Star Sapphires and Pretenders
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 30 ก.ย. 2024
- Rarer than most faceted sapphires, a high quality star sapphire is highly valuable. How do you know you're not getting a fake one? Let's find out.
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I saw someone wearing a star sapphire ring and it was so beautiful. I asked permission to touch it and she let me roll the stone around to see the star move around. AMAZING!!!!
The stone was fully round)
Star sapphires are indeed enthralling. I'm a huge fan.
I learned a few things! Thank you! Im a gem hoarder, a jtv junkie,... I have a little bit of star sapphire, cut and beads too! Love gems and need to find a gem cutter for a 17+ ct salon sapphire I have. Ive got lots of goodies to play with and make jewelry but thats my money maker! Dad was a GIA graduate.
Welcome to the channel. There's lots of excellent cutters in Thailand and elsewhere that can definitely serve your stone. If you'd like some options, send me an email. You can contact me through gemshepherd.com
Got ahold of a black star sapphire. Wasnt sold as that, but I noticed it. Not super strong, but definitely there. Natural for sure. Weighs 85 ct!
What a whopper
Are the rays kinda a golden color?
@@Infamous41 the colour of the rays will be dependent on the inclusions that create the rays. Some mineral needles can form silver, and others golden. In rare cases there are multiple stars overlaying (famously, though rarely, in black star sapphire), and they can be two different colours.
Peter- here's an idea for a future video, maybe. I'm a "craft jeweler", meaning I'm mostly self-taught, but I love using NATURAL stones. I'd love to hear your opinion on what stones offer the best "bang for your buck," in other words, which stones are more-or-less affordable, but can still be really pretty. Zircon, maybe? Spessartite? (I've bought a few after watching your video, and I like them a lot, but not many have that bright Fanta orange color... overimaginative seller descriptions, I think) What do you think about Maderia citrine? Thanks for all you've taught me- best, BG
A fantastic suggestion Brian, and thanks for mentioning it. This is exactly the road I am wanting to go - so keep an eye out for more in the near future ^_^
This is a similar path to what I'm taking, as well. I see a big market for natural only stones in jewelry, especially the phenomenal ones. A lot of people just don't know about them, and when you show them, it sparks interest.
My stepfather was an amateur self gemologist. He passed before he could finish the wedding ring he was making me. He knew everything I loved and was devastated when the setting was too big and he wasn't able to keep working as the cancer advanced.
Typically he got synthetics and as he got older he started getting natural stones. Thanks for helping me see he got me a natural star sapphire (my favorite stone) I am now taking over as the amiture gemologist and I hope to wear that ring compleated someday.
Sorry to hear about your loss. I'm glad my video has brought some small measure of closure on that adventure.
@GemologyforSchmucks more than that. It brought me peace
I have a black star fire ring and wonder if you can tell me more about what to look for. I am not able to see the back because of the setting. What are the inclusions of a black star fire stone and mine only have 4 rays not six
In this situation you'd want to take it through the standard gem identification process. If it has 4 rays, that is an indicator that it is likely something other than a sapphire, so starting with an R.I. would be my first suggestion.
So.. a 12 ray star sapphire with rutile and hematite, silver and gold, would be impossible to create in a lab right?
To my understanding, at this stage in history yes. The liklihood of them figuring out a process with two different minerals is statistically very low, and I'd expect the research gem labs to cover it quite heavily. Natural stars are quite distinctive BECAUSE of their inclusions, not in spite of them. The evidence is there to show us what is to the left or to the right.
@@GemologyforSchmucks fantastic! Thanks for letting me know.
