Ruby in kyanite is two minerals together: real ruby spots in blue, bladed kyanite. The name is a trade label, and dyed quartz and glass look-alikes are sold under it. Kyanite splits easily, so it is the weak point. We do not carry it. Sodalite and blue apatite are the blues we do.
Rock (mixed minerals)
Ruby in Kyanite
Rubí en cianita
- Palette
- Blue Red Gray
- Mined in
- India
- Hardness
- Mohs 4.5–9.0 ?
- See-through
- opaque
- Known since
- 1789
- Named for
- ruby (Latin ruber, red) set in kyanite (Greek kyanos, dark blue)
- Also sold as
- ruby kyanite, ruby with kyanite
- Intention
- Strength Love
- Looking for
- Communication Love Willpower
- Water
- Keep it dry; wipe with a soft cloth
- Dye or finish
- Some ruby in kyanite is stabilized with a colorless resin to harden it. It is a mixed stone, so what is done varies by lot.
Not in our pieces now
1% CHROMIUM
Replacing about 1 percent of the aluminum in corundum with chromium is enough to turn it ruby red.
23.1 CARATS
A 23.1-carat ruby mined at Mogok, Myanmar, in the 1930s sits in the Smithsonian, a gift in memory of a donor's wife.
$512,925 PER CARAT
An 8.24-carat ruby ring once owned by Elizabeth Taylor sold in 2011 for $512,925 per carat, a record for rubies.
What it is
Bladed, denim to slate blue kyanite with pink to deep red spots of ruby set into it. It is two minerals together, not one stone: ruby, the red form of corundum, and kyanite, an aluminum silicate. The ruby is harder and a little pebbly, while the kyanite is ridged and splits easily.
What gives it its color
The red-pink crystals are ruby, colored by chromium, set in blue-green kyanite and a green mica (fuchsite) that is rich in chromium.
Where it comes from
This rock comes from the Kodagu (Coorg) district of Karnataka in southern India, around Mercara and Madikeri.
In history
The ruby half of this pairing has traveled far: rubies were carried west from China along the North Silk Road around 200 BC, and Myanmar's Mogok Valley was the world's main ruby source for centuries. Kyanite's older job is industrial, as a refractory in ceramics and porcelain.
What's said about it
In crystal lore today, blue kyanite is kept for honest speech and self-expression, and ruby for passion and drive. Together they are linked with the throat, heart and root.
People wear it as a necklace or earrings, or carry it in a shirt pocket. Kyanite is traditionally kept away from water and salt.
How people wear or keep it: As a necklace, in earrings, in a shirt pocket, or on a desk.
In crystal practice
In the crystal tradition, ruby in kyanite is paired with the root and heart and throat chakras, so practitioners rest it there during meditation or lie down with it in place for a few quiet minutes. Day to day, the same tradition suggests keeping it close: as a necklace, in earrings, in a shirt pocket. People reach for it when they want communication, love, willpower, and many set an intention when they put it on. Most practitioners cleanse a new stone first (running water only if the stone can take it, otherwise smoke or moonlight) and set it aside now and then to rest.
These are beliefs people have held and still hold about the stone, reported as such. Nothing here is a promise or a medical claim. We sell stones as jewelry, not for these effects.
Associations
The chakra and star sign this stone is usually matched with. These are popular traditions, not facts about the stone.
ChakraRoot, Heart, Throat
ZodiacPisces, Sagittarius, Scorpio, Virgo
ElementAir
Also calledruby kyanite, ruby with kyanite
Care
- Kyanite is much softer across its length (about Mohs 4.5 to 5) than across it (6.5 to 7), and it splits along perfect cleavage, so it can chip or snap if dropped.
- Wipe with a soft cloth and a little lukewarm water, then dry fully. Avoid soaking.
- Skip ultrasonic cleaners and steam.
- Store apart from harder stones; pendants, earrings and beads suit it better than exposed rings.
- Do not test finished jewelry by scratching or with acid.
How to tell what you have
- Ruby in kyanite is a trade name, not a single stone. It is usually bladed blue kyanite with red ruby spots, but the matrix can vary by lot.
- The ruby is the red corundum and is harder than the kyanite, which is brittle and easy to scratch.
- Ask what the matrix is and whether it is stabilized.
Rules and sourcing
Some ruby in kyanite is stabilized with a colorless resin to harden it. The FTC jewelry guides call for a seller to disclose resin.
Questions people ask at our table
What is ruby in kyanite?
A natural combination: red ruby (corundum) crystals set in blue to gray kyanite. The name is a trade label for the pairing, not a single mineral.
Is the ruby gem quality?
No. The red is real corundum, but it is opaque and unfaceted, a specimen material rather than cut ruby.
Is it ever dyed or fake?
Yes. Dyed quartz in red and blue, glass composites and dyed kyanite with glass red bits are sold under the same name. Real ruby spots feel gritty and break the surface, and glass feels glassy and smooth.
How is it told from ruby in fuchsite?
Ruby in fuchsite has a green, sparkly mica host. Ruby in kyanite has a blue bladed host, so the base color is the quickest clue.
Why is it fragile?
Kyanite varies in hardness by direction and splits cleanly, so the blue part is the weak point even though the ruby is very hard.
Not in our pieces right now
Stones we do carry that are close to it are listed under related stones.
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