So, as some of you may know, Apple was in talks to get clear sapphire screens for the iPhone 6. They contracted with a company which promised they could make enormous sapphire boules using their unique process, and they ended up signing a big contract. As it happens, they could make big boules, but a large percentage had serious defects, making it uneconomical to cut screens from them. These boules were apparently left in some sort of 'boule graveyard' behind the factory, and made it out into the stock of salvage companies. My brother found one of these boules for sale on eBay, listed for 5k. We ended up making a seriously lowball offer on it, not thinking much of it, but they just accepted it. No doubt shipping is going to be expensive, because did I mention it weighs about 490 pounds?
So........ yeah. This is the biggest boule I've ever seen. Now that we've committed to buy it, I'm not 100% sure what we'll do with it. Our thought was to try and get a deal with someone who makes spheres. But if anyone else has any good ideas, I'm all ears. Anyone know anyone who facets big stones?
They aren't, unfortunately. I've tried to get in touch with a few people, but the only one doing giant cutting at the moment had no interest in working on a synthetic. It's a shame, since the guiness record is currently held by a mere 6kg stone, and worse, it's dyed. On the plus side, one of my friends is already interested in getting some rough for smaller stones, so I think we'll do just fine with a more boring approach.
Penny for scale. About the bottom third (top third in the initial photos, we had to flip it to get in on the palette) looks included. It's hard to tell how far in it goes, so it might just be a rind. It's also more of a blueish color than the clean areas on top, which are a really lovely pink. When I get a chance I will look at it under different lights to see if it color changes and also if it will fluoresce.
Quick update: No color change, and oddly no fluorescence I can see. We've started deconstruction, it is hard work to get it to come apart. We got a few pieces of the milky bottom of the boule, and interestingly they have a bright, striking 4-ray star. Not what I was expecting but a heck of a lot nicer than boring included material. So far the smaller pieces of the clear section have looked pretty colorless, so it's not clear whether the color is too light to see in smaller pieces or if it's concentrated in the center. More updates as we continue.
But before then, I present: The biggest sapphire ring in the world:
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