Hi Peter, just discovered your channel and subscribed right away. Thank you for making these very informative videos. Love your videos and your personality.❤❤❤Too bad I just found out from this video that the star sapphire ring I bought from a famous high-end jewellery store "B**ks" using the savings from my very first job has a synthetic stone! 😭 Guess I don't need to feel bad about selling the ring to recoup the cost of the gold, at least. Can you do a video on 12-ray star sapphires too. I have 3 and I hope they are not synthetics too 😅 (I think they are natural as I can see the partial hexagonal banding in one of them, the visible iridescent silk/needles in all, the 12-ray stars look like one golden 6-ray star superimposed on a fainter white coloured 6-ray star)
Hi Austin ~ knowledge comes from such experiences, so I wouldn't worry about it too much, though i'm sure it will also help you to not make the same decision twice. On the 12 ray stars, if they are indeed natural (which has a fairly high likelihood) those are a very cool item and have a market with collectors of rare specimens. I don't have any specimens of this myself, so i'll have to wait on doing any kind of video on the topic. Congrats on the cool find~!
@@GemologyforSchmucks Hi Peter, since you said you don’t have a 12-ray black star sapphire. Can I send you one?
My Srilankan friend from a mining family gave me a beautiful large sharp star sapphire. It has a large surface reaching inclusion near the base of the cabochon… should I just cut that off/repolish or just leave it?
Should you or should you not? that is really up to you. For me, the first question would be, how does it improve the face up beauty of the stone, and second, how does it improve the set-ability of the stone. If it doesn't change either of those things, I personally wouldn't mess with it and just enjoy it.
I have natural ruby star ,
Who inscribed the L on the stones ? Are they completely fake or just treated?
L is typical with "Lindy" synthetic star sapphires. There are a few other companies that use another mark, and some companies that use no mark on their synthetics~
Your video is very informative. Do you know of any good gemstone dealers that sell lab created star sapphires?
Thank you, There are a few in Thailand. If you head to gemshepherd.com and send me an email, we can talk further about possibilities.
Great presentation and info, thank you!
Thanks - i'm glad to be of service.
New to your channel.. you are delightful! Glad to be here.
Thanks ~ I'm glad to have you.
I got a star sapphire ring with garnet in a auction there is banding it oooks like your stone with the corner piece I think it’s real there’s no L the hardness is 9 it’s not a flat bottom there seems to be real flaws like normal crystals idk how to tell tho honesty
Synthetic and natural sapphires will both be a 9 mohs hardness. If you can find the needle inclusions under magnification, that would help you to be certain it is a natural stone.
Happy Halloween Peter, I went as you this year lol. I couldn't grow my beard like yours ofcourse but I did alright. No one knew who I was 🤣🤣
HAH! Well I hope you had a bandana, plenty of rings and solid banter to make up for the beard then ;)
@@GemologyforSchmucks oh I went the whole 9 bud. It was a blast.
Hello I have a picture of a ring would you be able to tell from a picture of it is a real gem or not?
Hi Walter,
In general, identifying gems from a photo isn't reliable, as there are too many variables in what stones are versus how they look. If you don't test them with instruments and examine inclusions under magnification and in varied lighting conditions, it's easy for even professionals to make dangerous mistakes.
With star sapphires its often more straight forward to see if they're synthetic, and there are several examples in this video you're commenting on. I would look for those features I described if you have that ring in your possession. Best of luck to you.
-Peter
@@GemologyforSchmucks thank you for your response. I will identify with all your tips and make an intuitive decision. Thank you and I enjoy your video’s.
New to your channel :-) you had an epic intro!
Thanks very much~ I do enjoy a good intro.
I just found a blue star saffire in a bag of gravel I bought...
excellent~ I hope you enjoy it.
amazing intro, thanks❤️
Thanks very much~ I believe that intros are essential to any quality conversation XD
Yea, quite impressive.
Amazing,😮
Thank you~
He talks too much but all you see his hands dancing lol
I'm sure there are folks out there that would agree with you. For my part, I try to keep a balance of quantity of words and meaning.
AI CHAN!!!!!!!😢
They look beautiful btw
Thank you ~ i'm a big fan of stars myself. There's a video on their value points coming out in the next week or so too~
Can you tell if they’re real with a black light or anything else?
