:sparkles: Symbols of Sapphire :sparkles:

Legends

Ancient civilizations believed that the world was set upon an enormous sapphire, which painted the sky blue with its reflection. In ancient times, Sapphires were thought to be protective against envy, and even against poisoning. A common belief was that a venomous snake placed in a Sapphire vessel would rapidly die! Ground to a powder, the blue stone was believed to cure colic, rheumatism and mental illness, and to strengthen eyesight.

Sapphire has long symbolized truth, sincerity, and faithfulness. The Tradition holds that Moses was given the ten commandments on tablets of sapphire, making it the most sacred gemstone. Supposedly, sapphire taps the power of the “third eye” and makes clear oracular pronouncements too difficult to hear or understand. Necromancers sought this stone for its purported ability to influence spirits. (Interesting) Royalty often wore sapphires for dual purposes. Not only did the stone reputedly attract wealth, it also purportedly protected the wearer from envy and infidelity. Traditionally, people attributed to this gem the power to bring harmony between lovers as well as peace between adversaries. In addition, sapphires were said to put one at ease in social engagements and banish fraud. Those involved in legal matters could benefit especially from the stone’s powers. As long as you were.... you know, actually innocent.

Real life uses

The texture of sapphires makes it ideal for manufacturing purposes. The durability of sapphire makes it useable in an electrical manufacturing capacity, as sapphire is an electrical insulator with high thermal conductivity. That’s makes it found in wrist watches and even some high durability windows. Its hardness and gravity also generate an ideal corundum for creating powders and grits that are a uniform size. The crushed corundum can then be used to manufacture materials such as sand paper, cutting tools, and polishing compounds.

The texture of sapphires makes it ideal for manufacturing purposes. The durability of sapphire makes it useable in an electrical manufacturing capacity, as sapphire is an electrical insulator with high thermal conductivity. Its hardness and gravity also generate an ideal corundum for creating powders and grits that are a uniform size. The crushed corundum can then be used to manufacture materials such as sand paper, cutting tools, and polishing compounds.

How they’re made

While blue is the most common hue for sapphires, they are also available in a rainbow of other colors like yellow, pink, orange and white. For thousands of years, humans have worked hard to find gemstone deposits within the earth and have prized gemstones like the sapphire for their beauty and color. Sapphires are a rare gemstone that can take millions of years to form. Like rubies, sapphires are also formed out of the mineral corundum. In scientific the mineral is known as aluminum oxide. Corundum acquires color when there are other minerals that become present as it is forming. Sapphires are typically found in recrystallized limestone and metamorphic rocks that have less silica and a lot of aluminum. Corundum is found in igneous rocks. When those are cooling slowly, large crystals of minerals can form from those that are present within the magma. The purest sapphires are formed during the transformation of igneous rocks. The more slowly the magma cools, the larger the sapphires will be. Conditions in which magma cools slowly and is untouched by other elements and minerals is rare. In most instances, as the magma is cooling there are almost always changes in pressure and environmental factors. As a result of these changes in environment, each sapphire develops a unique look and color. This is also the reason that inclusions and impurities in the sapphires form. This gives each sapphire a unique look, almost like a fingerprint. No two natural sapphires will ever look exactly the same. Typically sapphire deposits in the earth are found in a barrel shape that is longer and tapered at the ends and larger in the center.

That concludes the symbolism post on sapphire gems! We’ll get into other gemstones and objects in the future. If you like this content or have some suggestions of things you’d like me to add to the next one, be sure to leave a comment below to let me know what you think! See you next post!

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