The Spinel

Known since ancient times, the Spinel is often confused with they Ruby due to its exceptionally bright red colour.
This has not, however, prevented it from being used in some of the most illustrious sets of jewels of sovereigns.
Spinels come in some rather incredible and bright colours such as bright red, orange, violet, blue or purple with more or less marked nuances. Philippe Tournaire loves to cast this gemstone into the spotlight through some extremely original creations. Spinels are, for him, a natural choice due to their shine and natural beauty.

Identity card of an unknown gemstone

Spinels form part of the oxide family.
It measures a hardness of 8 on the Mohs scale, which makes it a highly resistant gemstone and much appreciated amongst jewellers.
In its raw form, this rather surprising gemstone is presented like a diamond in the form of a double pyramid with often well designed contours. It additionally comes in the form of a flat crystal, which often restricts diamond cutters who, in such instance, cut the gemstone with a rather shallow tool head so as to lose as few carats as possible.

Origins

This gemstone is often formed alongside sapphires and rubies (which in part contributes - in addition to its colour - to explaining the confusion surrounding it).
These are primarily to be found in Burma, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Tanzania and Tajikistan.

Colour

Spinels come in many forms, with the most well-known and coveted being that in bright red. Philippe Tournaire appreciates the intensity and sparkle of rose red Spinels, which allows a harmony of colours to be combined and makes this even more of a festive gemstone.

Some of these gemstones are magical red, others have a hint of orange, or an intense rose red and their warm tones are in large part due to the presence of chrome. The greater the presence of this chemical element during the formation of the Spinel, the brighter its redness.
In the cooler tones, this gemstone can also harbour blues, purples and violet, and even blue-green.
A short time ago, it was believed that iron was the only element responsible for the blue colour found in Spinels. It was discovered that in reality, the combination of iron and cobalt allowed for our admiring eyes to contemplate such intense blues in these gemstones, coming primarily from Madagascar, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

Spinels, which are still a somewhat unknown gemstone in the eyes of the general public, are enigmatic due to the diverse range of colours depending on the light through which they are seen (natural or electric lights) and may also be shaped like stars, with four or six branches.

Synthetic Spinels

These gemstones have been artificially made since the early 20th Century.
It is possible to unmask a fake blue Spinel by looking at its inclusions and testing it with gemological tools. Genuine blue Spinels contain iron and cobalt, whilst fake gemstones have no trace of iron, which can held to distinguish them.
It is also possible to find triplets, which are made of two parts of colourless synthetic Spinel, covered by a fine layer of coloured glass. When looking at the profile of the latter, it is generally possible to make out the three different layers.

The simple history of an unknown gemstone

for several centuries, Spinels were believed to be an entirely different gemstone which shares many similarities and is formed alongside this stone : the Ruby.
It was not until much later, in the 19th Century, that Spinels and Rubies were separated and identified as two distinct entities, thanks to scientific advances.
The examples which will follow show that a gemstone which was not recognised in its own right at the time, was however used in many ornaments of sovereigns, without them even being aware...

Amongst the famous jewels in which Spinels can be found are :

  the Black Prince’s Ruby : a 170 carat Spinel which is today the English State crown jewel. In the past it adorned the helmet of Henry Vth at the battle of Azincourt in 1415.
  the Timor "ruby" : an exceptional 361 carat Spinel cut as a cabachon and today belonging to Queen Elizabeth II of England. This incredible gemstone harbours Persian inscriptions, showing further proof of its ancient history.

The origin of the word Spinel is the topic of much debate : it may originate from the Greek "spita" meaning "sparkle", or from the Latin term "spina" which means "spine". These two origins could respectively refer to fire, which would in turn refer to the bright red colour of a Spinel and the pointed crystals which are inherent to this gemstone.
Red Spinels are a symbol of power and courage. Blue Spinels provide the bearer with the power to repel negative energies.

Whatever the power offered, this rather uncommon gemstone has forged itself a reputation amongst some of the best, thanks to its beauty and sparkle.
Having only been recognised as such for a relatively short period of time, they deserve to be appreciated due to their sparkling colours, and without always being associated with rubies.
Philippe Tournaire, jewellery creator, invites us to discover this precious gemstone with enchanting colours. Succumb to its unique charms which take us on a journey, whilst all the time remembering the gemstone as a true Spinel and not a fake ruby !