A loupe will be useful with star sapphires if you know what sort of inclusion scenes you are looking for. A black light provides very limited info with a handful of gems.
How are Star Sapphires identified when they are still in the rough?
@@Zeknif1 sometimes using a drop of water or honey~ its pretty cool to see. If I come across star rough, I hope to get some video footage to share with everyone.
@@GemologyforSchmucks That would be neat to see!
I have question , could the sapphires that are fractured be heated up enough to state of molton rock and then cooled to get rid of fracture or would it cost too much ?
Hi Pepsi - In some high-heat treating processes, this is exactly what happens, particularly when they use borax to encase the stone. That said, its important to know that remelted crystal material is then considered synthetic, so the price of the final gemstone drops considerably if there has been much of this human aided "repair." After all, gemstones get a large part of their value from rarity.
@@GemologyforSchmucks thanks
I found a big red one that looks like a heart that I can look inside of and see constellations or stars it looks big inside what is it it is redish brown can I send a pic
Hi Kimberly, attached below is a video that dives into some of the complexities of identifying gems from a picture/video.
th-cam.com/video/4RxN6GXizsY/w-d-xo.htmlsi=AeYzXuGTbI-4dkhO
@@GemologyforSchmucks do u have an email I can send I watched them
hi,thanks for helping us,can u talk about amethyst?is there sentetic amethyst?
HI ~ the short answer is: yes there is synthetic quartz. It's a super interesting story (for nerds like me) because the technology was one of the latest to develop, but it's also one of the most common gem materials on the planet. Fortunately, natural and synthetic quartz rough are not so expensive to buy typically. For identification, there are some inclusions that can show natural growth, but otherwise its something you'll need to send to an advanced lab if you have a very clean piece.
@@GemologyforSchmucks thank you for your time,well i am a nerd too🤭🤭.is there a way that i send u a picture?its important for me i need to know this amethyst is natural or not.
@@daykangemcutting8679 You will need a gemologist to test the stone in person. If they're unable to see natural inclusions then you'll need to send it to an advanced lab.
@@GemologyforSchmucks thank you for your time. 🌹🌹🌹🌹
So...i only owned 2 rings in my life (purchased about 45 years ago as a teen)...a tiger eye and a star sapphire...I think it is a "linde" synthetic...My question is...why is it all scratched/roughened on top? If it is a synthetic, it should still be hardness 9 and therefore unlikely to do this under "normal wear" environment. My tiger eye is also scratched, but i can see why ( hardness of 7)...is it possible that the star sapph is not even synthetic?
Does the star move independently of the stone? like if you take the stone which is still on a surface (or your hand steady on a table etc) and take a light source above the stone, does the star move with the direction of light?
There are a number of simulants for stars (aka not natural or synthetic corundum), but not super common. The synthetic stars are quite plentiful (and therefore comparatively inexpensive and with less simulants). As to why it's scratched up, a 9 on the mohs scale is still soft compared to some other objects in the world, just harder than most other GEMS. If you were wearing the stone while messing around with carbide tools or something like that, or if you stored it at any time near any diamond jewelry then that could rough it up really quickly.
@@GemologyforSchmucks Wow thanks, i will have to think about the environments that i have suffered my poor little star through... I assume my work (for 27 years) at a nuclear powered plant and the radioactivity is NOT the cause of the roughened areas...
@@superfluity-of-naughtiness777 I expect not the textural roughness no. Perhaps it might be the cause of your supernatural powers, but that would require additional investigation, of course. (Dials Black Mesa) Hi, is Gordon back from coffee break yet?
it might be all scratched up because it was improperly stored with as hard or harder gemstones like diamond rubbing against it - or it might be a softer real star gemstone other than sapphire
Like share subscribe !. All romania love peter nelson
Woohoo~! I'm honoured to be loved by Romania :D
Thanks for the explanation..
