Following the silk way
07.12.16
Ever wondered what's inside the royal blues of the Sapphire?
Sapphires are well known for their interesting and beautiful underworld of inclusions. So let's take a short walk through the Silk way.
Silk in a Sapphire gemstone refers to an inclusion, which is composed of tiny needle-like crystals formed in a process called exsolution, the "unmixing" of a solid solution. Needles iridesce come in different patterns depending on the growth conditions. Silk appears more prominent in natural Sapphires, whereas when treated it is altered and disrupted. Sometimes the alignment of these needles can produce an attractive star, a phenomenon called asterism.
In the photo - A quick shot of a sapphire we had in the lab for a full gem report.
IGR London
