SUWA
STAR SAPPHIRE, Untreated
The rays of the star are said to represent Faith, Hope, and Destiny.
People thought the ages have adored its unique and serene nature.
It has been said that the three interesting rays of light in a star sapphire represent Faith, Hope, and Destiny.

The overall appearance of the star sapphire in the photograph on the next page is well executed. The star is fairly visible even under normal lighting, and when a penlight is shined on it, six sharp and distinct rays of light appear across the whole surface of the stone. The star moves to the right when the stone is tilted to the right, and to the left when the stone is rocked toward the left. As in star rubies, the rays of the star appear weaker in more transparent stones.

" Star sapphire" refers to cabochon-cut blue or gray corundum that exhibits the star effect, or asterism. Star may appear in other members of the corundum family such as ruby and violet sapphire, but orange and yellow sapphire do not exhibit stars.

Ninety percent of all star sapphires are mined in Sri Lanka, and they have been loved over the ages for their uniqueness and their serene appearance. Many of the blue sapphires mined in Sri Lanka, both the cabochon-cut ones showing the star effect and those that are faceted, are natural-colored stones that do not undergo heat treatment.
Heat applied to such sapphires during ring resizing may alter their color, making them lighter, so jewelers will exercise special care with these. It is thought that natural gemstones maintain a never-changing color; though this is usually the case, there are instances where they can easily be altered by heat.

There is also the near-colorless sapphire rough called "geuda" which contains silk inclusions and will become a gray star sapphire when cut into a cabochon. Heating this rough material at high temperatures causes the silk areas to turn the stone blue, and sapphires treated in this way are very popular. Therefore, rough crystals of this type that have few imperfections will be heat-treated and made into faceted sapphires instead of being cut as cabochons that show the star effect. Geuda, with its high likelihood of becoming a beautiful sapphire, commands a high price.
Ring, Platinum
Star Sapphire 1 pc
17.58 ct
Untreated
Diamond 2 pc
US $80,000
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