My pleasure~
Have you ever seen a ruby star have a dark circle underneath only translucent maybe 2mm into the stone
Trying to imagine. Perhaps its haunted?
@@GemologyforSchmucks Honestly would love to know more because I have had the stone tested and comes out star ruby I do have some like on your video with the mark but this stone is clean and I purchased it from a GIA certified geologist that is retired selling some of his collection I purchased the one star ruby along with a andalusite some kunzite and a few Australian opals oh and I can't forget some small color changing shapphires.
No body could fool you since there is an app for stones! Technology has gone far my friend! I buy at least 2 stones per a week from Sri Lanka! I just spot the scammers right away!
Technology has gone too far indeed. I've yet to see any of the dealers in our building trusting an app when they buy high valued gemstones however. Buyer beware as they say.
App??
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Thank you very much for the knowledge ... It will be very helpful for me as an amateur gem and crystal collector ..
Im glad my work has been helpful to you
Hey Peter, I was wondering if the ‘Star Sapphire’ was going to do the rounds. Now, it seems there is a lot more to these than meets the eye. I’ve seen some obvious fakes where the Star doesn’t even move over the surface, but it seems now to be more complicated. I own one; I’ve not studied it closely but it’s a cabochon with a really rough back. Surface wise is perfect with a sharp star. I’ll have to get it out and give it a close inspection now. I hope you are well. Thanks for another great share. Rog from Wales 🏴.
Hello 👋 I sent message e mailed. No answer
@@kenthemachinist4886 - about Star Sapphires?
I do LOVE stars. The major trick that everyone needs to be careful of (and i'm looking for a good stone example for... that isnt expensive XD) is a glass filled star. I've seen one in a lab context, but not in the market where I could buy it (... for cheap...)
@@GemologyforSchmucks - thanks Peter, interesting. 👍
saya mempunyai the black star oh quenslands sapphier sebesar 5 carat bila berminat akan saya jual 5 miliar rupiah
I like to look for tubing that may exist stacked along the depth/sides of the stone. Light can shine straight through lab created stones. Also the tiny indentation in the center of the back of many fakes which I could even see in this video, a clear indicator. I loved the details you shared. I have quite a few natural catseye and star gemstones. One I got on my own while I was polishing up a rough stone I had in my possession for decades! What a surprise to me! It was just given to me and listed as Onyx back then.
Surprise treasure is fantastic eh?
Thanks a bunch! Was doubting if my research may have led me astray when I purchased a white star sapphire, but this video confirms the stone is indeed the real deal!
Glad that you were able to put the knowledge to work right away~
I have a small lab grown saphire and it's really obvious because the star is so sharp, it just isn't as pretty as a softer looking earth mined one. It also is easy to see the curved bands.
Great video!
Thank you~! And yes, synthetic stars tend to be super intense, but you can find intense natural stones aswell… theyre just muuuch higher price point.
Nicely done
Thanks very much~
0:25 You do not cut star sapphire this way. It ruins the star.
Hi Sankha ~ Personally I have not cut any of these stones, so you'd need to speak to the original cutters. Thanks for sharing your expertise.
@@GemologyforSchmucks No worries, mate!
Tem vários tipos de berilo olho de gato e crisoberilo Brasil
That’s a funny name
Thanks ~ it brings me joy too.
Thanks for the great animation! It was very interesting.
I also have a star sapphire ring. The star sapphire was originally set on a ring of my great aunt
who passed away 46 years ago.
Then is it possible for you to see its photos and give me some comment about this?
If Ok, could you let me know your email address?
Hi ~ From photos we cannot guarantee anything, but I might be able to direct you further. You can send me an email at thegemshepherd@gmail.com and I'll see what I can do.
Thanks Peter; This was another Pearl of Wisdom! I have a request - can you touch upon teal blue sapphires at sometime? Their popularity is growing with each passing day (and so are the Salt and Pepper diamonds!)
