The 6Cs of Sapphires by Brilliyond - C1.Colour

The 4Cs of a diamond is an industry-accepted practise to grade, classify, and describe diamonds. Apart from these four properties, many other factors are considered when determining the quality of sapphires. Incorporating the two major factors which are heavily used in the sapphire trade, Brilliyond introduced the 6Cs of Sapphires for the first time in the industry. The first C is the Colour of the Sapphire.

Sapphire colour is very interesting but a very controversial subject. It is very difficult to have an industry-standard because of the complexity of the subject. Unlike diamonds, the sapphire trade is not monopolized so that is also contributing to the lack of consensus. Here, we are presenting the most important aspects of the colour of sapphire, and this is more than adequate to make a very informed sapphire engagement ring purchase.

The sapphire colour quality can be analysed based on three distinct but related properties, hue, tone, and saturation.

C1.1.Tone – Light or Dark

Tone describes how light or dark the colour is with the range going from very light to very dark. If you were to compare a baby blue sapphire to a royal blue sapphire, you would be able to say that the hue or colour is the same but that the tone or the depth of the colour is different. The baby blue sapphire will appear "lighter" while the royal blue sapphire will appear "darker". In the simplest of terms, the tone of a blue sapphire describes the relative lightness or darkness of its colour. 

The preferred tones for sapphires vary from hue to hue, but most fine sapphires have a medium to medium-dark tone. Sapphires that have a very dark tone are often described as “inky.”

C1.2.Saturation

Saturation of a sapphire describes how vibrant the colour is with the range going from dull/weak to pure vivid. Sapphires with the highest levels of saturation display the cleanest and truest colours. These are referred to as having "vivid" saturation. The closer to pure vivid the sapphire’s colour is, the higher is its demand and market value.

The most desirable sapphires will have vivid, highly saturated colour without areas of brown or grey areas known as "extinction". Usually the darker the sapphire's colour, the darker the extinction will be as well. The ideal blue sapphire saturation should be as strong as possible but without darkening the colour and compromising the gem's brightness. 

Because of the lack of uniformity in grading a sapphire gemstone colour, you will have to use your own judgment about which colours appear vibrant and alive to you. Of course, the better the sapphire’s colour, with the optimum tone and saturation, the higher the price tag will usually be.

This discussion of the Sapphire colour is mainly about blue sapphires. Sapphires are available in many colours. Blue sapphires are the most expensive of all due to the rarity and some historic reasons. We believe that other colours are equally beautiful. Even you do not see your favourite colour in your jeweller’s catalogue, ask them whether they can source a gemstone for you, or simply choose someone who offers that colour. You can get blue, pink, white, yellow, purple, green, orange, red (also called ruby), padparadscha (rare and a unique colour), black, and the list goes on and on.

C1.3.Hue - Which Blue is ‘THE Blue’?

Even you know that you need a Blue Sapphire Engagement Ring, do you know which blue you want? Don’t settle for any ‘Blue’. Often customers are presented with whatever the stones the jeweller posses. There can be a huge price difference just because of the hue of the gemstone. Thus your local jeweller might not have the best stones in the inventory. Even the top five fine jewellers in Australia sells sapphire jewellery in different hues, purely because they want to meet everyone's budget.

The best gemstones do not go along the general supply chain of those average stones. There is always somebody who is ready to pay a higher price for a truly remarkable Sapphire. Best sapphires could cost you a fortune. I know right now you are thinking about Princess Diana’s engagement ring. Princess Diana’s 1981 engagement ring is a good example of the timeless value of the sapphire stone. Almost after thirty years, Prince William proposed to Kate with the same ring.

Since the hue alone will not determine the price, a sapphire with an undesired hue could be well worth if its other properties are excellent. So, there are no hard and fast rules here.

Ask your jeweller about the Sapphire colour. If most of the gemstones in his showcase does not fall into the preferred colour range, you may not in the right place. If you buy online, ask colour information and photographs of the gemstones before you buy. Even the most popular online jewellery retailers sell sapphire jewellery in less desired colours. Every beautiful Sapphire has a value. But we encourage you to educate yourself more so that you will not settle for less.

For more information please order our free guide, "Buying a Sapphire Engagement Ring - A Definitive Guide"