Customized July Birthstone Jewelry: Overview of Ruby

The oldest known ruby found by humans is a 2.5 billion-year-old specimen, which was discovered in Greenland in an expedition in 2021. But historically, rubies are found in south and southeast Asia, especially Myanmar (previously called Burma) and India. Rubies have been mined in Myanmar since 2500 BC, and the proof of this is the Stone Age tools found in Mogok Valley. The oldest records of rubies which were found in Myanmar date back to the 6th century AD. For around 800 years, Mogok used to be the top source of high-quality rubies. The July birthstone, ruby, also has a history with Hinduism and India in general. The Sanskrit word for ruby was Ratnaraj, which meant “king of precious stones”. Vedic astrologers recommended people with strong sun placements to wear ruby since it would give them blessings of the sun god Surya. Also, in medieval times, Hindus offered rubies to the Hindu God Krishna, hoping that Krishna’s blessing would enable them to be born as emperors and kings in their next births.