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1. The Science of Colors

When we examine color from a scientific perspective, we find that it is a universal concept, perceived by all humans through one of our five senses: sight. Our eyes detect the elements surrounding us and transmit signals to the brain, which decodes and interprets some of these signals as colors. Our perception of the world is, for most of us, experienced through the lens of color. This experience triggers responses linked to the emotions each individual associates with the colors they encounter.
Beginning in the 18th and 19th centuries, scientists started to analyze the rich spectrum of colors we perceive and sought to understand our physiological reactions to them. The study of color, which could be qualified as a science of chromatics, finds its origins in the work of the German poet and philosopher Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, who initiated a study of color at the start of the 19th century. In 1839, French chemist Michel Eugène Chevreul joined him, delving into the principles of simultaneous color contrast. From this study, the three “primary” colors—red, yellow and blue—were defined.

This first chapter begins with a space dedicated to the so-called “primary” colors, which are of paramount importance in the world of jewelry, as they refer to some of the most cherished materials by collectors, such as the red of rubies, the yellow of gold, and the blue of sapphires.