What Are the Most Common Yellow Sapphire Treatments?

Yellow sapphire  are the most subtle and elegant gemstones. The vivid color and high transparency make them a profound choice for jewelry. These sapphires are also powerful gems in astrology. Ruled by the auspicious planet Jupiter, the yellow sapphire stone benefits the wearer with wealth, success, and marriage harmony.   

While this stone serves many purposes, finding it natural and untreated is difficult; like all sapphires, these are also treated to enhance color and clarity. Treated and untreated sapphires look similar, making distinction difficult.   

Whether you are looking for an astrological stone for Jupiter or a high-investment piece for the future, buying a natural yellow sapphire ( Pukhraj )  is a good decision. Nonetheless, knowing the treatment done on your gemstone will help you make an informed choice. So let's uncover it in detail and learn about various sapphire treatments.

Why Are Yellow Sapphires Treated? 

Gemstone treatment is a common process today, and all sapphires mostly go through this process. All yellow sapphires obtained from the earth's surface are not vividly colored. Some stones have grayish, greenish, or orangish undertones. They make yellow sapphire look dull. This is where the role of treatment comes into play. Yellow sapphires are treated for the following reasons: 

• Improve color: When treated, secondary undertones are removed, making the stone look more beautiful with enhanced color. 
• Enhance clarity: Inclusions are common in sapphires. Some are spotless, whereas others have high inclusions. Treatment is done to make them inclusion-free and increase brightness. 
• Increase market value: Though there is no substitute for untreated natural sapphires, the demand for treated stones is high owing to their affordability. Thus, it has a higher demand in the market. The original yellow sapphire price starts from INR 5,000 to INR 5 lakhs and more per carat weight.
  Read More: Yellow Sapphire Price Guide: Unveiling the Gemstone's Market Value  
• Meet jewelry demand: Yellow sapphire jewelry is highly popular. From engagement rings to bracelets, these sapphires are widely preferred. Treated sapphire jewelry is much more affordable than its untreated counterparts, making it accessible to a wider range of buyers. 

Most Common Yellow Sapphire Treatments 

Besides heat treatment, there are other treatments used for sapphires. Here is a list of major ones: 

• Heat Treatment: This is the most common type of yellow sapphire stone treatment known in the gemstone market. In this process, the gemstone is exposed to extreme temperature and pressure. As a result, the color intensifies, and the silk inclusions melts, enhancing the clarity of the stone. Heat treatment of yellow sapphire is stable and permanent. Though these gems make a good choice for affordable jewelry pieces, they are not recommended for astrological purposes. Compared to untreated yellow sapphires, they are lower in price.  Bangkok and Thai yellow sapphires are subjected to heat treatment to get rid of the yellowish-green hue. 
• Glass Filling: When cracks in low-grade sapphires are filled with lead glass, it is called glass-filled treatment. The yellow sapphires look clean in appearance, but they are highly fragile. Glass-filled yellow sapphires are lower in cost and poor in quality. 
• Diffusion Treatment: In this process, pale and colourless yellow sapphires are heat-treated with beryllium at 1600-1900 degree celsius. The beryllium penetrates the crystal lattice, altering it to give a vibrant yellow color. 
  The color is diffused only on the surface. Compared to heat treatment, the color is not stable. 
• Dyeing: This process involves dyeing the glass with yellow dye. These sapphires are low in value and quality. 
• Fracture Filling or Resin Filling: This process involves injecting resin or oil into the cracks of the low-grade pukhraj stone. Filling the cracks makes the stone look cleaner. Fracture filling treatment is not easy to detect, as it requires powerful magnification, and only a trained gemmologist can detect it.  

Natural vs Treated Yellow Sapphire 

Natural yellow sapphires are rare and uncommon. They are formed after millions of years inside the Earth's surface under specific temperature conditions. Natural sapphires retain their pure color and clarity. Ceylon yellow sapphire  generally do not get any treatment. They are of premium quality and are best for astrological use. 

Treated yellow sapphires are common in the gemstone market. While these gems have enhanced color and clarity, they cost less than their natural counterparts.

Read more: What Is the Difference Between Heated and Unheated Blue Sapphire?  

How to Identify a Treated Yellow Sapphire 

The only way to identify a treated yellow sapphire is to ask for a laboratory certificate from whichever place you are buying it. Choose only reputed gemstone sellers. Check the treatment details in the certificate. For yellow sapphires, authentic laboratories are GIA, IGI, and GII. If you want to verify a gemstone certificate online, you can visit the laboratory website laboratory (the one mentioned in your certificate) and enter the certificate number. Your certificate will be displayed if it's authentic. If you see captions like “ no data found,” it might be a counterfeit certificate.

Read more: How To Verify Your Gemological Report? How To Verify My Gemstone Report?  

Should You Buy a Treated Yellow Sapphire? 

If you want an affordable gemstone for your jewelry, then treated yellow sapphire is a good option. For astrological use or long-term investment only, choose a natural yellow sapphire stone. Astrologically, it is the only effective stone of Jupiter that brings wealth and success to the wearer. A natural Pukhraj stone's value increases with time; thus, investing in the original one is worth it. 

Where to Buy Certified Natural Yellow Sapphire 

The best place to buy certified original pukhraj is Navratan. They have a wide inventory of yellow sapphires from all origins. With every purchase, you get a certificate of authenticity from a recognised laboratory.