5.46-carat Pigeon's Blood burma Ruby (Gubelin cert.)

[Rubeum]

Often asked what is the best ruby quality and what gemmological institutes mean for "Pigeon's Blood".
Recently, on AJSgem, been presented this ruby (I think just sold) for 1.000.000$.
5.46-carat, burma, unheated with Gubelin cert. attesting that in the trade this ruby quality also called "Pigeon's Blood". There was also a HD video and I share it with you if anyone is interested

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ZJDVc9jLDE

 

[cm366]

Gorgeous! Thanks for sharing it

 

[chrono]

Big, red and crystalline; what's there not to admire about that ruby?

 

[minousbijoux]

Beautiful - it looks to have both orange and violet modifiers. How cool.

 

[Rubeum]

It's normal, due to the ruby pleochroism. Get the RED is the combination of several factors, having regard to the limited range in which it moves this color.

 

[dk168]

I like it, however, it looks bluer than what I would called pigeon's blood red.

DK

 

[Rubeum]

I like it, however, it looks bluer than what I would called pigeon's blood red.

DK

The famous "touch of blue in the red" is not a blue shade that you see in red, but a condition to create a basic cold red.
From Wikipedia - Carmine red: sRGBB (r, g, b) (150, 0, 24) - 150 part of red and 24 part of blue. Not to forget the pleochromatic issue (red in the face, orange and pink on the sides and purple at the bottom).
Finally I can say that the red color is really "difficult". The characteristic of rubies are to be able to show it to a range of factors: body color + fluorescence color + distribution of rutile silk that homogenizes the color. Only color of the body is not enough.

 

[pregcurious]

I like it, however, it looks bluer than what I would called pigeon's blood red.

DK

The famous "touch of blue in the red" is not a blue shade that you see in red, but a condition to create a basic cold red.
From Wikipedia - Carmine red: sRGBB (r, g, b) (150, 0, 24) - 150 part of red and 24 part of blue. Not to forget the pleochromatic issue (red in the face, orange and pink on the sides and purple at the bottom).
Finally I can say that the red color is really "difficult". The characteristic of rubies are to be able to show it to a range of factors: body color + fluorescence color + distribution of rutile silk that homogenizes the color. Only color of the body is not enough.

Rubeum, is it the same for red spinels? I have noticed that my red spinel has a different color from the bottom than from the top, and I was not sure if that was a function of the cut.

 

[minousbijoux]

I like it, however, it looks bluer than what I would called pigeon's blood red.

DK

And what, exactly, is pigeon's blood? Although the term has been around for forever (or so it seems), many of us would like to see it become obsolete, as its so subjective - exactly what your statement is highlighting! In the last few years, this forum has unfortunately seen a large range in what Gubelin calls "pigeon's blood," with some not particularly attractive stones given that descriptor.

 

[slksapphire]

amazing ... definitely my holy grail. perfect size, color and origin.

i always thought that a faint blue/purplish tinge was what made a ruby "pigeon's blood."

as for "pigeon's blood", "vivid royal blue" (for sapphires) on certs, in my mind, they are meaningless. thank you for sharing this stunning gem.

 

[Rubeum]

I absolutely agree that the "Pigeon's Blood" term is extremely overused that it has become almost repellent to some extent. Is an ancient term and we have to imagine that the "ancients" had far fewer mental ruminations of us; they did not have nordic light lamps, 10x magnification lenses and UV lamps. They understood the best quality because they had a lot of material available to compare, and we must always think that we are talking about nature and the best material is never equal to itself.

Red is an ephemeral color, especially in the stones. That's why usually red stones are so expensive. A color that has no gradients, because the faded red it's just pink. It moves in a narrow range and subtle nuances.
Ruby is by its nature a stone that can show you the most beautiful and glowing red of our lives; a magical combination of red body color, red fluorescence and a sparse but uniform distribution of rutile silk (best when made ​​of small needles that cross each other) that evens out the color, and gives us a light velvet inside crystalline transparency. A fondamental combination because the lack or deficiency of one of these factors does not allow the distribution of color in a stone with a strong pleochroism as the ruby.

