Star Sapphire

Item Description

Here we have a beautiful Star Sapphire gem from Sri Lanka. These particular stones are typically labeled as "black", but they actually have a dark almost metallic bronze hue with a slight golden metallic overtone when strongly lit. "Star" gems are a special category where the stones show a multi-rayed star (typically 6 or 4 rays) when the gem is viewed under a strong concentrated light source. That being said, when it comes to "star" gems, Sapphires are almost certainly the best-known examples. These gems are cut when a piece of Sapphire rough is positioned by a skilled gem cutter to correctly orient the thin, fibrous inclusions inside of the Sapphire at the correct angle to properly show off the "legs" of the star when the piece is polished. When these inclusions are numerous enough, they allow light to be reflected in such a way that a six-ray star floats across the top of the stone when rotated in the light. It is an amazing phenomenon (called asterism) that is only seen in a few gems around the world. This is a good representative Star Sapphire from this locality, and the actual "legs" of the star in this stone are pretty good, but you really do need a concentrated light to see them properly.