18thC Antique 3½ct Ruby Medieval Shaman Divination Prophecy Plague Danger Amulet

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18thC Antique 3½ct Ruby Medieval Shaman Divination Prophecy Plague Danger Amulet:
$129.99

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Antique 18th Century Genuine Natural Hand Crafted Faceted Oval Ruby.

CLASSIFICATION: Faceted Oval Ruby Precious Gemstone.

ORIGIN: North East India, 18th Century.

SIZE: Length: 11mm. Width: 8mm. Measurements approximate.

WEIGHT: 3.52 Carats.

NOTES: Upon request we can set your gemstones as a ring, pendant, or as earrings(click here for more information).

DETAIL: Rubies were viewed as a stone of prophecy, used by medieval shamans and sorcerers to divine the future. It was believed that wearing ruby would attract good health, wisdom, fortune, and true love. Ruby was also worn as a talisman, as it was believed that the stone darkened when danger was near and then return to its original color when the danger was past. Ruby was also thought to be an antidote to poisoning as well, and to protect the wearer from lightening, plagues, poison, sorrow, and evil spirits. Consequentially rubies were considered even more valuable than diamonds. In Medieval Europe ruby was priced eight times higher than diamond. In Medieval England, ruby was used for royal coronation rings. Some ancient cultures believed that rubies, as well as other gemstones, grew on trees, just like fruit. The rubies would begin budding as small white gems, and would slowly grow and ripen, turning red in the light of the sun. When the ruby was saturated with red color, it was ready to be plucked.

Here\'s an 18th century antique hand-crafted, faceted oval ruby precious gemstone which originated in Mysore, India. Though considered a \"silky\" ruby, because it is translucent to opaque, and not transparent (i.e., it appears \"silky\"), it nonetheless possesses great color and beauty. Most natural rubies have dispersed colorless crystalline material particles within the gemstone that while not individually discernible, when dense enough will nonetheless impart a translucent to opaque \"silky\" appearance to the gemstone. In other words, the ruby gemstones are not transparent, rather they are a translucent to opaque with a silky, blood red tone/texture. These rubies are much more common than crystal-clear specimens. Natural rubies, like sapphires and emeralds, commonly have lots of internal blemishes. So long as these blemishes are colorless, they are \"harmless\", commonplace, and acceptable.

However as described the dispersed colorless crystalline material changes the nature of the gemstone from transparent to translucent or opaque. Nonetheless the rich \"ruby red\" color is still preserved, and the gemstones can be quite breathtaking in their beauty and luster. In contrast, the very highest quality rubies appear as red colored glass; completely transparent. However such high-quality rubies can easily cost thousands of dollars per carat. Most transparent \"rubies\" sold in the United States are synthetic. This particular specimen possesses colorless crystalline material in sufficient density so as to render the gemstone somewhere between translucent and opaque, and so is characterized by a \"silky\" blood red color, though the tone leans toward the darker, almost violet/red spectrum.

In hand of course the individual colorless crystals are not visible individually, they are microscopic. Though the imaging equipment picks up color banding in some of the images, these are internal structural features of the gemstone, essentially undetectable to the human eye under normal lighting conditions. To the eye, the gemstone is simply a relatively uniform dark blood red. The imaging equipment also exaggerates the red tones. The actual color leans a little more toward violet-red. Under magnification the gemstone does show unmistakable characteristics of having been hand crafted. The coarseness of the 18th century finish is considered appealing to most gemstone collectors, and is not considered a detriment, or detract from the value of a gemstone.

These characteristics are not only expected of hand-finished gemstones, most serious collectors consider such gemstones more desirable, possessed of greater character and uniqueness when compared to today\'s cookie-cutter mass-produced machine-faceted gemstones. Unlike today’s computer controlled machine produced gemstones that approach flawlessness in a perfect finish, the cut and finish of a handcrafted gemstone such as this is the legacy of an artisan who lived two centuries ago. Handcrafted though it may be the gemstone has great luster and character, and to the eye is of uniform color. However clearly it is not a flawless gemstone.

