Jewellery
Coloured diamonds aside, rubies command higher prices per carat than any other gemstone. Graded using the traditional criteria of the four Cs (colour, cut, clarity and carat weight), they are also evaluated on the basis of geographic origin with the stones from Burma commanding the most interest.
Rubies from the Valley of the Rubies, in Mogok, Myanmar – first brought to the attention of Europeans by Marco Polo in the 13th century – are most admired for their saturated colour and a natural fluorescence caused by a high chromium content in the ground from which they are extracted. The market is particularly strong in the Far East where the colour red is traditionally associated with good fortune.