Rubies are red…

The tradition of giving birthstone jewellery is a long standing one, for those lucky enough to be born In July, the stone in question is ruby.

Rubies are a type of corundum, a mineral group that also includes sapphires. They vary in colour from pink to a rich red determined by the level of chromium and iron present. They are found in items of jewellery in all colours of this spectrum although the darker and richer colours are often more valuable. Those stones considered to be the finest are found in Burma but they are also found in Thailand, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Vietnam among other places.

Ruby items are fairly rare to auction when compared with items set with other coloured stones such as sapphires, and of course those pieces only set with diamonds. In The Jewellery Auction on 17 July, there are five ruby and diamond set pieces, including earrings and rings.

Four of the five items have accompanying jewellery reports. Whether it is your own birthday, or maybe that of a family member- let the dedicated jewellery auction be your present source.

Click to view full auction >>

Sarah Fergusson

McTear’s sells more jewellery than any other traditional auction house in the dedicated jewellery auctions that take place twice monthly, run concurrently live online on a platform that attracts six million visitors annually from over 120 countries worldwide.