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a rose-red variety of spinel.
Bilhah.
Historical Examples

And yet his work stands out from the ruck of the contemporary versifiers as a balas ruby among carrots.
Martin Eden Jack London

Page 167, line 67, and seq.—’Carbuncle and balas ruby,’ etc.
Parzival (vol. 2 of 2) Wolfram von Eschenback

Mention has been made above of a stone frequently substituted for the true ruby, called the “spinel” or “balas” ruby.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 5 Various

But in the battle in which balas was overthrown, the Egyptian king also received his death wound.
A Manual of Ancient History A. H. L. (Arnold Hermann Ludwig) Heeren

About his neck was a baldric of balas rubies, and over his robe he wore the collar of the Order of the Garter.
Windsor Castle William Harrison Ainsworth

balas, a name used to distinguish the rose-coloured species of ruby from the ruby proper.
The New Gresham Encyclopedia. Vol. 1 Part 3 Various

After the death of balas he laid siege to the Akra; and “the apostates, who hated their own nation,” appealed to Demetrius.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 15, Slice 4 Various

This ring was but a simple gold ring, in which was set a balas ruby, of great value.
The Insurgent Chief Gustave Aimard

The “rubies” of the poet’s time were frequently ruby spinels, or the so-called “balas rubies” from Badakshan, in Afghan Turkestan.
Shakespeare and Precious Stones George Frederick Kunz

Some dealers call reddish spinels “balas ruby” (rose red), and orange red ones “rubicelle.”
A Text-Book of Precious Stones for Jewelers and the Gem-Loving Public Frank Bertram Wade

noun
a red variety of spinel, used as a gemstone Also called balas ruby
noun
Lake Bala, a narrow lake in Gwynedd: the largest natural lake in Wales. Length: 6 km (4 miles)