When these factors work well together and express their full potential, to me we are faced with the highest perceived quality. No matter if these stones have differences between them in terms of shades, are exceptional stones, masterpieces of nature.
I've never been in disagreement with Gubelin, at least until now, I have always found his reasons very deliberate. I am often totally disagree with GRS, has created a true "marketplace of words": "Vibrant Orange", "Cornflower blue", "Magnificent red", "Pastel green"... why not a "Sexy pink"??? (my suggestion, which may wish to take advantage). I do not want to create a controversy, each working with their own strings to its bow, but in "GRS Pigeon's Blood Type" I am almost always disagree. Gems very dark, such as garnets, with a lively red light on the bottom. In your mind, in your culture, feel the best quality ruby with this aspect? I don't (rubies, even if certified by GIA, take the status of deep purplish red or purplish red).

- To pregcurious - yes even spinels have a strong pleochroism. In general, all of the gems that have a colorless base and change color depending on the elements that replace a certain percentage to the atoms of the original formula, are pleochroic.

 

[chrono]

I agree that terms such as pigeon's blood, cornflower blue and etc are outdated and subjective these days. It would be great to have a more accurate colour descriptor but that isn't happening any time soon.

I agree that a light toned red is called pink and that red gemstones are generally made up of various percentages of orange, red and blue (purple). GIA and Gubelin's grading seem to be consistent and I have no issues with their reports. Of late, GRS' pigeon's blood red rubies have me scratching my head in wonder how they got that descriptor.

Rubeum,
This is the first time I am reading that spinels have strong pleochroism. As far as I know, they have no pleochroism at all. They are also a gem type that has no colour zoning.

 

[Rubeum]

Rubeum,
This is the first time I am reading that spinels have strong pleochroism. As far as I know, they have no pleochroism at all. They are also a gem type that has no colour zoning.

You're right, I remembered wrong. Mea culpa, for punishment I down on my knees on diamonds

 

[chrono]

No, no, no, get off the diamonds, those are mine. Go kneel over there on the bare cement floor.

 

[movie zombie]

my heart stopped watching that. sigh.

 

[Lee Little]

That one does deserve the 'pigeons blood' title, however, the million dollar price tag is obsessive in my opinion. I would have guessed about a third of that but who am I? Best regards, Lee

 

[minousbijoux]

Lee: perhaps your proximity to the source and being in or near the gem capital of the world makes a difference in pricing expectations? Don't know, just surmising. That said, I wouldn't pay $1m for a 5+ ct stone, but as you say, who am I?

 

[Rubeum]

Considering the speed with which they sold it, they were right on the price
For me it's worth it? Considering the prices at which these stones are sold at international auctions, I would say that it seems quite in line, perhaps slightly overpriced. AJSgems is generally quite expensive, but I must also recognize that they often difficult to find quality gems.

 

[Lee Little]

Something is worth what somebody pays for it. Prices out of Burma are often erratic. Zeros can be erased and added. I bought a chunk of Jade from Burma, asking price was roughly $1000 USD, I offered $60 and the deal was accepted. Somebody else may have quickly paid the 1K, which in that case would make it right on the price, I suppose. Best regards, Lee

 

[Lee Little]

Also a couple a years ago I saw a 5 carat, unheated, Mogok pigeon blood sell for 1 million baht per carat, in other words, about $150,000 for the stone. Clarity could be a factor, however, the buyer was likely a bigger factor. Best regards, Lee

 

[slksapphire]

i also thought fine, gem quality ruby in the 5-10 ct range was in the zip code of $25,000-$30,000 per carat. don't know how much the mogok origin adds to the price but i didn't think it was that much.

 

[chrono]

AJSgems is generally quite expensive, but I must also recognize that they often difficult to find quality gems.

I agree with your opinion above. A few years ago, AJS was one of the better priced vendors but they seem to be one of the more expensive vendors these days.