Thai rubies??

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Hi,
Could someone tell me a little about Thai rubies?

Where to they place on the "value/prestige" food chain? (I''m so shallow

) I know Burma/Mogok are considered the best.

Aren''t the Thai ruby mines played out? When did this happen? Does this mean that one can assume any Thai ruby is like me: "of a certain age"?

I have a stone that one gemologist said had the characteristics (inclusions) of a classic Thai ruby. What was he talking about? My stone is quite dark, but very lively , and remarkably clean. It is RED RED with no pink or orange secondary color. It does not flouresce.

Thanks!

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[AGBF]

I can probably pass along some misinformation to you if you wish . The value of my doing it openly is that I will very quickly be corrected on most if not all of the things about which I am wrong.

Thai rubies do not have the snob appeal of Mogok rubies. One would assume that this is because Thai rubies are generally inferior according to the standards of what is considered ideal in a ruby.

Rubies, as with all colored stones, are judged primarily by their color. Mogok rubies can more often be found to be true reds. Thai rubies supposedly have more brown in them.

If I had to guess I would guess that this is true. In general. I would also guess that one could find a very true red ruby in Thailand and a brownish one (as well as a purplish one) in Burma. I would be hesitant to say your ruby HAD to be of a certain age just because it was Thai.

I do not believe the Thai mines have been exhausted.

Deborah

 

[Colored Gemstone Nut]

I wish I had more time to comment Widget))) I''m off to work..Here''s a quick excerpt from the gemstone forecaster which should answer a couple of your intitial questions...

Due to the severe shortages in Burma production, the majority of rubies bought and sold today are from Thailand. A few Thai families firmly control every aspect of marketing; from mining to cutting and heating. If you are looking to collect a ruby on a relatively moderate budget, many experts predict this stone may, in the long term, eventually gain the acceptance Burma ruby now holds. Almost all of these stones are cooked. The majority of Thai stones tend to have purple secondary colors as compared to Burmas. Occasionally, you can find an intense red/orange that is highly desirable. Also, you sometimes find a Thai ruby with a lighter tone similar to Burma, (like those from the now defunct Bo Rai mine) that is highly desirable. Some Thai rubies approach Burma in appearance and are highly sought after. As a general rule, one carat Thai stones will sell between $1000-$7500 per carat. Two carat stones can range between $3500-$15,000. Three carat Thai ruby can cost between $4500-$20,000 per carat. Four carat or larger Thai stones can exceed $20,000 per carat.

Hope this Helps...

 

[JUNGLE JIM]

Taliking about rubies, I have some rubies. 20,000 rough pieces from West Africa. So don''t cry if the Tai and Burmese rubies dry out.
Check this out. Rough, natural, unheated. Just washed with soapy water. But they are photographed under incandecent light.
JJ

 

[JUNGLE JIM]

One more.
JJ

 

[Ymanda]

Come on boy ... it''s so blur...

Talking about Thai rubies, i think that those Tanzanian Rubies are the type of stones which can become really nice after a first burn (remove iron staining) and then the new Glass Filling from Chantaburi (south-east of Bangkok).
They would loose that glassy aspect and become ready to be cut.

Otherwise i heard about a new mine in Kanchanaburi province but "Mogok" will have much more to say about Thai ruby after the week-end.

 

[bar01]

Here is a partial passage from Renee Newman’s book on Sapphires and Rubies.

Characteristics of Thai/Cambodian Rubies

- The hue ranges from purplish red to orangey red
- The tone usually ranges from medium dark to very dark, but the medium dark tones are more valuable
- The hue is often masked by more gray, black or brown then in Burma Rubies. The purer the color the better
- Their tends to be very little fluorescence, The stronger the red color is under sunlight and incandescent the better
- There tend to be a lot of black extinction areas. The more red and the less black the better
- Color zoning is rare.
There is more stuff in her book on the sources The Mong Hsy deposit in Myanmar is the major producer of rubies. 90% of facet grade rubies are from their and are typically heat treated and also flux healed. Since 2001 there are some rubies coming out of Madagascar with very fine (Burma like) examples coming out of the town of Vatomandry.

 

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Thanks, Bertrand!

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