Natural Ruby Inclusions
Explore ruby inclusions in Hyperion, the Lotus Gemology inclusion database. Hyperion contains photomicrographs of inclusions and internal features in natural ruby, documented with information on geographic origin, treatment, lighting conditions, field of view, photographer and published references.
Rutile silk in a heated Mozambique ruby showing obvious signs of breakdown, with small bubbles appearing in the daughter crystals.
Natural Ruby •
Mozambique •
Enhancements:
Heat (H) •
Lighting Conditions:
Fiber Optic: Diffuse Overhead
Photographer:
Richard W. Hughes •
Image Number:
A-001-2656-1
Shallow feathers such as these are produced by heat treatment, where the orange stains found in untreated gems are removed and the fissures begin to heal.
Natural Ruby •
Mozambique •
Enhancements:
Heat (H) •
Lighting Conditions:
Fiber Optic: Oblique
Photographer:
Richard W. Hughes •
Image Number:
A-001-2704-1
Amphibole rods with orange staining are a pleasant surprise within an untreated ruby from Mozambique’s Montepuez mines.
Natural Ruby •
Mozambique •
Enhancements:
None Detected (None) •
Lighting Conditions:
Fiber Optic: Oblique
Photographer:
E. Billie Hughes •
Image Number:
A-001-2552-1
A fingerprint within a rare untreated ruby from Mong Hsu, Myanmar. Most Mong Hsu rubies are heat treated, often with flux, and the individual negative crystals within the fingerprint become more rounded.
Natural Ruby •
Myanmar (Burma); Mong Hsu •
Enhancements:
None Detected (None) •
Lighting Conditions:
Fiber Optic: Transmitted
Photographer:
Richard W. Hughes •
Image Number:
A-001-2671-1
Stepped growth on the surface of a natural ruby crystal from Mogok, Burma.
Natural Ruby •
Myanmar (Burma); Mogok/Namya •
Enhancements:
None Detected (None) •
Lighting Conditions:
Light Field + Oblique Fiber Optic
Photographer:
Wimon Manorotkul •
Image Number:
R-001-2643-4
Hughes, R.W. (1997) Ruby & Sapphire. Boulder, CO, RWH Publishing, 512 pp.; RWHL*.
A frosty melted crystal in a ruby from the Thai-Cambodian border.
Natural Ruby •
Thailand/Cambodia •
Enhancements:
Heat (H) •
Lighting Conditions:
Fiber Optic: Oblique
Photographer:
E. Billie Hughes •
Image Number:
A-001-2588-3
Hughes, R.W. (1997) Ruby & Sapphire. Boulder, CO, RWH Publishing, 512 pp.; RWHL*.
A thin film inclusion parallel to the basal pinacoid in a heated Thai/Cambodian ruby.
Natural Ruby •
Thailand/Cambodia •
Enhancements:
Heat (H) •
Lighting Conditions:
Fiber Optic: Oblique
Photographer:
Wimon Manorotkul •
Image Number:
R-001-2631-5
A melted crystal with a trapped gas bubble in a heat-treated ruby from the Thal-Cambodian border.
Natural Ruby •
Thailand/Cambodia •
Enhancements:
Heat (H) •
Lighting Conditions:
Fiber Optic: Oblique
Photographer:
Wimon Manorotkul •
Image Number:
R-001-2631-4
A melted crystal with a trapped gas bubble in a heat-treated ruby from the Thal-Cambodian border.
Natural Ruby •
Thailand/Cambodia •
Enhancements:
Heat (H) •
Lighting Conditions:
Fiber Optic: Oblique
Photographer:
Wimon Manorotkul •
Image Number:
R-001-2631-3
This fingerprint in a heat-treated ruby from the Thai/Cambodian border displays the underlying atomic symmetry by the pattern of healing. The healed areas are hexagonal in shape, showing that the fingerprint lies in the basal plane.
Natural Ruby •
Thailand/Cambodia •
Enhancements:
Heat (H) •
Lighting Conditions:
Fiber Optic: Oblique
Photographer:
Wimon Manorotkul •
Image Number:
R-001-2631-2
Roedder, E. (1962) Ancient fluids in crystals. Scientific American, Vol. 207, pp. 38–47; RWHL*.
This fingerprint in a heat-treated ruby from the Thai/Cambodian border displays the underlying atomic symmetry by the pattern of healing. The healed areas are hexagonal in shape, showing that the fingerprint lies in the basal plane.
Natural Ruby •
Thailand/Cambodia •
Enhancements:
Heat (H) •
Lighting Conditions:
Fiber Optic: Oblique
Photographer:
Wimon Manorotkul •
Image Number:
R-001-2631-1
Roedder, E. (1962) Ancient fluids in crystals. Scientific American, Vol. 207, pp. 38–47; RWHL*.
Melted crystal and heat-altered fingerprints within a ruby from the Thai/Cambodian border.
Natural Ruby •
Thailand/Cambodia •
Enhancements:
Heat (H) •
Lighting Conditions:
Fiber Optic: Oblique
Photographer:
E. Billie Hughes •
Image Number:
A-001-2588-2
Hughes, R.W. (1997) Ruby & Sapphire. Boulder, CO, RWH Publishing, 512 pp.; RWHL*.
Natural ruby inclusions may include mineral crystals, rutile silk, healed fissures, fluid inclusions, negative crystals, color zoning and other features formed during or after crystal growth. Such features are important to gemologists because they can provide evidence useful in identifying ruby, understanding its geological history, recognizing treatment and, in some cases, determining geographic origin.
Natural Ruby Inclusion Photomicrographs
The Hyperion natural ruby gallery includes microscopic features found in rubies from major deposits around the world. Each entry is accompanied by descriptive information and, where available, references to the gemological literature.
What Inclusions Can Reveal About Natural Ruby
Inclusions are an important part of ruby identification. Their form, composition, orientation and alteration can help gemologists distinguish natural ruby from synthetic material, recognize evidence of heat treatment, and study the geological environment in which the ruby formed.
Hyperion combines inclusion photomicrography with supporting gemological information so that individual features can be compared with documented examples from known ruby deposits.
About Hyperion
Hyperion is the Lotus Gemology searchable inclusion database. It allows users to browse gemstone inclusions by gem type, geographic origin, treatment and keyword.
