What is more expensive: blue or yellow sapphire?
A wide selection of natural yellow and orange sapphires from Sri Lanka are available in Moscow. Unique designs are available to order based on your budget and desired characteristics. Price Weight Available Cut shape Origin Contents Trade color Primary color
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There are 36 products on the page out of 75 in the category
Rare Ceylon Unheated Cushion Cut Gold Sapphire 18,14ct Vibrant GRS
8 ₽ / 765/ct
In stock → Bangkok
Yellow sapphire of rare Golden color, octagon cut, 3,01 carats, Sri Lanka
556 ₽ / 200/ct
In stock → Bangkok
Untreated radiant-cut yellow sapphire 3,13 carats, Sri Lanka
674 ₽ / 100/ct
In stock → Bangkok
Unheated octagon cut gold sapphire 4,00 carats, Sri Lanka
752 ₽ / 400/ct
In stock → Bangkok
Yellow unheated cushion cut sapphire 5,57 carats, Sri Lanka
1 ₽ / 004/ct
In stock → Moscow
Bright yellow radiant cut sapphire 4,15 carats, Sri Lanka
686 ₽ / 200/ct
In stock → Dubai
Bright untreated yellow heart cut sapphire 2,21 carats, Sri Lanka
345 ₽ / 600/ct
In stock → Dubai
Unheated straw yellow octagon cut sapphire 7,74 carats, Sri Lanka
1 ₽ / 421/ct
In stock → Moscow
Bright yellow radiant cut sapphire 4,35 carats, Sri Lanka
679 ₽ / 900/ct
In stock → Moscow
Unheated yellow sapphire 4,57 carats, Sri Lanka
1 ₽ / 544/ct
In stock → Dubai
Bright yellow cushion cut sapphire 2,05 carats, Sri Lanka
322 ₽ / 200/ct
In stock → Moscow
Bright yellow radiant cut sapphire 3,07 carats, Sri Lanka
530 ₽ / 700/ct
In stock → Moscow
Honey yellow octagon cut sapphire 2,58 carats, Sri Lanka
431 ₽ / 200/ct
In stock → Moscow
Bright yellow radiant cut sapphire 2,10 carats, Sri Lanka
350 ₽ / 600/ct
In stock → Moscow
Deep yellow octagon cut sapphire 3,55 carats, Sri Lanka
615 ₽ / 900/ct
In stock → Moscow
Unheated yellow octagon cut sapphire 3,07 carats, Sri Lanka
451 ₽ / 100/ct
In stock → Moscow
Yellow sapphire oval cut 2,25 carats, Madagascar
223 ₽ / 900/ct
In stock → Moscow
Set of unheated pastel yellow sapphires in pear cut 3,01 carats
151 ₽ / 700/ct
In stock → Moscow
Pair of pastel yellow pear cut sapphires 2,36 carats, Sri Lanka
80 ₽ / 600/ct
In stock → Moscow
Ring with 2,06 carat gold sapphire and diamonds in 750-carat white gold
In stock → Bangkok
Yellow unheated pear-cut sapphire 0,84 carats, Madagascar
47 ₽ / 800/ct
Reservation → Moscow
Madagascar yellowish green heart cut sapphire 1,02 carats
50 ₽ / 800/ct
In stock → Moscow
Contrasting pair of unheated pear-cut sapphires 1,35 carats, Madagascar
100 ₽ / 000/ct
In stock → Moscow
Pair of unheated pinkish-yellow pear-cut sapphires 1,66 carats
39 ₽ / 800/ct
In stock → Bangkok
Set of three unheated greenish-yellow sapphires 1,30 carats
189 ₽ / 600/ct
In stock → Moscow
Unheated greenish yellow cushion cut sapphire 0,33 carat
14 ₽ / 300/ct
In stock → Moscow
Unheated yellow octagon cut sapphire 1,77 carats, Sri Lanka
274 ₽ / 800/ct
Reservation → Moscow
Set of unheated cushion cut sapphires 1,27 carats, Madagascar
21 ₽ / 700/ct
In stock → Bangkok
Pair of contrasting unheated marquise cut sapphires 1,09 carats, Madagascar
7 ₽ / 200/ct
In stock → Bangkok
Octagon cut gold sapphire 3,02 carats, Sri Lanka
Unheated yellow sapphire 11,36 carats, Sri Lanka
Large unheated golden yellow octagon cut sapphire 15,06 carats, Sri Lanka
Radiant cut gold sapphire 5,06 carats, Sri Lanka
Unheated yellow pear-cut sapphire 0,82 carats, Madagascar
Yellow unheated pear-cut sapphire 0,69 carats, Madagascar
Unheated yellow pear-cut sapphire 0,60 carat, Madagascar
Precious yellow sapphire
