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Amethyst or Sapphire?

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Aerielle Max

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Oct 12, 2017
Messages
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For gemstones lovers, which one usually gets your admiration - amethyst or sapphire? Thank you.
 
I think sapphires are more sparkly?
 
I’m assuming you mean to compare Amethyst with a purple sapphire?
The main differences are hardness, sapphire is corundum so it’s 9 on Mohos scale Whereas Amethyst is a form of Quartz with a hardness around 7.5.
Sapphire also has a higher refractive index so it sparkles” (returns light) better.
There is quite a huge difference is price and size availability. Large Amethyst crystals are very common and available in just about any carat weight you want for $10 or less a carat.
Sapphire crystals are rarer, much smaller and very much more expensive. A purple sapphire over 10 carats would cost many thousands of dollars, whereas a cut Amethyst gem of 10 carats, maybe $100.
 
Sapphire sparks more and it is kinda rare and yes more expensive than Amethyst.

So yeah I am more attracted to Sapphire
 
Sapphire gets my vote every time. Aside from more brilliance and sparkle, their value is greater, too. Although value is subjective when it comes to what a person prefers. I have both gemstones and love them dearly.
 
I think they are both beautiful but sapphire gets my vote every time. It’s harder, which makes it better for day to day wear.
Now I just need to find a purple sapphire with the color of a good Amethyst and I’ll be all set. :mrgreen:
 
Sapphire is my birthstone but i gotta admit i like amethyst
Once upon a time it was very valuable and highly sort after
It was also used as mouring jewlery (which is sad in itself)

Id love to see some beautiful pieces because i only see mostly cheap baddly designed pieces around these parts
 
Amethyst is my birthstone, and I prefer purple to blue in colour.

Also, Amethyst is more affordable.

DK :))
 
Daisys and Diamonds said:
Sapphire is my birthstone but i gotta admit i like amethyst
Once upon a time it was very valuable and highly sort after
It was also used as mouring jewlery (which is sad in itself)

Id love to see some beautiful pieces because i only see mostly cheap baddly designed pieces around these parts
Click to expand...

Pearl is my birthstone. The most delicate of gems. I don't have much of it I'm afraid, for that specific reason.
 
Daisys and Diamonds said:
Do we get pictures ?
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My concave cut Amethyst cut by Richard Homer that was my 50th birthday present, with contributions from friends and family.

It was the most expensive Amethyst I had purchased to date (over 700 USD!!!), however, I had been lusting after this stone for ages.

Flanked by 2 trillion sky blue Topaz cut by Doug Menadue, and the ring design was inspired by Theo Fennell's Bombé rings in 14K WG with diamonds.

612459

Here is an inexpensive Amethyst from Jeff Davies, in a 14K WG Tiffany Legacy inspired setting:

582973

I have another Amethyst in Cartier inspired Tank ring design that I wear quite often (no photo yet). The setting is very flimsy, however, I like the stone, and am likely to have it re-made into a more substantial setting some time in future.

I have a few more Amethyst in the queue for setting into rings. The issue I have is that, the stones are inexpensive compared with the cost involved in setting them in 14K WG. Hence they have been pushed back in the ring setting queue, as I am planning to set the better stones I have in hand first.

DK :))
 
The Cartier inspired Tank ring I mentioned:

20201009_134220.jpg

DK :))
 
Wow, love the pictures. Thanks for sharing, so glad to see them. First time to see Amethyst that sparks in white.

Then I think everyone love both Amethyst and Sapphire on different reasons. I am smiling reading your posts. Probably I will purchase Amethyst first and will have Sapphire on next.
 
20200915_105515.jpg
This is my cheap and cheerful purple 'amethyst dupe' sapphire. I like the color but it has all sorts of things wrong with it. Even so, I prefer it to an amethyst of the same color. I find Amethysts are beautiful colorwise but it is just a very different stone. this sapphire has zoning, negative crystals, bad polish job, etc etc, but it still has a nice glow to it in most lighting conditions. But mainly, I am VERY hard on my rings. An amethyst would last 6 months. Tops. I have amethys earrings though. So... buy both
 
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Depends. Amethyst is purple only. Sapphire comes in all sorts of colours. It also depends on the specific Amethyst. I far prefer Jackson Crossroad and Uruguayan / Zambian ammy, which has some blue in it. It also needs really good cutting else it can appear "flat". A well coloured and well cut ammy is super special.
 
I have a soft spot for just about any type of quartz as that was my first rock hound experience (I was 14!)

On the other hand, I'm a gem whore. :lol: I can't say no to a fabulous sapphire either.
 
LIGemzGal said:
Pearl is my birthstone. The most delicate of gems. I don't have much of it I'm afraid, for that specific reason.
Click to expand...

Or alexandrite :D
 
Amethyst. But a beautiful purple sapphire comes close.
 
I like both. It depends on the individual gem. I would rather wear sapphire in a ring than amethyst because it’s harder wearing but Amethyst would be fine in a pendant or earrings as it wouldn’t get banged about like it would if it was in a ring.
 
prs said:
The great thing about amethyst is you can go big and not break the bank. =)2

Amethyst Pendant A.jpgAmethyst Pendant C (2).jpg
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I was never a fan of ammys but I always wanted a big one like yours with what I call the Royal Purple color. Stunning. Alas, stones of that quality are not inexpensive and I could never justify the price for a semi precious gem and give it the high carat yellow gold setting it deserved. So I have to admire from afar... your pendant is stunning!
 
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Aerielle Max said:
For gemstones lovers, which one usually gets your admiration - amethyst or sapphire? Thank you.
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Corundum has a higher refreactive index and is a very hard AND durable stone (hardness doesn’t always reflect durability).

I love African amethysts that color shifts from grapey purple to more of a bluish purple, and they’re extremely affordable and plentiful in large sizes. Large minimally treated or untreated purple sapphires with fine color are very expensive in anything over three carats, if you can find one. Also the fact that corundum is a dense stone, you don’t get as much material per carat as you would an amethyst.

I guess it depends on budget, and the look you’re going after.
 
I love the historical/spiritual connotations that were imbued into amethyst. It's also interesting to see how the perception of a stone can change over time. Amethyst was once considered as precious or more so than the big four.
But being a magpie, I love the sharper sparkle of sapphire more.
 
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