Important Ruby Mines @ Jewel Info 4 U
By:Ritika Changrani
SUMMARY: For thousands of
years the Ruby has been considered
the one of the most precious of the
twelve stones created by God. Ruby
mines are found in USA, Sri Lanka,
Burma, Vietnam, Thailand etc.
The bible aptly describes the value
of a Ruby in the saying "more
precious than rubies". The ancient
language of Sanskrit describes the
Ruby as a "RatnaRaj" which
translates as the King of precious
stones. The word ruby comes from the
Latin word "ruber".
Today the ruby is valued far more
than even the best in colorless
diamonds. Ruby is a crystalline form
of aluminum and it is one of the
most durable of all minerals in
existence. Of the mineral corundum,
the ruby is the gem quality.
Corundums are very hard and in its
most common form it is used as an
abrasive.
 The value of a ruby is determined by
its color. We all know that red is
an indicator for top quality gems.
These will not have any brown or
blue overtones. The ruby is a very
intensely colored substance and at
its best, the red looks like glowing
coal. In ancient times, these
perpetual fires that never
extinguished themselves were thought
to have magical powers.
The value of a ruby is decided by
three other factors viz. cut, size
and clarity. Perfectly translucent
rubies with no flaws visible to the
naked eye are the most valuable. The
cut of the ruby decides how lively
and attractive the ruby looks. If
light were reflected across the
surface of the ruby evenly then that
would indicate that it is a well cut
stone. Large rubies are rare; hence
the bigger your ruby, the more
expensive it will be. Some rubies
have a six point three ray star.
These are star rubies and to display
the effect they are cut in a smooth
domed cabochon.
Ruby Mines
 There are some important mines in
the world where rubies are found. In
the western tip of North Carolina,
in Macon County sits Franklin. You
can access this place from anywhere
and you have to pass the gorgeous
scenery of Blue Ridge, waterfalls,
streams flowing over rocks, the
works. The 1870's saw the mining of
the corundum in Macon County. The
ruby belongs to the family of the
corundum mineral which is a very
hard mineral second only to the
diamond. But this mining ended when
synthetic corundum became a cheaper
option.
image courtesy:
www.allmyanmar.com
The Sheffield Mines
The mines reopened when tourists
showed an interest in looking for
rubies themselves. This is how the
Sheffield Mine became famous because
every tourist went away with at
least a small ruby or sapphire for
their efforts. This mine sells
native dirt and it is your luck if
you do find a ruby or not. Unlike
other mines, this mine does not
enrich the dirt with purchased uncut
gems. In the Sheffield mines has
sapphires and rare star rubies and
if you are lucky enough to find one
you will see how a plain grey
colored rock turns into a beautiful
gemstone, untreated by humans and as
natural as the dirt they come from.
The Burma Mines
The Burma mines are yet another
source of fine rubies. Myanmar or
Burma has a history of ruby mines as
old as time. The mining area of
Mogok has revealed mining tools that
belong to the bronze as well as the
Stone Age. The rubies found here are
described as pigeon blood due to
their pure red color. There is
another variety of ruby produced
here which is more of a pink red
rather than blood red and they are
simply gorgeous. These rubies have a
strong fluorescence and you will see
layers of extra color when exposed
to ultraviolet rays like sunlight.
These rubies hold their color under
any kind of light and therein lies
their reputation.
The most recently discovered mining
area in Burma is called Mong Hsu.
This deposit is producing commercial
quality of rubies in commercial
quantities which includes a large
amount of the fine Burma ruby and
the sizes go up to a carat also.
Trade and commerce in the little
village in Tachilek has blossomed
due to this ruby bonanza. The
world's most important ruby trading
center is Thailand. Mae Sai is a
place very close to Tachilek and it
is now populated by traders and
cutters who send most of the finds
to Thailand.
The Vietnam Ruby Mines
1992 saw the discovery of a ruby
mine in Vietnam. The quality of
rubies produced here are similar to
those of the Burma mines.
Geologically speaking, the vein may
be a continuation of the one in
Burma.
Rubies found in other places
Fine rubies that are found in
Thailand have a slightly darker red
tone which moves more towards
burgundy than pink. There are a
variety of Thai rubies that have a
black reflection which are known as
extinction which makes the red look
darker than what it is. These give
the Burmese rubies a run for their
money. On the other hand Sri Lankan
rubies are pinker in hue or even in
pastel shades. Gem Mining in Sri
Lanka is mainly from the secondary
alluvial deposits found in the river
gravels. Mining pits are hand dug to
access the gravel.
In the 1960's the world got a
surprise when rubies and sapphires
were discovered in Kenya and
Tanzania and this was more so
because their colors could rival
with the best in the world. But
sadly, the rubies found here were
flawed with tiny inclusions which
reduced their transparency greatly.
On the other hand, rubies from the
African mines have a superb color
but they are not transparent enough
to give facets. When cut cabochon
style, the color is displayed to its
best.
On rare occasions, rubies from
Pakistan, Afghanistan and the Pamir
mountains find their way into the
markets but mining here is very
difficult due to the unfriendly
terrain.
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