Rubies are instantly recognisable gemstones, and they were for a long time reserved for royalty. Most of the rubies you find in jewellery come from Asia, and 90% of the rubies come from one country, Myanmar, formally known as Burma.

With rubies being so highly prized, you need to be careful when buying them from unknown sources, as there are many fake rubies that you can end up buying. If you are interested in purchasing ruby gemstone jewellery or already have some at home and want to tell if they are real or not, there are a few ways to do this. Below are some ways to check if your rubies are genuine or not, so you know if you have a real ruby gemstone or not.

The Three Different Types Of Rubies

There are three different kinds of rubies you will need to know about to determine what you have in your jewellery. The first is a natural ruby, often found in Asia, and these are the most valuable ones to buy, and you can often find they have been enhanced to bring out their colours. The second type of ruby is an artificial one. As with many other gems, you can create these artificially in a laboratory, and these are still valuable. The third type and least valuable are the fakes, and you often find that these are made from glass and sometimes use other gems and pass them off as rubies.

Testing The Hardness Of Your Ruby

Rubies are one of the hardest naturally occurring minerals and are only second to diamonds. When measuring the hardness of a gem, the Mohs scale is used, which marks them out of ten, and rubies score an impressive nine. As such, an excellent way to assess your rubies is to put their hardness to the test. You can use your fingernail, a coin, or anything else hard you have, and try scratching the surface of the ruby. If it leaves a mark, it is not a real ruby. However, if it does not leave a mark, you may have a genuine Burmese ruby gemstone.

Test The Clarity Of Your Ruby

You can look at the colour and clarity of your gemstone, and this can often tell you if your ruby is fake or not. You will want to hold the ruby to a light source and check that the gem’s colour is evenly distributed. Fake rubies will be red but not bright like genuine ones, and you will also need to look for flaws and inclusions. Rubies do not often have these, so you may have a fake ruby on your hands if you find any.

Scratch The Ruby On A Hard Surface

You can also rub the ruby against a hard and smooth surface, which can help tell if your gem is real or fake. You can use porcelain or clear glass and see if it leaves a mark. A genuine ruby will not leave a mark, and if you do see any, you probably do not have a genuine ruby. One of the best ways to tell if your rubies are genuine or fake is to take them to your local jeweller and have them assess your gemstones, which they can do in a few minutes.