Top 10 Most Famous Individual Rubies
This large crystal was discovered in the 1950’s in eastern Africa. It was sculpted to represent a miniature version of the Liberty Bell.
In 2014, The Liberty Bell Ruby was stolen during a jewelry heist and is yet to be recovered.
It is a large uncut ruby weighing 190 g discovered in Myanmar in 1996. The Prince of Burma is currently owned by a German gemstone trader (according to reports). No plans to cut it (for now).
It comes from Sri Lanka. It's rare and large - only 1 out of 100 rubies has a well-defined and well-centered star in addition to its intense color. The ruby was donated to the Smithsonian Museum in 1965 by Rosser Reeves.
It's the world’s most expensive ruby that is also the most expensive gemstone other than a diamond. It sold for a record US $30.42 million in 2015.
If rubies with a star are rare, what about double-star rubies? The ruby owners are descendants of the rulers of the Indian Vijayanagara empire.
It comes from Sri Lanka and once belonged to John Pierpont Morgan (the famous banker) who donated it to the American Museum of Natural History.
The ruby was stolen from the Museum by JR Murphy during the 1964 jewelry heist. Luckily, the gemstone was recovered.
Its star is so well-defined and centered that's simply unbelievable. The rutile needles inside are so perfect that create a perfect star. Its gorgeous vivid purplish-red color is incredible, too. It was discovered in the 1930s in Burma (now Myanmar).
In 1937, its owner, Mrs. Edith Haggin DeLong, donated it to the American Museum of Natural History.
This is a giant uncut ruby crystal (weighs 8.2 lbs! ). And it contains rutile needles, which may create a six-ray star if cut "en cabochon" (i.e. polished but not faceted).
A great uncut ruby, considered to be one of the most perfect large ruby crystals discovered to date. In 1978, its owner, Colonel Frederick Hixon, donated it to the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles.