Spectacular Sapphires

  Did you know that Sri
Lanka is one of the biggest exporters of sapphires in the world? At one point we were even called ‘Ratna Dweepa’ or Gem Island because of the sheer abundance of precious stones. The town of Ratnapura of Gem Town has always been known as the centre of the Sri Lankan Gem industry. The famous Portuguese traveler Vasco da Gama id known to have said “Ceylan has the all the fine cinnamon of the Indies and the best Sapphires “.

Historically, our island was known for its strong elephants, beautiful pearls and the bluest of the blue sapphires. Three of the best known (and two of the largest ) sapphires in existence come from Sri Lanka-The Logan Sapphires, the Star of Bombay and the Star of India. Two of them are currently in the United States after their owners bequeathed them to the 

Smithsonian and the National Museum of Natural History.
  There are many people who claim that Sri Lankan sapphires are far superior to sapphires from any other country. Sapphires are type of rare gemstone found in places such as Australia, Madagascar, Burma, Sri Lanka and Thailand. It is a variety of a mineral called Corundum which is a type of Aluminum Oxide. It is the same variety of mineral as the Ruby, and all other colors of this mineral apart from the red and orange are called Sapphires. The orange variety of Corundum is called Padparadscha, and is found Sri Lanka and is highly prized and valued. 

   Gems are traditionally mined and this is often referred to as gemming in Sri Lanka. Usually pits are dug close to rivers where secondary alluvial (sedimentary) deposits are usually found; gems such as sapphires and even rubies are fond in such environments. To gain access to this sort of gem baring gravel, miners dig pits that are often between 5 and 50 feet deep, by hand, in order to always be aware of the nature of the sediments of the they are removing from the pits. Once it is the correct depth, the pits are then dug out horizontally in several directions to maximize mining area and to minimize surface damage, allowing farm land and paddy fields to be in existence on the surface. The water that gathers is constantly pumped out, and the remaining muddy sediments are swirled around

 in cone shaped baskets until heavier stones called jathi settle at the bottom of the basket.
    Sri Lanka is particularly well known for the brilliant blue of its stones. Unlike the stones from Australia, which have a darker and denser colour, jewelers around the world look at Sri Lankan sapphires as a source of brilliance that hasn’t been seen since the Kashmiri mines stopped producing sapphires.
  The colour of sapphires tends to change depending on other elements such as iron and titanium inside the sapphire. Therefore sapphires can range from regular colours such as blue and purple to pink and yellow. In Sri
Lanka, 

traditionally miners and gem cutters have been heating precious stone to improve their colour, and sapphires are treated the same way. A certain type of sapphire called the Geuda sapphire which is often a milky and cloudy blue is heat treated in order to get the brilliant ‘Ceylon blue’ that jewelers have come to expect from Sri Lankan stones.
  Although Ratnapura was traditionally known as the centre of the gem industry in the country, there are several other mines that are several other mines that are significant gem producers around the country. Bibile Sapphire mines (Ceylon blue and yellow pushparaga sapphire ), 

Elehara Gem Fields, Pelmadulla sapphire mines ( where Ceylon blue and Padparadscha sapphires are mined ) and the Nuwara Eliya mines are some of the better known mines.