1.46 Ct. Purplish Grey Spinel from Burma (Myanmar)

One beautiful transparent 1.46 carat cushion shape purplish grey spinel is presented by The Natural Gemstone Company, with precise dimensions of 7.33 by 6.31 by 4.04 millimeters. The stone is faceted using a mixed brilliant cut, combining a brilliant facet arrangement on the crown with a modified pavilion design to balance brightness and depth of color. Clarity is described as very slightly included when evaluated at eye level, ensuring a clean face up appearance under standard viewing conditions, and polish is graded excellent for crisp facet junctions and high surface luster. No enhancement has been applied to this spinel, and the material is of natural origin from Burma, Myanmar. Proportionally the gem yields a depth of approximately fifty nine percent, calculated as depth divided by the average of length and width, a proportion that preserves face up spread while providing sufficient pavilion depth to concentrate the purplish grey body color.

Optically the mixed brilliant cut optimizes light return for a stone with dark color intensity, delivering notable internal flashes and crisp facet contrast without sacrificing saturation. The cushion outline with gently rounded corners creates an even distribution of pavilion reflections, producing a central field that reads cooler in one light angle and warmer in another due to the interaction of the dark tone and the cut geometry. Spinel is singly refractive and typically lacks strong pleochroism, so the apparent hue shift you observe is driven primarily by facet orientation and viewing angle rather than dichroic splitting, and this purplish grey specimen remains visually consistent under varied illumination. The excellent polish enhances specular reflection at facet edges, improving apparent brilliance and highlighting small facet facets that create scintillation at movement, while the very slightly included clarity grade ensures that inclusions do not detract from the gem when mounted in standard jewelry settings.

Opal type, Fire Opal. For design integration and skin tone pairing, the purplish grey body color of this spinel is exceptionally versatile because it contains both cool violet and neutral grey constituents, allowing different metal choices and accent stones to shift its perceived temperature. On fair skin with cool undertones, a white metal setting such as platinum or rhodium plated white gold will accentuate the cooler, more lavender aspects of the stone, creating a refined, high contrast look that reads luminous against pale complexions. On medium skin tones with warm or neutral undertones, yellow gold will warm the visual presentation, coaxing richer purple notes and a slightly warmer grey, which can make the gem appear more saturated and jewel like. Olive tones benefit from either rose gold or a mixed metal treatment, because the subtle warmth of rose gold softens the grey axis and pulls forward violet highlights without overwhelming the stone, preserving clarity and depth. On deep skin tones this spinel appears boldly saturated, the dark intensity providing a strong, elegant contrast, and both yellow gold and platinum settings will look striking depending on whether the desired effect is warm richness or modern cool contrast.

In practical mounting terms, open prong or low bezel crowns work best to maximize light entry to this transparent spinel while protecting the cushion corners, and a four or six prong head can be selected to balance security with visual exposure. Accent strategies include pairing small white diamonds along the shoulders to increase perceived fire and lively contrast, or introducing a small fire opal accent where a warm orange to red flash can create a dramatic complementary contrast to the purplish grey body color, especially when the opal is cut as firm cabochon or small faceted accent. The Natural Gemstone Company can provide custom recommendations for exact metal weights, prong profiles, and complementary accent stones, and we supply full provenance and treatment disclosures with every purchase. If you would like further technical diagrams, mounting mockups, or comparative photographs showing the stone on different skin tones and metal settings, we can prepare those to assist with final design decisions.