Yellow sapphires occupy second place in the popularity rating, right after blue sapphires. Like other varieties, yellow and orange sapphires are distinguished by their high hardness, excellent luster and many interesting shades. Visually, these solar corundums resemble expensive yellow diamonds. Cutters often use similar cutting methods, which contribute to additional similarity. Well-cut yellow corundums play in the light with sparkling flashes. Due to this, they are known as gold or solar sapphires. The cost of unrefined yellow sapphires directly depends on the size of the stone, the purity and degree of saturation of the yellow color. Well-cut stones are medium in size – 3-5 carats, visually clear and range in price from $700-1500 per carat. There are many shades of crystal, ranging from pale to bright. The rarest samples include unheated crystals of golden-yellow tones of natural origin. They are often traded under the color golden. Sapphires of the “golden” category occasionally enter the jewelry market from Sri Lanka and Madagascar. The cost of such stones ranges from $1500-3000 per carat depending on clarity and size. Gold sapphires over 15 carats may cost more. Equally rare are green sapphires, which are found only in collectible jewelry. These stones, as a rule, have low color saturation and look virtually gray. There are also specimens with alternating greenish, yellow and blue zones, mined in the regions of Thailand, Australia and Madagascar. These zone sapphires are not often used in luxury jewelry, but are of great interest to collectors.
Orange sapphire
- Beryllium diffusion is the impregnation of lightly colored corundum crystals with beryllium under the influence of high temperature and pressure. Beryllium has a lower atomic mass and is able to penetrate the crystal lattice of sapphire, giving it a brighter color. It is important to note that beryllium penetrates quite deeply and stones with a diameter of 2-3 mm can be saturated with beryllium to the entire depth. Larger stones are painted only along the periphery, and the internal volume of the stone is not affected, so processing sapphires using the beryllium thermal diffusion method is possible only on already cut stones. Samples after beryllium diffusion acquire bright and sometimes unnatural orange and yellow shades; their cost is very low – $20-40 per carat. Expert opinions from laboratories around the world on such stones always indicate that they have been enriched with beryllium. Such sapphires are used in the manufacture of cheap jewelry at the mass market level, where the fact of refining the stones is often hidden.
- Heat treatment – processing of sapphire raw materials with insufficient color saturation by high-temperature heating. As a result of heat treatment, the color of the raw material changes to brighter and more saturated throughout the entire depth of the crystal. After cutting such raw materials, you can see a beautiful orange color. Such samples larger than 3-5 carats are very rare, and if they have a bright color and good clarity, then their cost is comparable to the cost of yellow unrefined sapphires – $700-1500 per carat. Because of the huge difference in cost between heat-only and beryllium-diffused sapphires, dealers make sure to emphasize that their orange sapphire is heat-only and no beryllium diffusion was used.
Cost of yellow and orange sapphires
Above we have already given examples of the cost of yellow sapphires, now let’s summarize:
- Yellow untreated sapphires of average weight of 3-5 carats – $700-1500 per carat, depending on purity and color saturation. Yellow sapphires after heat treatment are 1,5-2 times cheaper.
- Top examples of yellow natural sapphires in the “golden” category – $1500-3000 per carat.
