The resemblance between rubies and spinels is a royal anecdote: the famous "black prince's ruby" set in the crown of the King of England was in fact a red spinel. The so-called huge "ruby" that has been recited as the setting of the British crown was in fact a spinel, a stone that was so beautiful and indistinguishable from a ruby to the naked eye that it was a "success in disguise" and earned the distinction of being set in the crown. It was not until the 19th century that it was discovered, a famous gemstone oops, not to mention the fact that ordinary people may not be able to tell the difference between very similar stones, and that royalty, who often come into contact with gemstones, may not be able to! Nowadays, natural spinels can be replaced by cushion synthetic spinels.