Glad you enjoyed, Nikhil. Yah, i've been seeing a growing interest in teal in general, whether in sapphire, spinel or other stones. Thanks for the suggestion.
@@GemologyforSchmucks Thank you, Peter! We are looking for a 0.5ct oval bluish Green Sapphire (~5mm wide would be ideal) would you have one?
@@nikhdes For bluish-green you're most likely going to want a basaltic source (Australia and many of the mainland African sources) for 5mm size you're probably looking a bit heavier than 0.5 ct. A round 6mm with ideal proportions is about 1ct, and ovals will be heavier with a 5mm wide. We have less of that material in Bangkok. I'll keep an eye out for you though~
@@GemologyforSchmucks Thanks Peter! I mixed up the carat weight, sorry about that. And yes, we are indeed looking for Basaltic source to meet his vision though availability of such stone has been very limited. Is there an email address where I can reach you and make myself less of a schmuck on TH-cam?
@@nikhdes yah ~ on gemshepherd.com there is a contact button. Send me a message there and we can move forward.
I have a star sapphire that may be synthetic. Best case scenario it is treated. No banding is visible anywhere front or back. Its opaque black to dark blue around the perimiter with a slight silvery blue sheen in the center and a faint star under normal indoor lighting but with a spot light or direct sunlight it is bright blue with a white 6 point star that is almost perfectly centered.
Hopefully this video has been helpful to you, and I wish you the best of luck in your quest to find out the stone's identity.
Thank you, I really liked your explanation!
I discovered a Pyrope-alamandine garnet I have is a star stone.. four rays.
Excellent~ I love a good garnet star aswell.
thank you for sharing this information. are star sapphire cabochon for ring settings really cheap? many cabochons from indonesia and bangkok are now coming out only for 10-20$
While there can definitely be some natural stars that are "affordable", I would be immensely skeptical with those prices you've mentioned. As they say - if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. I'd assume (dangerously) that the piece is either aquarium gravel, synthetic, or a simulant.
OK.thank you so much
@@GemologyforSchmucks
very well said ✌️🤩✌️
Thanks very much, Amuy~
Do you have to know what schmuck means to be a gemologist?
On a philosophical level, perhaps yes, as the foundation of learning is based on an acceptance that we have more to learn~ otherwise, nah, not really XD
Could anyone tell me if Asteriated (asterism) it makes the gemstones more expensive and valuable? or not.
For example ..sapphire starr and ruby starr is most expensive than sapphire and ruby stone gem?
High quality natural stones are rare and valuable, yes. If we compare two stones of the same colour weight and clarity, then yes, a stone with a sharp and well oriented star will be more valuable than one that has a weak or no star.
@@GemologyforSchmucks you was very kindle thank you. But i didnt question about quality of star.
I questioned if a ruby gem stone is less valuable than ruby star... or sapphire starr e most valuable than normal sapphire.
the asterism let stone always most expensive and valuable?
@@marceligastaldi9752 right, and i hear the question, but it still goes back to the same fundamental problem. Stones have to be compared based on the same qualities. A cloudy faceted ruby (which if shaped like a cabochon MIGHT be a star ruby) will not be as valuable as a star ruby with the same qualities, and same goes for a sapphire etc.
However, if you're asking about world records in prices etc etc. The Sunrise Ruby is the world's record breaker for most expensive stone by weight as of 2016. Totally a different animal.
Record breaking anomalies aside, i'll gladly take a star sapphire with a sharp star and clear body over a mediocre faceted sapphire any day~
Had a guy recommend moldavite. What do you think about that? Said its been blowing up in value.
Moldavite has a lot of popularity, but natural glass is something I certainly need to learn more about before I would put much money into it.
moldavite is popular....but it's still just glass...One would think if it was "blowing up in value" the seller would just hang on to it for another few years and cash in on it himself? Sounds like a marketing ploy
Okay I’m looking for a black Square sapphire???
