Ruby

. Rubies are the most valuable members of the corundum family. Large gem quality rubies can be more valuable than comparably sized diamonds and are certainly rarer. There is a relative abundance of smaller, (1-3 carat,) blue sapphires compared to the scarcity of even small gem quality rubies, making even these smaller stones relatively high in value.origin definitely matters.stones of burmese origin (now called myanmar) generally command the highest prices. there is a mining tract in the mogok region which is the primary source of gem quality rubies. mogok rubies also hold color in virtually any lighting condition, which is a major contributing factor to the demand for gem quality stones.
About fifteen years ago (the late 1990's) gem quality rubies began appearing in much more abundance from the mong hsu region of myanmar. These gems were often treated at very high temperatures to enhance their color. while conventional heat treatment is accepted practice in the trade, the level of heat that needed to be applied to mong hsu rubies in order to enhance the color led to some controversy in the industry. concerns were raised not only regarding heat treatment more generally, but also over whether rubies from mong hsu should be distinguished from others of burmese origin. there’s still no agreement amongst the trade about whether or not mong hsu should be distinguished from burma ruby