GEMS.

151

s a variety of garnet of a strong brownish-yellow colour ;
t is not much valued ; of ordinary garnets those are best
which have a pink colour withoutany shade of brown. Fine
fery specimens of garnet may be worth as much as Rs. 100
or Rs. 200 or more, and cinnamon stones of a pure rich yellow
colour and weighing 10 to 15 carats may fetch as much as
Rs. 500 or Rs. 600; of course the stones must be of perfect
solour and free from flaws to fetch these prices.
Varieties of corundum include the most important gem
stones, ruby and sapphire. Of these, rubies are much the
most valuable, it being very rarely that stones of any size
without flaws are obtained. It is rarely also that the most
perfect ¢ pigeon’s blood ” colour is found. A ruby of about
ne carat and of the best colour and flawless fetches about
Rs. 300 to Rs. 800 ; as much as Rs. 15,000 has been offered
for an absolutely perfect ruby of four carats, but the price
»f Rs. 7,500 for a perfect six-carat stone actually gold was
sonsidered high. Rubies are thus more valuable than
diamonds, as indeed they are more beautiful. Good rubies
are more abundant in Burma,than in Ceylon, but the best
Jeylon rubies are of a purer red than Burmese rubies, being
tree from the suspicion of a brownish tinge which the
latter possess. Sapphires are more abundant than rubies,
and command a lower price. It is often the case thata trace
of blue is seen in the red colour of a ruby ; this blue tinge
is ‘sometimes removed by a process of burning. Colourless
stones are known as white sapphire; purple ones as Oriental
amethyst ; yellow, as Oriental topaz. There are also star
stones, or asteria, which when cut en cabochon in a particular
direction exhibit a six-rayed star of light. This effect is
caused by the presence of minute inclusions arranged in
planes corresponding to the stages in the growth of the
hexagonal crystal, producing an appearance known as “silk.”
In rare cases a twelve-rayed star has been observed. Many
fine specimens show the star in ordinary light, but if diffused
the light decreases the brilliancy of the star by reflection ;
the star is best seen in sunlight or artificial light. Ordinary
specimens are of little value, but a fine stone commands a
high price. Star stones are almost peculiar to Ceylon.
The varieties of chrysoberyl are very interesting. The
sal's-eye is highly valued, and fine specimens have realized
large sums, but it is affected by the caprice of fashion, not
sommanding a general admiration, as do the sapphire and the
ruby ; the result is that in some years its price is increased
by a demand which in others as suddenly falls. There are
inferior kinds of stones resembling cat's-eyes, such as the
quartz cat’s-eye and crocidolite, which is now stained to