It was the talk of the jewellery industry around the world. The record-breaking star of the recent Bonhams Fine Jewellery sale in London was an iconic piece called the Hope Spinel. The auctioneers had estimated that the Hope Spinel would be snapped for anywhere between £200,000 and £300,000 but when the frenzied bidding stopped the final price tag was a dizzying £962,500 (Rs 9.58 crore) — thus setting a new world record for a spinel.  

The Hope Spinel was, of course, an extremely unusual and standout stone. It was once owned by renowned collector Henry Philip Hope who belonged to an 18th century dynasty of affluent merchant bankers. Equally importantly, it last came up for sale nearly a hundred years ago.
 

Spinels have always had a lesser status than other stones like rubies which they are often mistaken for. But now fashionistas are taking a cue from international jewellery trends and discovering the vibrant qualities of this stone. Indian jewellery labels too are encrusting their pieces with spinel.

Spinels come in a rainbow of colours (think blue, orange, brown, green, pink and more) but it’s the vibrant red stone that’s similar to the ruby, and which has emerged as the most popular shade. “The spinel is usually found above ruby mines. So, before miners get to the rubies, they find spinel. That’s one of the reasons why the spinel was confused with rubies earlier,” says Tarang Arora, creative director and CEO, Amrapali, a brand that has always used plenty of spinels. The stone in its reddish-pink avatar happens to be one of Arora’s personal favourite.

Cut to tennis ace Serena Williams who has been flaunting a pair of red spinel and diamond earrings at her tournaments this year. Williams was gifted the pair by VelvetCase.com, a leading Indian online jewellery marketplace. Spinel jewellery by brands like London’s Gemfields, Mumbai’s Anmol Jewellers and more are stocked here.  According to Kapil Hetamsaria, CEO and co-founder, VelvetCase.com, spinel jewellery is actually the flavour of the season across the world. VelvetCase.com offers chunky cocktail rings and earrings set with spinel.
 

Mirari, the high-end jewellery brand is also giving the thumbs-up to spinel. According to Mira Gulati, founder and principal designer, Mirari, there are several reasons contributing to the popularity of the gem. For one, it has gained international recognition over the past few years since big players in the jewellery business including Chopard and Cartier have included spinels in their collections. In addition, it’s being auctioned in the international market.

“Our designs are inspired by Indian heritage but the gemstones and techniques of production are European. Which is why we use a lot of spinel,” says Gulati. The stone appears on jewellery teamed with diamonds, white pearls, emerald and sapphire. She primarily uses spinel in red.
 

What’s more, bold and chunky jewellery is high on the popularity charts right now. And since the colour of the stones and their size are major factors driving such designs, spinel is a favoured stone. It offers value-for-money compared to other precious stones, because you get chunkier pieces at more affordable prices.

So, how expensive is the spinel? Says Arora of Amrapali: “It’s a precious gemstone and is rated just under the big three — ruby, emerald and sapphire.”

Adds entrepreneur Bharathi Raviprakash, the woman behind Studio Tara, an eminent jewellery boutique in Chennai: “If all the characteristics of the comparable gemstones like sapphire or ruby such as brilliance, hardness, colour, clarity remain the same, a spinel will cost less than half.” Also, the colour of the spinel is one of the contributing factors in its pricing. For instance, a raspberry spinel would cost much more than a regular, red spinel.
 

 

This gemstone is not restrictive and lends itself to a variety of designs. Spinels are an integral part of Amrapali’s repertoire and are used — polished and uncut — in its fine Victorian jewellery as well as Mughal-inspired designs. Besides using spinel with diamonds, it’s also paired with rubies when the design demands different shades of red and pink.

Delhi-based jewellery designer Divvya Angel Bhasin is designing bold cocktail jewellery and earrings with spinel. “I prefer not to use spinel in bridal sets, since they need gemstones of much richer and darker tones,” she says. Bhasin acknowledges that there’s been a huge demand for spinel of late and it’s an international trend since genuine rubies are hard to come by.

Then there are one-of-a-kind ornaments from Studio Tara. Says Raviprakash: “It’s a hard gem and so is easy to set.” Spinel touches eight on the hardness scale, where 10 is the highest number (ascribed to diamonds).
 

A showstopper neckpiece by Raviprakash features lavender-hued spinel complemented with grey New Zealand pearls with a slight lavender hue. “The necklace shimmers when it catches the light,” she says.

Raviprakash once bought three raspberry pink spinels of which she set the pear-shaped one into a ring. The other two mismatched oval-shaped stones were used in earrings. However, she could not find pear-shaped stones again. “Since some of the stones are quite rare, I give the spinel the same respect as a diamond or a ruby,” she says. Raviprakash has designed rings, earrings and necklaces in spinel and uses them with sapphires, diamonds and pearls.

Although it works as an excellent substitute for rubies and sapphires, the spinel is not really being picked up by jewellery designers to cut down the cost of precious jewellery. “Spinel is also a precious stone and I love it for what it is,” says Raviprakash.

Jewellery designers have clearly hit upon a gemstone that’s making heads turn. In kaleidoscopic colours, the stone promises to make a bold fashion statement.