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How Are Rubies Enhanced?
As rubies that are perfect in appearance and color are extremely rare, enhancements to rubies are quite commonplace. Heating is perhaps one of the more popular ways of treating these precious gems. Through the heating process, the ruby improves with respect to the clarity of the jewel and/or the intensity of the red color of the ruby. Since this type of treatment is quite stable, you, as a consumer, do not have to worry about the color of your treated ruby fading over time.
However, there are times when some rubies have small cracks in them and, as a result, they are filled with materials that can include glass, borax, or other similar colorless substances. Unlike the heating enhancement, this type of enhancement can, for example, break or even fall out of the ruby entirely. This breakage is more likely to occur if the jewel is treated in a rough manner, exposed to high temperatures, or submersed in abrasive solutions.
Can Rubies Be Man-Made?
Yes, rubies can be synthetically made. These types of synthetic rubies are formed when fusion of aluminum oxide occurs. The synthetic rubies then get their red color through the addition of chromium oxide. Since these manmade rubies are identical to natural rubies in both chemical properties and physical appearance, only a specially trained gemologist will be able to tell the two rubies apart. Thus, it is extremely important that you buy your ruby from a reputable website.
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