Sapphires are September’s Birthstone

Sapphire is the official birthstone for the month of September.  It is derived from the Greek word “sappheiros”, meaning blue stone.  Sapphire has a long and storied history that has no clear beginning. Highlights include mentions of it in the Bible as well as in ancient scholarly texts like Pliny’s Natural History. Sapphire has been prized for thousands of years not only for its beauty but also for its supposed powers, usually related to eyes or vision, thanks to sapphire’s calming blue hues.

Sapphire is a variety of the mineral, Corundum.  It comes in a range of colors but the most popular is blue.  Sapphire ranks a hard 9 on Mohs’ hardness scale making it one of the toughest every day gems. 

To insure lifelong beauty in a sapphire, simply clean it with warm soapy water using a soft brush.  As long as it’s not oiled or glass-filled, sapphires and sapphire jewelry should be safe in ultrasonic and steam cleaners. Be careful to avoid particularly harsh detergents and aggressive scrubbing with oiled sapphires.