What is "sapphirine"

Sapphirine \Sap"phir*ine\, n. Resembling sapphire; made of sapphire; having the color, or any quality of sapphire. ``Sapphirine degree of hardness.''
--Boyle.

a. Of, pertaining to, or resembling sapphire n. (context mineralogy English) A rare silicate of magnesium and aluminium (with iron as a major impurity), named for its sapphirelike colour.

1. adj. made of or resembling sapphire

2. n. a rare light blue or green mineral; consists of aluminum-magnesium silicate and occurs as small grains in some metamorphic rocks

Sapphirine is a rare mineral, a silicate of magnesium and aluminium with the chemical formula ( Mg, Al)(Al, Si) O (with iron as a major impurity). Named for its sapphire-like colour, sapphirine is primarily of interest to researchers and collectors: well-formed crystals are treasured and occasionally cut into gemstones. Sapphirine has also been synthesized for experimental purposes via a hydrothermal process.