Often overlooked in favour of more well known names, in our opinion Spinel is one of the most under rated gemstones and a favourite of our gemmologists.

Many people have never heard of Spinel and those that have often associate it with a synthetic gemstone widely used in the 1950s and 60s to simulate more precious materials. This association means that natural Spinel is often undervalued by comparison to better known gemstones even though it is considerably rarer. With a beautiful bright lustre and good hardness it is a perfect gem material and it comes in a stunning array of colours. If you think it looks a lot like corundum (the family name for Sapphire & Ruby) you are in good company, until the late 19^th Century it wasn’t identified as a different material and the Black Princes’ Ruby in the crown jewels is actually a red Spinel!

If you want to know more about Spinel (or any other gemstones) our gemmologists will be happy to help. We currently have five qualified gemmologists with one more in training so there is always somebody here to share our love of gemstones

Click here to see our current spinel jewellery