In fact, it could even be characterized as a high quality gemstone. However the gemstone is quite characteristic of both the quality and cut of eighteenth century gemstones, and you can be sure that two centuries ago this was a desirable and costly gemstone. And therein lies its value, as an antique, not as an investment-grade gemstone. As described earlier, the dispersed colorless crystalline material within the gemstone, though not discernible with the eye, nonetheless renders the gemstone merely translucent to opaque (“silky”), rather than transparent. Otherwise it is true that the blemishes it possesses are near invisible to the naked eye. Magnified as it is here in the accompanying photo enlargements you can see not only imperfections in the gemstone itself, but also occasional irregularities in the finish.

Naturally these characteristics are not only expected of hand-finished gemstones, you must also consider that two centuries ago the mining techniques even possible then, let alone in practice, did not allow the ultra deep mining operations which are so commonplace today. Keep in mind two centuries ago mankind was more or less limited to surface deposits or near surface deposits of gemstones. Higher quality gemstones which today are routinely mined from beneath hundreds of meters, even kilometers beneath the earth\'s surface, were simply inaccessible then.

For these reasons antique gemstones must be appreciated as antiques first, gemstones second. The relatively superlative quality of contemporary gemstones routinely mined from deep beneath the earth\'s surface today were simply not accessible two centuries ago, or at least, only rarely so. However for most, the unique nature and character of these antique gemstones more than makes up for the blemishes found within the gemstones, as well as the cutting irregularities common to handcrafted gemstones, all of which are by and large (if at all) are only visible under magnification.

RUBY HISTORY: The name ruby comes from the Latin \"rubeus\" (red). In the ancient world ruby was believed to possess magical powers, and was worn as a talisman for protection from plagues, poison, sorrow, and evil spirits. The ruby symbolized freedom, charity, dignity and divine power, and was associated with fire and blood, implying warmth and life for mankind. Some ancient cultures believed that rubies, as well as other gemstones, grew on trees, just like fruit. The rubies would begin budding as small white gems, and would slowly grow and ripen, turning red in the light of the sun. When the ruby was saturated with red color, it was ready to be plucked. In the classical world, rubies from Afghanistan, Ceylon, India and Burma were traded in the ancient port cities of the Eastern Mediterranean (often by Phoenicians), and from there traveled throughout Europe.

However it is believed that most of the ancient world’s ruby came from Ceylon, where evidence suggests ruby may have been mined for the past 20,000 years. Archaeologists have uncovered ancient Etruscan jewelry with Celanese ruby which dates back to the seventh century B.C. However scientists believe that ruby has also been mined in Burma since Paleolithic and Neolithic times as well, as tools have been excavated by archaeologists dating both to the Bronze Age as well as backwards into the Stone Age. In ancient literature, the ruby was described both by the fourth century B.C. Greek Philosopher/Scientist Theophratus (student and successor of Plato and Socrates) as well as by Pliny, the first century A.D. Roman historian and naturalist. In ancient Rome the ruby was associated with the principles of justice and its administrators (the judicial system).

Ancient literature from China indicates that ruby was traded along the northern silk route, moving westward into Europe. The Bible as well makes numerous mentions of ruby, first as one of the twelve precious stones created by God when he created mankind. Ruby is then described as “the lord of gems” when one was given to Aaron on the command of God. And ruby adorned Aaron\'s breastplate and was symbol of Judah. The Bible also frequently states that the high value of ruby was only exceeded by wisdom and by virtuous women, implying that ruby indeed was exceptionally valuable. The Greeks believed that the \"fire\" evidenced by a ruby\'s red coloration could melt wax. Greeks legends speak about huge rubies which were given to Heraclea by the female stork to lighten her room as a token of her kindness.

