Bastioned Vala Ruby

Italian bastionato, fortified-with-bastions — past-participle of bastion, derived from bastia (fortified-tower). As a color modifier, bastioned implies a saturated-and-fortified-and-projecting quality, the deep-rich color of Vauban-period military-fortress star-fort projecting-bastion stone-architecture. Sits at the bold-and-fortified end of the grid, parallel to fortified and buttressed.

Old Norse völva, Norse-seeress-and-staff-bearer. As a color modifier, vala implies a Norse-seeress-and-staff-bearer-and-prophetess quality, the visual register of Norse-vala-seeress-and-staff hand-Norse-seeress-and-staff-bearer-and-prophetess Norse-vala-seeress-and-staff-and-Voluspa-Edda vala-and-Norse-seeress-and-staff-bearer surfaces under Norse-vala-seeress-and-staff-and-Voluspa-Edda Saga-Iceland-and-rune-stave seeress-prophecy-light. Sits at the modifier-and-myth end of the grid, parallel to norn and freya in usage.

From the Latin ruber — simply, red. The gemstone is a chromium-tinged corundum, harder than anything in nature except diamond, and so saturated that a fine Burmese pigeon's blood ruby at auction outpaces a comparable diamond by weight. The color borrows the gem's confidence: a clear, glassy red without the brown of garnet or the blue of crimson.