- Orange sapphires after heat treatment – $700-1500 per carat depending on size, color, cut and clarity.
- Orange sapphires after beryllium diffusion – $20-40 per carat, they are not used in expensive jewelry.
The cost of yellow sapphires increases every year; these prices are averaged and relevant for 2017-2018.
Buy yellow or orange sapphire in Moscow
The company’s specialists carefully select minerals, ensuring a high level of stones sold. The cost of samples is based on weight, color, purity and the fact of refining. Most of the yellow sapphires in our catalog are unrefined.
To see this jewelry stone and products with it in person, we invite you to visit our boutique in the center of Moscow.
In addition to the stones in stock, our team is happy to offer a custom order service. Based on your requirements and budget, we will select the best example of yellow or orange sapphire for you. It is important to note that it is quite difficult to select two paired stones that are similar in color tone and other parameters, but for us this is a feasible task.
You can also order the manufacture of jewelry with this stone. Today we have one of the best full-cycle jewelry workshops in Moscow.
Sapphire is a precious stone, one of the varieties of corundum. In mineralogy, sapphires are called corundums that are exclusively blue in color; in the jewelry industry, they are any colors except lilac-red (such stones are called rubies). The blue color of sapphire is caused by the presence of titanium and iron impurities. The purer the base shade, the more expensive the gemstone.
In nature there are sapphires of fancy colors: yellow sapphires, orange, green, colorless, pink sapphires, blue and other colors. They have the same chemical formula, but differ in the content of impurities.
Purple, violet and green are the most common secondary shades of blue sapphires. And while magenta and violet can contribute to the overall beauty of a color, green is considered the curse of blue sapphire. The problem is that all blue sapphires will have a greenish tint when viewed from the right angle. It is the cutter who ensures that the greenery is not on the face of the sapphire.
Blue sapphires that are eye clear or completely free of inclusions are rare, especially in larger sizes. Blue sapphires with some internal inclusions are still highly prized as long as they do not reduce the brilliance, darken the color, or otherwise detract from the beauty of the gemstone. Blue sapphires weighing one carat or more are not usually cut to calibrated sizes or standard shapes.
With blue sapphires, the cut can have a surprising effect on the color. Sapphires are a dichroic gemstone, meaning their color varies depending on the viewing angle. When viewed in one direction, most blue sapphires appear blue or violet-blue. On the other hand, they will appear slightly greenish-blue. An experienced cutter will orient his gemstone so that the blue to violet-blue color shows through the crown of the finished stone.
Silk inclusions are also acceptable in blue sapphires as long as they are not so dense as to detract from color or brilliance. They can actually increase the value of a sapphire. The heat treatment used to change the color and clarity of blue sapphires destroys rutile silk, so the presence of intact silk indicates that the stone has not been heated.
Heat treatment and diffusion transform ordinary corundum into attractive blue sapphires that would be worthless without treatment. Heat treatment is widely used in the international sapphire market and it is estimated that over 90% of all blue sapphires on the market today have undergone it. Diffusion treatment is much more controversial, and blue sapphires that have undergone it sell for much less than those that have only undergone heat treatment.
Blue sapphires are found in many places around the world, including Kashmir, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Madagascar, Thailand, Australia, Tanzania and Montana in the USA.
Yellow sapphire
The most sought-after color in the modern jewelry industry after blue sapphires. It is believed that yellow sapphires are very similar to yellow diamonds. They can vary in color from bright canary yellow to greenish yellow.
The most common cause of yellow sapphire is iron in the form of trace elements. Typically, increased iron concentration also increases color saturation. Yellow sapphires can be colored naturally using low-level radiation within the Earth or laboratory irradiation. Gemstones that acquire their color by irradiation are known to fade when exposed to heat and light. Heat treatment has significantly increased the supply of yellow sapphires on the market today. Unheated, highly saturated yellow sapphires remain very rare.
Yellow sapphires are found in Tanzania, Thailand, Australia and Madagascar, but Sri Lanka remains the main exporter of these gems.
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