Tiny chip on new sapphire ring - Shall I ignore it?

[Serlal]

Dear group members,

Recently i bought online a sapphire ring. I noticed that there is a tiny chip on the girdle of the sapphire stone.
Initially I thought to let it be as its hardly visible with the naked eye, but on a second thought i thought that it could result in more chipping in the future.

Do you think that this is acceptable and i should let it go or return the ring for repair?

Thanks in advance.

Kind regards,
Serlal

 

[WinkHPD]

My thought is that you find a knowledgeable local jeweler and go in to show him the ring and ask his opinions. We can not see enough of the indentation to know for sure if it is a chip or an indented inclusion or even an indented natural.

I may even be incorrect in assuming this mystery "chip/inclusion/natural" was on the stone when it was received.

If you do not find a good local jeweler to help you, there are some excellent appraisers on this platform who can assist you. They can, at the least, let you know if there is a serious issue or if this is something that is normal and was in the stone when it was faceted.

Wink

 

[Texas Leaguer]

Sapphire (corundum) is 9 on the relative hardness scale, just under diamond - the hardest gem - at 10. However, there is a many fold difference in actual hardness between the two. Diamond is vastly harder than any other natural gem, including sapphire (see graphic below).

It is good to have a mounting that offers a lot of protection to any colored gemstone, such as that six prong mounting. Even so, eventually there will be chips, scratches and abrasions on a sapphire that is worn regularly, particularly at the girdle and facet junctions. At the point when the wear and tear is obvious and is diminishing the beauty of the gem, that is a good time to consider having it re-polished. The less frequently and more gently it is worn, the longer it will be before re-polishing is necessary.

Unfortunately, if you repolish it every time it gets a little ding, the cost of ownership will be exorbitant and you will be without the stone as much as you will be with it.

 

[oldminer]

What I see does not look like a "chip". Often we see never worn sapphires with what amounts to the equivalent of "naturals" on a diamond. It is evidence that the cutter did not waste any rough material. There should be no problem created by that rather tiny dent within the girdle. It could be polished away, but as you have been already told, some further surface blemishes in use will happen anyway.

Showing the stone to an expert is not a terrible idea if one is convenient. Don't allow an salesperson to scare you with a pitch on doing what currently looks to be nothing to fix or worry over. It is very tempting to use a fear tactic to increase the bottom line. We understand, but don't agree with such abuse.