Sri Lankan Gems

Lankan Gems Rathnapura | lankangemsinformation.blogspot.com How to Find Gems In Sri Lanka One of the world’s most beautiful and exotic islands, Sri Lanka, (formerly Ceylon) lies just below the southern tip of India. This pear-shaped bit of tropical paradise, about the size of Sicily, is a tourist’s delight offering British teahouses, rubber plantations, and gem mines.Marco Polo wrote of his visit in 1292: “I want you to understand that the island of Ceylon is, for its size, the finest island in the world, and from its streams comes rubies, sapphires, topazes, amethyst and garnet.” Little has changed since Marco Polo’s time except that Sri Lanka faces overpopulation and a faltering economy.Its gemstones, however, seem to occur in endless supply. Known as the “Jewel Box of the Indian Ocean,” Sri Lanka, like possibly no other locality on earth, has yielded precious stones and fine gems in a great profusion of gem species and varieties. The island was...

lanka gems Sri Lanka  The island known as the pearl of the Indian Ocean is home to many varieties of gems. 52 of the 85 known varieties of gems are found in this tiny island. Sri Lanka’s gem industry has a rich history. Due to the abundance of natural gems Sri Lanka was also called Ratna-Dweepa (Gem Island). Marco Polo once wrote that the island had the best sapphires, topazes, amethysts, and other gems in the world. Serendib was the ancient name given to the island by Middle–eastern and Persian traders that crossed the Indian Ocean to collect and trade Sri Lankan gems during the fourth and fifth century. Sri Lankan gems are marketed and sold all over the world. Gems are only found in certain parts of the island. *Ratnapura (City of Gems/City of Rubies): The area surrounding the city of Ratnapura is the oldest known source in Sri Lanka. Most of Sri Lankan gems are found in the surrounding area. *Elehara: Many large specimens of gems have been found ...

Tips when buying Gems in Sri Lanka Tips when buying Gems in Sri Lanka. * In general you should know what you want and how much you want to spend. It’s easy to get carried away when seeing all the beautiful gems. When we buy semi-precious gems, we buy what we fall in love with but when it comes to precious gems like sapphires, emeralds, rubies and diamonds our customer’s budget is crucial. 1.  Natural or Synthetic: always ask! A natural gem is found in the natural environment whereas a synthetic stone, is a stone with the same chemical composition as the natural one but made by man in the lab. Especially, down south jewellery pieces may seem cheap but up to 80% use glass stones. So if it’s to be too good to be true it probably is. 2. Colour: pale coloured gems are normally cheaper than the deeper coloured stones. A common trick played in Sri Lanka is that pink sapphires are sold as rubies. Rubies are always red and never pink. Also there is a b...