Star sapphire mine in Ratnapura, Sri Lanka, Ceylon

 

Sapphire the poular gemstone 

     After diamonds, sapphires are the most popular gemstone to use in fine jewellery designs. The earth gives us sapphires in almost any colour imaginable: from deep indigo to cornflower blue, black and white, sage green, purple, hot pink, and every colour in between. Sapphires are found in various regions of the world, but a Sri Lankan sapphire is known to be the highest quality gemstone around.

 

Real star sapphire gemstones

Photo - Real star sapphire gemstones


Quality, beautiful gemstones 

     Sri Lanka is famous for being one of the best sources not just for blue sapphires but for the rare orange-pink Padparadscha sapphire made famous by this very region. The Padparadscha sapphire is in fact the rarest of all sapphire varieties.



Gray star sapphire real gemstone

Photo - Gray star sapphire real gemstone 


Sri Lanka, the Jewel Box

     Sri Lanka is known as the “Jewel Box” or “Treasure Island” of the Indian Ocean, with over 25% of total land mass thought filled with precious gemstones. At the heart of the country is the city of Ratnapura, a Sanskrit word for “the city of gems”, known for being a hub of miners, traders, and exporters. A yellow sapphire, pink sapphire, ceylon blue sapphire or Padparadscha sapphire will more often than not be the best in its class.
     In Ratnapura, sapphire mining is still conducted in many traditional ways.
In Sri Lankan culture, gemstones are seen as gifts from the gods and mining areas are considered sacred.


Pink star sapphire from Sri Lanka, Ceylon

Photo - Pink star saphhire real gemstone 


Ratnapura, Pelmadulla mine

     Sri Lanka's Pelmadulla Mine is located 15 km south-east of Ratnapura (aka "City of Gems") in the Sabaragamuwa province of south-central Sri Lanka. Ratnapura's Pelmadulla mines are the traditional hand-dug pit mines found under rice paddies as well as mechanized small-scale mining operations.


Gemstone mine in Sri Lanka, Ratnapura

Photo - Gemstone mine in Sri Lanka, Ratnapura 


Gemstone mining 

     The sustainable, traditional mining techniques used by the workers ensures that the land is protected. Once a mine is exhausted of Sri Lankan sapphires, the miners simply fill the excavated areas with earth again, ready for plants to grow back over. The traditional mining methods also ensure that miners can live in close proximity to the mines while maintaining a good quality of living.


Gemstone mine, gems mine in Sri Lanka, Ratnapura

Photo - Gemstone mine cloe to Ratnapura Sri Lanka 


Ratnapura the gems city

     On the day to day, the mining industry in Sri Lanka is busy and bustling. Every morning at around 6am miners gather in the Ratnapura area with all of the rough stones that have been mined. The miners, traders and exporters all gather together to oversee the sale of their stones.
In the city of Ratnapura, there are many vendors selling rough stones, and streets of cutters and polishers.


Gemstone mine, gems mine, Ratnapura, Sri Lanka

Photo - Gemstone mine in Ratnapura, Sri Lanka 


Biggest Sri Lankan sapphire, Blue Belle of Asia

     Sri Lanka has produced three of the world’s largest blue sapphires, including the “Blue Belle of Asia”‘ (which adorned the British crown and holds the world record for any Sapphire sold at an auction); as well as the ‘Star of India’, displayed at the New York Museum of Natural History.

Real natural blue saphire, blue Belle of Asia

Photo - Blue Belle of Asia, natural blue sapphire 


My other natural sapphire gemstone blog

Real sapphire gemstone


Videos from my star saphhire collection :

Star sapphires from Burma, Mogok






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