It is believed that if a woman having difficulty getting married or with marriage problems wears a yellow sapphire, the obstructions to her happiness will be removed. Yellow sapphires can also help women to become pregnant. Yellow sapphires are recommended for those taking part in business, and those interested in spiritual pursuits, such as preaching, yoga, meditation, and study. It is good to wear yellow sapphires when taking long journeys or if one travels often. Yellow sapphires transmit the color light blue. This is a cold color, and thus it helps improve diseases concerning the glands, liver, and endocrine system. Yellow sapphires can help improve pancreas problems, jaundice, the fat systems in the body, and cerebral problems. They can also strengthen the immune system, and help one gain needed weight. Yellow sapphires affect the ears and body fat. A defective gem will cause the wearer trouble. If the gem is milky, the wearer may receive an injury; if it has red dots, he or she may lose wealth; if it is cracked, one might suffer a theft; if it has webs, it may cause stomach problems; if it has a depression, it causes anxiety and mental disturbance. If the gem lacks luster or is opaque, one may suffer from family problems or at the hands of one’s enemies. Depending on one’s occupation, different colored yellow sapphires should be worn. A priest, teacher, scientist, or intellectual should wear a whitish yellow stone. A ruler, soldier, or administrator should wear rosy yellow. A businessman, farmer, or banker should wear yellow. A laborer or servant should wear blackish yellow.Yellow sapphire should not usually be worn if according to the birth chart, Jupiter is lord of the sixth, eighth, or twelfth house. A yellow sapphire should be set in a gold ring on a Thursday. It is advised not to use a gem of less than two carats, but avoid gems of exactly six, eleven, or fifteen carats. Best is a gem of either seven or thirteen carats. The proper rituals should be performed to install the gem, and the following mantra chanted: Om brim brihaspataye namaha om. The ring should be worn on the index finger (Jupiter’s finger, next to the thumb) or the ring finger of the right hand. It should first be worn on a Thursday morning of the bright half of the lunar month (when the moon is waxing), within an hour before sunrise. It is best to first put on the ring when Jupiter is in its own sign, in Cancer, in an exalted or friendly sign, or in the constellations of Pushya (best), Vishaka, Purvabhadrapada, or Punarvasu. Some authorities say it is best if Jupiter is at a favorable angle or in the same house as the Moon. The substitutes for yellow sapphire are yellow zircon, yellow topaz, yellow pearl, heliodor, citrine quartz (should be at least five carats), and yellow tourmaline. Because Jupiter is not compatible with Mercury and Venus, yellow sapphire should not be worn with emerald or diamond. Some authorities also say that yellow sapphire should not be worn with blue sapphire, cat’s eye, or gomedha.The cosmic color to be enhanced is light blue, and the cosmic number is three. The affected element is ether, and the affected sense sound. The affected chakra is the sixth, Ajna, in the middle of the head, just above the eyes. Stotra of invocation: Om devanam ca rishinam ca, gurum kanja nasam nibham, budhyi bhutam trilokesam, tam namami brihaspatim.   Padparadscha Padparadscha is the most valuable of the fancy (non-blue) sapphires. Padmaraga means “lotus flower.” Lotus flowers come in many colors, but the original color is a pinkish-orange. Padparadscha is this color. A true padparadscha has to have a harmonious blend of both colors spread in an even way throughout the entire gem. Some stones may look good from the top but when viewed from the side, show a distinct separation of colors. Such a gem is not a padparadscha but just a fancy sapphire. Some authorities believe padparadscha can only be found in Sri Lanka.Padparadscha has a good effect on couples desiring children. They can also be favorable for those having trouble getting a promotion or transfer to a better location. Padparadschas should be worn near sunrise on a Thursday. If you know of information that is not listed here, or if you would like to help update our listings, please e-mail us at: