Rubellite Tourmaline Value, Price, and Jewelry Information

Home ? Gemstones ? Rubellite Tourmaline Value, Price, and Jewelry Information

Tourmaline, variety rubellite, 18.0 x 12.0 mm, 22.70 cts, Jos Plateau, Nigeria. ? Rob Lavinsky, www.iRocks.com. Used with permission.

Rubellite

Rubellites are tourmalines with reasonably saturated dark pink to red colors and medium to dark tones. They make excellent jewelry stones, and ruby-red colored specimens without orange or brown overtones are highly prized.

Rubellite Value

Deep pinkish red to slightly purplish red are the most desirable colors. Brownish tones decrease a stone’s value considerably.

For more information on rubellite quality factors, consult our rubellite buying guide.

This rubellite shows a rich red color with slightly purple tones. Portuguese pear-shaped cut, 24.0 x 12.0 x 8.0 mm, 14.75 cts, Jos Plateau, Nigeria. ? Rob Lavinsky, www.iRocks.com. Used with permission.

The International Gem Society (IGS) has a list of businesses offering gemstone appraisal services.

Rubellite Information

Data	Value
Name	Rubellite
Is a Variety of	Tourmaline
Crystallography	Hexagonal
Refractive Index	1.619-1.655
Colors	Pink to red range, often strongly purplish, orangish, or brownish.
Luster	Vitreous
Polish Luster	Vitreous
Fracture Luster	Vitreous
Hardness	7-7.5
Wearability	Very Good
Fracture	Conchoidal, uneven
Specific Gravity	3.01-3.06
Birefringence	0.014-0.040
Cleavage	None
Dispersion	0.017
Luminescence	Pink, inert to very weak red to violet.
Luminescence Present	Yes
Luminescence Type	Fluorescent
Enhancements	Radiation and heating (common for tourmalines); fracture filling (occasional). See "Enhancements" below.
Typical Treatments	Fracture/Cavity Filling, Heat Treatment, Irradiation
Transparency	Transparent to opaque
Absorption Spectrum	Red and Pink, broad band in green, lines at 458 and 451 nm.
Phenomena	Chatoyancy, color shift to peach in incandescent light.
Birthstone	October (tourmaline)
Formula	Na(Li,Al)₃Al₆B₃Si₆O₂₇ (OH)₃(OH,F), elbaite tourmaline variety. Most rubellites are of the elbaite variety.
Pleochroism	Medium pink/light pink or colorless
Optics	Uniaxial (-)
Optic Sign	Uniaxial -
Etymology	From the Latin rubellus for “reddish.”
Inclusions	Hollow tubes, needles, irregular threadlike liquid or gas inclusions, often in mesh like pattern.

Faceted Rubellites - Madagascar and Brazil

Tourmaline: rubellite, Madagascar (36.85), Brazil (13.16, 17.13 // 16.73, 10.26, 23.56). Photo ? Joel E. Arem, PhD, FGA. Used with permission.

Comments

Trace amounts of manganese create rubellite’s natural pink to red color.?You may encounter light pink stones labelled as rubellites, but these are more properly considered pink tourmalines.

Two rubellites on a cluster of lepidolites (largest crystal is 2.5 cm long), Jonas Mine, Conselheiro Pena, Doce valley, Minas Gerais, Brazil. ? Rob Lavinsky, www.iRocks.com. Used with permission.

Rubellites have a hardness of 7 to 7.5 and no cleavage, so, whether faceted or cabbed, they make good stones for any type of jewelry. Lapidaries can also carve them.

Rubellite jewelry and carvings. Photos courtesy of Barbara Smigel, Artistic Colored Stones.

Although the majority of Brazilian rubellites receive native cuts, custom cuts add value.

Yellow gold ring with diamonds and a custom-faceted rubellite. Photo courtesy of liveauctioneers.com and Rago Arts and Auction Center.

Identifying Characteristics

In terms of clarity, rubellites are typically Type III gems. Thus, they almost always contain inclusions. (Needle-like inclusions can also create cat’s eye gems). Due to their scarcity and beauty, collectors and jewelry buyers value untreated, eye-clean or better rubellite gems most highly.

In recent years, African deposits have yielded cleaner rough. However, these African finds often show brown tinges and rarely approach the ruby-like red of gems from older Brazilian sources.

Rubellite, Cruzeiro Mine, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Photo ? Joel E. Arem, PhD, FGA. Used with permission.

Enhancements

Irradiation, a now common gemstone treatment, can produce stable red tones in otherwise pale pink stones. Since this treatment is undetectable, assume all rubellites are treated, even though individual stones may not be.

Highly included rubellites sometimes receive fillings similar to those used on emerald, another highly included gemstone.?Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) can detect this. Hot point testing can also detect this treatment. However, this is a destructive technique. It should only be used as a last resort.

Sources

Notable sites for mining rubellite gems include Afghanistan, Brazil, Madagascar, Myanmar, Nigeria, Russia, and the United States.

Tourmaline, variety rubellite, on albite, 6.0 x 5.6 x 4.6 cm, Transbaikalia, Eastern Siberian Region, Russia. ? Rob Lavinsky, www.iRocks.com. Used with permission.

Care

Although rubellites are durable jewelry stones, avoid rough handling and use protective settings for heavily included stones. Inclusions as well as filler treatments may also make some rubellites sensitive to heat. Therefore, don’t?use mechanical cleaning processes, such as ultrasonic or steam systems. Instead, use a soft brush, mild detergent, and warm water for cleaning. Otherwise, rubellite requires no special care.

For more care recommendations, consult our gemstone jewelry cleaning guide.