The Padparadscha colour is its defining feature. Known for its distinct hues, the gem gets is named after the lotus flower, particularly a unique shade that shines with a unique pink-to-orange glow, that is most visible during the morning sun. Among one of the rarest gemstones in the world, the Padparadscha sapphire is a very rare variant in the corundum gemstone family. The displacement of this electron modifies the original color of the gem.The Padparadscha Sapphire is a top-of-the-line gemstone, and is often referred to as the 'King of Sapphires'.

A hole-colored center results from the expulsion of the electron from its original orbit, caused by irradiation, creating a gap in the crystal structure. * Definition of a colored trapped hole center :Ī colored center is a defect in the crystal structure that absorbs light. Is it fair to judge a stone’s color from its reaction under artificial light? Should we not stick to the color that we can look at under natural light? If the stone is exposed to halogen light, the reaction will be reversed and the yellow color will fade out. The stone will resume its initial color some time later. The yellow color will intensify if the stone is highly exposed to sunlight. This last element is probably responsible for the Padparadscha color instability.įurthermore, Padparadscha does not always react the same way according to its environment. More to this lies a colored hole center (which is a defect in the atomic structure of the stone). Pink comes from chrome and yellow from iron.

The “Padparadscha color” refers to a subtle but unstable pink-orange color. The LFG Scientific Committee called for a meeting to talk about this color stability matter.Ĭolor is due to coloring elements present inside the gem. Up to now, most laboratories do not practice this Fading Test.Īs the French Laboratory of Gemmology told us, the Padparadscha name is a trade label and doesn’t refer to a mineralogical species. If the Fading Test highlights a color out of the color range, the stone won’t be eligible for Padparadscha status. So the SSEF applies the Fading Test to measure the stability of the stone’s color.

Each laboratory is free to set up its own gem analysis process. There are no rules about how to analyze a gemstone.