The ancient populations of the Mediterranean also believed that the color of a ruby would change mirroring changes in the health of its owner, and that the color would drain from a ruby at the moment its owner died. In Antiquity and through the Middle Ages it was believed that the cosmos was reflected in gemstones. Ruby was associated with the planet Mars. Ruby was deemed to be the most precious of gemstones not only in the Bible, but also in ancient Sanskrit writings. In Sanskrit, an ancient language of India, ruby was called \"ratnaraj\", which means \"King of Gems\". To them, this fiery stone burned with an inextinguishable fire, capable of boiling the water in which it was placed. Ancient Indian legends said that God first created ruby and later created man to possess it, and that he who offered rubies to the gods would be reincarnated as a powerful king or emperor.

In ancient India rubies were also sorted into upper class, middle class, and lower class stones in relation to their color, flawlessness and beauty. Much like Indian society today, no inferior ruby was allowed contact with an upper class ruby because it was believed the low-caste ruby would contaminate the better one, thereby diminishing its magical powers. In nearby ancient Burma it was felt a ruby must not just be worn, but embedded in the skin to become part of the body, thus making the wearer invulnerable. Up in time through Medieval Europe, rubies were worn as a talisman for protection against unhappiness, lightening and upsetting dreams. The ruby was also believed to encourage bliss, and was used to treat fever and heart disorders relating to blood flow through the ventricles. It was also believed that when worn on the left hand or in a brooch on the left side, ruby enabled the wearer to live in peace among enemies.

Ruby was greatly valued in the Medieval Arab world. There are many references to ruby in ancient Arabic literature, including many references to “yakut”, a term used for red corundum (ruby) during the sixth through tenth centuries, culminating in a noteworthy treatise by the 11th century Arab scholar Al-Biruni, who conducted specific gravity determinations on a whole series of gemstones. Throughout Medieval Central Asia, the Near East, and China ruby was used to ornament armor, scabbards, and harnesses of noblemen. Rubies were laid beneath the foundation of buildings to secure good fortune to the structure. Much of the ruby reaching early Medieval Europe came from Badakshan, on the border between present-day Tajikistan and Afghanistan. Marco Polo described visiting these mines in his accounts of his travels. Later Medieval Europe’s rubies came principally from the border region between Burma and Siam (present-day Myanmar and Thailand).

In Medieval Europe, rubies were considered even more valuable than diamonds. In 16th century ruby was priced 8 times higher than diamond. Rubies were viewed as a stone of prophecy, used by medieval shamans and sorcerers to divine the future. Ruby was also worn as a talisman, as it was believed that the stone darkened when danger was near and then returned to its original color when the danger was past. It was believed that wearing ruby would attract good health, wisdom, fortune, and true love. Ruby was also thought to be an antidote to poisoning as well. In England, ruby was used for royal coronation rings. Medieval Europe also believed that ruby had important medical applications. A thirteenth century prescription to cure liver problems called for powdered ruby, and it was also believed that when rubbed on the skin, ruby would restore youth and vitality. Ivan the Terrible of Russia stated that rubies were good for the heart, brain and memory.

Rubies are mined all over the world, but the highest quality gemstones come from Burma, Ceylon, and Siam, then India, Madagascar, Russia, Zimbabwe, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Kenya, Tanzania, Mexico, and North Carolina in the USA. Ruby is the red variety of corundum, the second hardest natural mineral known to mankind. The non-red variety of corundum is Sapphire. Sapphires are well known among the general public as being blue, but can be nearly any color. A ruby\'s color is due to a trace of chromic oxide; the amount of this trace mineral determines the depth of color. The most sought after shade of red for ruby is often given the name \"pigeon blood red\", but ruby can be any shade of red up to almost pink. The only source of \"pigeon blood\" rubies is Mogok in Upper Burma, about ninety miles from Kepling\'s Mandalay, and are known in the trade as \"Mogok\" rubies, and are considered the finest in the world.