Fine Jewellery, Watches, Silver & Coins 12 July 2023 at 12pm

4 GEMMOLOGIST’S CORNER Unusual Sapphires at O’Reilly’s Padparadscha sapphires are the rarest of all sapphires, a unique mix of pink and orange, they are a little known but strikingly beautiful variety of the gemstone sapphire. Padparadscha is a Sanskrit word used to describe the colour of a tropical lotus flower, the colour evokes sunsets, tropical fruits and flowers. These sapphires have been trending for a few years now, kicked off by the engagement of Princess Eugenia marked by a padparadscha sapphire and diamond cluster ring. Padparadscha sapphires are mainly found in Sri Lanka, as well as Madagascar andTanzania, although the finest are thought to be Sri Lankan The colour ranges from pink to orange with some stones being pinker and some more orange. Heat treatment is used to improve the colour, but this is deemed to be industry accepted. We have several cer tified unheated sapphires in our for thcoming auction; Lots 202, 203, 209 and 210. The Colour change sapphire is another unusual stone not often seen, this strange phenomenon is sometimes seen in sapphires from Sri Lanka, Tanzania and Madagascar, the sapphire appears bluer in fluorescent light and purple in incandescent light (daylight). Lot 204 is a lovely example of a colour change sapphire in a pavé diamond floral surround, the stone is cer tified. LIVE AUCTION OF FINE JEWELLERY, WATCHES, SILVER & COINS • WEDNESDAY, 12th JULY 2023 AT 12PM