Q 01/05

Ruby is a red variety of which mineral?

A) Corundum

B) Beryl

C) Quartz

D) Spinel

Answer · why

A) Corundum

Corundum is so hard that emery, a dark grit rich in it, is glued to nail files and sandpaper to grind down almost anything softer.

Q 02/05

Which element gives a ruby its red colour?

A) Manganese

B) Chromium

C) Copper

D) Iron

Answer · why

B) Chromium

Chromium is a two-faced colourist: a trace of it turns this gem red, yet the very same element is what paints emeralds green.

Q 03/05

Ruby is the traditional birthstone for which month?

A) January

B) July

C) May

D) October

Answer · why

B) July

July has been ruby's month officially since 1912, when America's jewellers met and agreed a single modern birthstone list to tidy up centuries of comp...

Q 04/05

Ruby scores 9 and diamond 10 on which hardness scale?

A) Rockwell

B) Brinell

C) Mohs

D) Vickers

Answer · why

C) Mohs

Mohs hardness is only a pecking order of what scratches what, drawn up by Friedrich Mohs in 1812, so its steps are uneven: diamond at 10 is about four...

Q 05/05

The word ruby traces back to a word for 'red' in which ancient language?

A) Greek

B) Latin

C) Sanskrit

D) Persian

Answer · why

B) Latin

Latin: medieval writers called the gem rubinus lapis, 'red stone', and the same red root gives us rubric, a heading that scribes once wrote in red ink...