Spinel Guide

Natural Spinel is one of the August birthstones and the gemstone for the 22nd wedding anniversary.

Natural Spinel is believed to encourage great passion, devotion, and longevity making it a wonderful gem to celebrate a twenty-second wedding anniversary. This rare and beautiful gem has surged in popularity in the last few decades, but they have been used in jewelry since ancient times. They can be found in many royal jewel collections. The 170ct “Black Prince’s Ruby” and the “Timur Ruby” in the Crown Jewels of England are two examples. Spinel was often mistaken as ruby or sapphire in the past as they have similar characteristics. It is nearly as hard, (8 on Moh’s scale of hardness). Traditionally they were mainly sourced in Afghanistan, Myanmar, and Sri Lanka, but more recently they have been discovered in various sites in Africa, Australia, Russia, and Vietnam.

Spiritual & Health Benefits

Spinel gems are said to help set aside egos and become devoted to another person. Like most fiery red stones, spinel is believed to encourage great passion, devotion and longevity. Spinel is associated with the root Chakra, making it effective in increasing physical energy and stamina.

Spinel is a high energy stone, used to lend the body energy and to heal physical energy blockages. This beautiful gemstone has a calming effect on all types of physical inflammations, even neuritis and it’s symptoms are told to benefit from using Spinel.
Physical Characteristics

COLOUR

Natural spinel occurs in all shades from quite pale to very intense in all colours in the spectrum. Red spinel is the most sought after, followed by fine cobalt-blue, vibrant hot pink and vivid orange gems known as flame spinel and purple. Following the latest fashion trends, the demand for grey spinel is increasing.

CUT

Due to the scarcity of fine quality rough material most spinels are cut to maximise yield rather than cut to standard shapes and sizes. Higher quality spinels are most often cut as ovals or cushions. Lower quality spinels are available in many shapes and sizes. Well proportioned spinels also show excellent brilliance.

CLARITY

While some inclusions can add beauty, such as those that look like fingerprints and some can add value like those that cause asterism, (the star effect) in translucent cabochon spinel, in general the higher the transparency, the higher the value of the gem.
Synthetic Spinel

Take care to source natural spinel from a reputable retailer as there are many inexpensive synthetic (man-made) spinels in the marketplace.

Synthetic spinel has been made since the 1920s. It is inexpensive and can be produced in almost all colours. It is frequently used to simulate ruby, sapphire, diamond, aquamarine, tourmaline, alexandrite, lapis lazuli, moonstone, and zircon as well as natural spinel in jewellery. Colourless synthetic spinel also has many commercial applications.

Differences in refractive index, specific gravity and fluorescence under UV rays are used to determine whether a spinel is natural or not.
Spinel Care

Though Spinel is one if the harder gemstones, it still requires some care. Remove spinel jewellery when exercising, cleaning, playing sports or engaging in vigorous physical activities. Spinel can scratch other gems or precious metals so avoid direct contact with other jewellery by storing them separately.

Warm soapy water and tissue or a soft cloth can be used to clean spinel jewellery. Be sure to rinse the stones well to remove all soapy residue. Also, ultrasonic cleaners won’t harm spinel so they are ideal for removing dirt embedded around your spinel settings.