Value of Pinkish Rubies
Weight: 1.01 Carats
Origin: Myanmar (formerly Burma)
Price: $2,727
Pinkish rubies usually range in value from $1,000 to $10,000 for one carat depending on how saturated the red color is. Generally speaking pinkish rubies will be less expensive than pure red rubies, which gives buyers a better range on gem quality for their money. However, pinkish rubies can still command prices above the rarest colors of sapphires.
R10036 on the left is one of the pinker examples of rubies, and is untreated! Most rubies available have been treated in some way, and this makes the untreated one incredibly rare and valuable. It also has a wonderful clarity and color without cracking $10,000 for one carat, unlike perfectly red or pigeon blood rubies for this same quality.
Rubies can also be very red with only a slight pinkish tint. These types of rubies will be at the higher end of the pricing, but will still come out with a lower price than completely red ruby.
Macro Hand Video for R10008
1 Meter Hand Video for R10008
As seen in these two videos of R10008 above, it does have a pinkish color under different types of lighting. The pink component disappears completely under incandescent lighting, but it is visible under fluorescent lighting. It also has a much higher value than R10036 of $8,924.40 USD. This is due to the much purer red color, along with its untreated status.
Argument Between Pinkish Rubies vs. Pink Sapphires
No discussion of pinkish rubies is complete without mentioning pink sapphires. These two gems are made from the same mineral (corundum) and colored by the same element (chromium). The only difference between the two varieties of corundum is whether they are called ruby or pink sapphire. This is also a long-standing argument in the gem industry of what colors should be called ruby or pink sapphire.
The most expensive pink sapphires and least expensive rubies fall into the same color range, with very slight differences. However, the pricing differences between the two can be significant. Rubies will usually be priced higher than pink sapphires, and this affects a vendor’s profit. The precise “line” between the two is argued from vendor to vendor, and varies from country to country too. So far the best solution is gemology labs like the Gemology Institute of America or the Gem Research Swiss lab, but the labs can produce different opinions for the same gems.
Ruby
Weight: 0.76 Carats
Origin: Myanmar (formerly Burma)
Price: $418
Pink Sapphire
Weight: 1.22 Carats
Origin: Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon)
Price: $1,500
As shown above, the ruby and pink sapphire are very similar colors, with similar pricing. In this case the pink sapphire is more expensive due to an exponential price increase at 1 carat and has a better cut.