Black square cut sapphire?, or black star sapphire? If you'd like, you're welcome to send me an email at thegemshepherd@gmail.com and we can discuss the details.
I would want to purchase one where the hell would I go for one of these
I can help you there ~ if you contact me through gemshepherd.com and let me know what colour and size you'd be looking for, we can go from there.
Thank you! Valuable info
My pleasure~ glad to be of service.
Why do you wear a broom on your face🤔
@4:22 It's really in-thing termology every where now "Deep Fake"
thanks
❤️❤️💎💎💦👍🙏🇻🇳🇻🇳🇻🇳
I thought the dimple was from tumbeling
On the bottom of the stone, or?
Can I purchase these examples?
Hi Jimmy~ I have some stars that are available for purchase, yes. Send me an email and we can talk about the details of what you're looking for exactly. thegemshepherd@gmail.com
I just activated the notification bill because you are awesome 👌
Thx very much ~ welcome to the channel.
@@GemologyforSchmucksthanks for a great channel. Your biggest Schmuck 🌹
❤
Cheers~
beautiful sapphire stones
Thank you~ I'm a fan of them myself
My violet star sapphire has no lines on the back.
I love your videos, they really help
I am glad that they help, William. Thanks~
🥰
hi Sr I'm malinda. tnx sr
My pleasure Malinda~
Mine is also available if you are interested.
Nice 😊
Thanks~
Just in time
Glad to be punctual~! hehe Thanks
👍👍👍
Nice
Thanks~
This guy is awful
Regane Piro mas
How much violet star saphire stone...
Two years ago the natural violet star in the center was around USD1,500 per carat. I'm not sure where the owner has it priced at now.
Boa tarde ! Amigo muito show essas safiras . Eu sou do Brasil .eu tenho safiras bleck star .vc pode me ajudar como eu posso dá um polimento na minha safira . tem como vc me passar um passo a passo por favor
Hi Alberto ~ if you contact me through www.gemshepherd.com
I'd love to talk more.
Bro have you ever seen opal from myanmar (burma)?
Personally, I've not.
Hey
Do you know if these gemstones with asterism stars can be cut and turned into glittering jewels or should they only be used in their natural form?
if you could choose half a kilo of stone, would you prefer a half kilo ruta ruby gem or a half kilo star ruby?? which one is worth more?
HI Marceli ~ asterated stones can definitely be cut into faceted stones as well, but the inclusions that create the asterism effect pull down the clarity of the stone compared to a cleaner stone. Because of that, these stones are worth more if they are cut as a star (cabochon) compared to if they were cut as a faceted stone.
To answer your second question - it really depends on what quality the stones are. I don't really want kilos of anything unless its nice. Kilos of opaque ruby, even if it has a nice star, is still opaque.
What I want is whichever is most beautiful, assuming it's natural, because those are the better pleasure to own and to sell.
Top quality star rubies are exceedingly rare, and rarer even than faceted rubies. The most expensive stone sold to date was a pigeon's blood faceted ruby. That said.. I don't know that anyone has ever FOUND a star ruby in competitive quality, so we can't really make a comparison on which is truly more valuable.
@@GemologyforSchmucks
thanks for the answer
if these stones with asterism cannot be cut, why are they worth so much?
I saw a vintage blue superstar called Adao's star sold for approximately $200 million.
what will this stone yield? what motivation to be worth so much?
the question about your preference I made it wrong, I wanted to know if you could choose to find a ruby, would you prefer a half kilo star ruby or a half kilo pigeon blood ruby stone. What's your preference?
@gemologyforschmucks could you please do a video on the differences in translucency in star ruby and star sapphire and the differences in value? I ask because I'm not sure of what they look like in comparison.
Pisces energy
We are the one who made princess Diana’s wedding Nig riNg