July Birthstone: Ruby, History, Alternatives and Care

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Ruby is the birthstone for July. Old and modern lists, history, symbolism, common treatments, synthetic rubies, red alternatives and care.

Key points

July birthstone	Ruby (1912, British and current American lists)
Other stones in the lists	Carnelian (British list), turquoise and onyx (older list)
Mineral family	Red corundum (aluminium oxide coloured by chromium)
Mohs hardness	9
Very common treatment	Heating; sometimes filling of fissures with glass
Related signs	Cancer, Leo (in the sign tradition)

The July birthstone at a glance

The birthstone for July is ruby, in the 1912 list as well as in the current British and American lists. The older list placed turquoise and onyx in July instead, and the British list adds carnelian.

List	Stones
So-called traditional list (15th to 20th century, depending on the authors)	Turquoise, onyx
1912 list of American jewellers	Ruby
British jewellers’ list (2013 version)	Ruby, carnelian
Current American list	Ruby

This variety in the lists is a reminder that “birthstone” is a custom, not a rule. If ruby is beyond your budget, there are more affordable red stones, presented below.

Ruby: red corundum

Ruby is a corundum, an aluminium oxide coloured red by small amounts of chromium. The same mineral in other colours gives sapphire: any colour of corundum other than red is called sapphire. Among common gems, only diamond is harder (hardness 9), which makes it suitable for everyday jewellery.

Its name comes from the Latin ruber, “red”. The best-known deposits are in Myanmar (the Mogok region), Mozambique, Thailand, Sri Lanka and Madagascar. In the trade, one speaks of “pigeon’s blood” red to describe a deep, highly prized red; it is a sales term, not a scientific category.

A famous anecdote: the large “ruby” in the British Imperial State Crown, known as the Black Prince’s Ruby, is in fact a red spinel. For centuries, the two stones could not be told apart, and many historic “rubies” are spinels.

Traditional symbolism

In many cultures, ruby’s red evokes blood, life, passion and courage, and the stone has been worn by kings and the powerful. In Indian (Vedic) astrology, ruby is associated with the Sun among the nine planetary gems (the navaratna). In modern chakra systems, it is often linked to the root chakra or the heart chakra.

These correspondences are traditions, which vary between authors: they rest on no scientific evidence.

A little history: other ways of linking stones and birth

The idea of one stone per month is only one way, among others, of linking a stone to a person. In Indian tradition, for example, it is not the month but the position of the planets at birth that determines the recommended stones: each planet has its gem, and together they form the navaratna, the nine jewels. In Europe too, stones were long linked to the signs of the zodiac, the days of the week or the apostles.

The choice of ruby for July is therefore specific to the 1912 American list and its successors: the older list offered turquoise and onyx for that month.

Other possible stones for July

carnelian, orange to red, cited in the British list;
onyx, black, a stone of the older list;
turquoise, blue-green, an ancient July stone and a December stone;
red spinel, remarkable for its colour and more modest price;
garnet, the January stone, red and affordable.

Giving a July birthstone

A quality ruby is a precious gift; a small stone in a ring or a pendant remains a lovely birthday present. On a more modest budget, carnelian or red spinel gives the same burst of colour. Lovers of objects might prefer a raw ruby or a piece of ruby in its host rock, which has a quiet charm.

See our rings, pendants and gift ideas ranges.

Care, treatments and imitations

Care. Ruby is sturdy: lukewarm water and mild soap, soft brush, soft cloth. Ultrasonic cleaning suits a ruby that has only been heated, but not a ruby whose fissures have been filled with glass: that glass is sensitive to acids, strong heat and certain household products.

Treatments. Heating is almost universal and stable. Lead-glass filling is found in inexpensive rubies, often fragile: they are sometimes called “composite” rubies. They must be declared as such.

Synthetics and imitations. Ruby was one of the first gems made on a large scale, by the Verneuil process from 1902: a synthetic ruby is a real ruby, of the same composition, created in a laboratory. Imitations include red glass, garnet, spinel or dyed quartz. Beware of ruby-zoisite (a green rock with red crystals, unrelated to ruby; see ruby-zoisite). A very large, very clean and very cheap ruby calls for caution. See our guide to choosing and caring for your stones.