Reputed gems of Sri Lanka

Blue Sapphire

Sri lanka's Gem supreme, of corn flower blue, is the favorite of fashionable women the world over.

Cat's Eye

The honey yellow and apple green cat's Eye of lustrous smoothness is extolled for the protection she yields to the weather.



Alexandrite

If you are a connoisseur of the rarest yields from the mysterious depths of earth you will need to possess an Alexandrite.



Star Ruby

The scarlet perfection and its scintillating beauty add up to the dream come true in gems.



Yellow Sapphire

Pollen of flower is her lyrical name in Singhalese. Her delicate yellow makes this description apt.



Star Sapphire

With her azure heart a gleam with radiant snowy streaks, the star sapphire's sparkle brings her owner good luck.



Amethyst

Burnished by nature into a high purplish polish, the amethyst is a beauty among gems.



Garnet

All the world's garnets (pyrope) are ordinary after Sri Lanka's Elahera Garnet made it's radiant bow.

The rarest gems found from Sri Lanka

1. Andalusite: Mineral found in Sri Lanka. Mainly green in color.

2. Apatite: Blue-green, yellow, and violet.

3. Diopside: Generally green, some show cat's-eye effect.

4. Ekanite: First found in Sri Lanka in 1953 and named after the man who discovered it, F.L.D. Ekanayake. Green in color.

5. Cordierite: Gem variety called iolite and is generally blue, but can also be yellowish-white or colorless.

6. Kornerupine: Pale brownish-yellow, green and colorless.

7. Sinhalite: Recognized in 1952 as a new mineral - first found in Sri Lanka. Pale yellow, brown or greenish-brown.

8. Taaffeite: Identified as a new mineral in 1945 after it was found in Sri Lanka by Count Taaffe


The availability of historical as well as traditional know-how among jewelry manufacturers in the country have added more luster to the situation. Sri Lanka has a two thousand year history of heating their rubies to enhance the reddish-pink color, and remove any bluish or purplish hues. Sri Lanka's "burners" traditionally apply heat treatment using a blow-pipe and charcoal burner, to super-heat the stone. The Sri Lanka Gem & Jewelry Exchange is a concept developed several years ago for the establishment of a center for the industry-related commercial activities under the sponsorship of the National Gem and Jewelry Authority. Originating from a Parliamentary sub committee appointed for reviewing the Gem and Jewelry Industry, its objective is to regulate the exchange process between buyers and sellers.

The world famous rarest gemstones are from Sri Lanka

Among the Several world famous rare gems, Sri Lanka's blue sapphire Weighing 466 carats. the largest known sapphire in the world. Other famous rare gems include the Blue giant of the Orient, Weighing nearly 500 carats and the bluebell of Asia, which weighs in at 400 carats. The renowned Sri Lankan Star sapphire is on permanent display at the Museum of Natural History in New York, but due to an oversight, the stone has been called the star of India. The Great Aqua of Sri Lanka, with a weight of 1,890 carats in the rough is the largest gem found in the island. This aquamarine yielded a sparkling rare gem of 946 carats, which became part of a royal collection when acquired by a Saudi prince.

Throughout history Sri Lanka's gems and jewelry have adorned the crown jewels of many royal families. A very-very rare gem- a 105 carat cat's eye- discovered in a paddy field in Sri Lanka, gained fame among the royalty of Britain and was Successively Admired by Edward VII, George V, Edward VIII and Queen Elizabeth.

Alexandrite, the rarest gem in the world is Sri Lanka it was first ound in the Urals in 1830 and is named after czar Alexander II who come of age on the day it was found. This stone shines green in natural light but turns raspberry red in artificial light.

The cat's eye is another stone which is considered valuable and rare. It derives its name from fact that a silvery line runs across its greenish-gray surface, giving it a remarkable resemblance to the eye of a cat. The rarest type is the black cat's eye.

