Red spinel is very similar to rubies and was once thought to be a type of ruby. Spinel was once called “balas ruby” and orange-red or orange-yellow spinel is called rubicelle (red spinel is sometimes called “ruby spinel.”) Spinel sometimes displays asterism, a phenomenon that causes a star shape to appear in the cabochons of some minerals; rubies can also display asterism. All of this reasserts the point that spinel can be a lot like a ruby; almost like a ruby version 2.0.
Spinel crystals are octahedral, which means that they have eight faces. Spinel crystals look like two pyramids that have been connected at the base. Spinel can be red, blue, purple, orange-red, pink, or orange-yellow. In some spinels the color is so faint that the stones can appear colorless at a first glance. Spinel can be transparent, translucent, and nearly opaque and it sits between quartz and corundum on the Mohs scale of hardness, making it as hard as topaz. In addition to the asterism described above spinel can also have brown zircon inclusions that are surrounded by brown halos. Spinel is sometimes a component in a rock called emery.
Spinel is used as a gemstone because it is quite pretty and the fact that it is so similar to rubies probably doesn't hurt. Emery is used as an abrasive, and to make items such as fingernail files (which are sometimes called emery boards) and sandpaper. In the United States spinel is sometimes added to pavement to help improve traction.
Spinel is found in places like Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Myanmar, Madagascar, Afghanistan, Sweden, and Turkey.
I am of the opinion that God created everything for a purpose. Spinel can certainly serve its purpose as a gemstone, but perhaps it also serves another. Perhaps the Lord was so pleased with His creation of the ruby that He created spinel as another version of it for us to enjoy!
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