Sri Lankan Gems Stones

Sri Lanka is renowned for its finest gems from very ancient times. The history of gems of Sri Lanka can be traced back some 3,000 years or so. They are part of many legends, folk lore and literacy works. Early travelers from Europe, Arabia, and Asia have much written about Sri Lankan gems and their adornments of many a crown, Sceptre and Throne. The gems are the price possessions of royalty and the rich and the famous through the ages right up to this day. Sri Lankan gems have been pre-eminent internationally and the source books of history record this historical importance. Gems are deeply embedded in the traditional beliefs and the religious life of the majority of Sri Lankans. Priceless gems are among the treasures kept in the relic chambers of the great Buddhist Stupas in the island. During the 16th century, Portuguese explorer Vasco de Gama said of Sri Lanka: "Ceylon has all the fine cinnamon of the Indies and the best sapphires." The gem-trading center for Sri Lanka is the town of Ratnapura which is in Singhalese for "gem town," located 100 kilometers southeast of the capital city of Colombo. Sri Lanka has earned its namesake as the 'Gem Island' or 'Island of Gems' (Ratna Dweepa), with its abundance of corundum gems, chrysoberyl and alexandrite, garnet, moonstone, peridot, spinel, topaz, tourmaline, and zircon. Sri Lanka is perhaps best known for its fine Sapphire. Sapphire from Sri Lanka occurs in a wide range of hues from orange-yellow (Padparadscha) to cornflower-blue ("Ceylon blue"), green, orange, pink, purple, yellow (pushparaga) and white sapphire. Sri Lanka's white "Geuda sapphire" is a semi-opaque milk-white stone that can be heated to a deep blue. Sri Lanka is known for its Ceylon Blue, and Padparadscha (aka padmaraga) sapphire, named after the island's lotus flower, and its unique soft pastel orange-pink color. The name 'Padparadscha' comes from the Sanskrit or Singhalese "padma raga" meaning 'lotus blossom'. Yellow sapphire from Sri Lanka is called "pushparaga" in Singhalese ("pukhraj" in Hindi), and can be comparable in value to the finest Mogok sapphire. Pushparaga, also known as "Oriental topaz" or "hyacinth" has a golden or honey yellow color with brownish secondary hues. The Blue Sapphire is king of Sri Lankan gems. The 400 carat Blue Sapphire called “Blue Belle”, which adorns the British Crown, is from Sri Lanka. The beautiful star sapphire misnamed the “Star of India” displayed at a New York’s Museum of Natural History. The world jewelry market demands Blue Sapphires of 5-15 carats. Sri Lanka can supply these in very large quantities. Sri Lanka's Star Sapphires is the star beauty among Earth's precious stones. The radiant snowy streaks that gleam in her azure heart are perhaps the solidified version of a colorful dream the world has had long ago of the glory of the universe. Moonstone the only gem that is found in situ in Sri Lanka displays a milky bluish sheen similar to that of the moon beams, and hence the name moonstone. Trough some quirk of nature, moonstones are found only in a solitary quarter acre block of land in the village of Meetiyagoda to the South of Sri Lanka. The world's moonstone market is dominated by Sri Lanka. Out of about 200 minerals that are classified as gemstones, around 75 varieties are found in Sri Lanka, making this small island one of the most important geographic locations in the world of gemstones. 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.

Birthstones

The origin of Modern Birthstones is deeply rooted in the Judaeo-Christian beliefs. The Breastplate of the High Priest of Exodous of the Old Testament became the basis of the present day Birthstones. It is known as the "Breast plate of Aaron" .The Jews believed that communication with Elohim [God] became easier when one puts on the same gems as the Breastplate. The Western Birthstone system is derived from the 1st century AD writings of Josephus and 5th century AD writings of St.Jerome, both of whom trace its origin to the Breastplate of the Hebrew High Priest.




(Note: If included, the following table needs to be uniquely reorganized.)

MONTH BIRTHSTONE ALTERNATIVE MEANING January Garnet Cinnamon Stone Fidelity February Amethyst Alexandrite Sincerity March Aquamarine Blue Topaz Courage April Diamond White Sapphire Innocence May Emerald Green Sapphire Affection June Cat's Eye Pearl Happiness July Ruby Pink Sapphire Health August Tourmaline Peridot Virtue September Sapphire Spinel Prosperity October Opal Moonstone Protection November Topaz Citrine Friendship December Star Stone Tourquoise Success

About Gems

A gemstone or gem, also called a precious or semi-precious stone, is a piece of attractive mineral, which — when cut and polished — is used to make jewelry or other adornments. Rarity is an important characteristic that lends value to a gemstone. Gemstones are classified into different groups, species, and varieties. For example, ruby is the red variety of the species corundum, while any other color of corundum is considered sapphire. Emerald (green), aquamarine (blue), bixbite (red), goshenite (colorless), heliodor (yellow), and morganite (pink) are all varieties of the mineral species beryl.

From time immemorial gems have been used by people in numerous ways. It has curative power as well as the power to pour in fortune and drive away the evil of our planetary position. Certain gems and stones have magical powers of healing and fortune giving. Gems have made life happier to many individuals. These are widely used to get benefit from the planets as these little gems carry never-ending source of rays of the planet and continue even after years. As per astrology and numerology gems counteract the bad effects of planets and get us luck, fortune, prosperity, status, knowledge, concentration, good health, name and fame. Gems can be selected on the basis of our Zodiac or the star we are born under. Gems can also be chosen according to our names first letter, date of birth and month of birth.
It will be interesting to note that some gems have with them the perennial power to push us forward in an occupation. Many professionals, businessmen and service persons have been benefited from time immemorial by wearing the gem which increases their respective occupations and get them multiple profits and lessens the scope of loss and protect them from all adversaries. A person aspiring to join films can wear Cat’s Eye or Garnet by selecting it according to his date of birth or star and get to the top position. Similarly there is a gem for every occupation. Gems work magically and do wonders when we make the ring at the appropriate period of the transit of planets, and after doing the necessary rituals. Gems stones are useful for our health, longevity, name, fame, prosperity and all fortunes. In ancient times, kings and princes stored gem stones in their treasury to ensure prosperity. They also set these gem stones in jewelry and wore them with pride.

Gem stones have had different effects on the different people. There have been instances where childless women after wearing a particular gem began conceiving. Some kings got victorious in the battles by wearing some prescribed gems. Certain gem stones are known to have cured people of some diseases. As a result of these auspicious effects some ancient scholars began conducting research about these stones. Their experiments testified to the beneficial effects of gems and stones. This inspired different types of studies about gems, which developed as science of gemology. Wearing correct gem stones at suitable times has proved very helpful in achieving success in wealth, health and other matters. There are so many gem stones in existence but of all these only nine gem stones are considered as ‘Precious Gems’. These are called the ‘Nav Ratna’. Although there are many gem stones in the world, these nine gem stones have been only given importance by our ancient people. These are powerful gems in reflecting the strength of planets, and also producing changes in our body.