Gem Scoop Readership Survey Winners

A very BIG

hank you?goes to all who participated in our first ever Gem Scoop Readership Survey.
he lucky winners of our five !S"#$$ haigem.com Shopping Sprees are%

Sandra &aupold' (r)ach' Germany
*ohn Scott' *ackson' !.S.A.
+a,unari -u.imaki' /ka,aki0Shi' *apan
Shannon 1icks' &ew /rleans' !.S.A.
2ulce -ernande,' Santurce' 3uerto Rico
We

l )e contacting all the winners shortly with instructions on how to claim your pri,e.
My good buddy Jeff touched down in
Thailand just two days before. His third
time visiting me here, he pretty much
knows what to bring on the plane from
Ohio shorts, tee!shirts, sunscreen and
shades" #ittle did he know our two!week
beach vacation on $huket %sland was to be
curtailed by a last minute re&uest from the
boss. %nstead of heading for the beach we
had to turn the car around, put my buying
hat on and head across the border into the
ancient 'hmer 'ingdom of (ambodia.
-orced to come along for the ride' *eff

holiday was literally heading in a different
direction. he company )rief was clear enough
?scour the 3ailin' 3reh 4ihear and Ratanakiri
mining districts in the +ingdom and )ring home some 5uality 6am)odian ru)y' sapphire' apatite and
,ircon.
-irst stop' the historic 6am)odian gemstone0mining city of 3ailin' a town steeped in local folklore
regarding its precious treasures. 7ong ago when the men folk of the fledgling city sharpened their
spears to go out hunting' the gods )ecame an8ious that local wildlife would diminish. he deities told
the townsfolk to lay down their arms and go forth and look in the mountainous streams around the city.
he gods e8plained if they promised not to hunt the )easts of the forests they would find something of
far greater value in the clear running waters of the streams and rivers. Sure enough' they found
gemstones in a)undance.
hus was the mythological )irth of one of the world

greatest gemstone cities. 7ocated in Battam)ang

province near the hai )order' 3ailin takes its name from the ancient +hmer word for

lue sapphire?
/ver the years' famed travelers' e8plorers of the /rient and gemstone lovers have visited the city with
references )eing made to it in many a )ook.

3ailin is home to one of the world

most
)reathtakingly )eautiful types of )lue sapphire.
/n a good day' these sapphires are every )it
as good as those from Burma. 9edium )lue in
color' 5uality 6am)odian sapphire has little
color ,oning' and sometimes you see the
magical velvety appearance reminiscent of the
finest +ashmir sapphires. /ther 3ailin
treasures include ru)y' green and yellow
sapphire' reddish )rown ,ircon and red garnet.
he 6am)odian ru)y found here is nearly
identical to the hai variety found .ust over the
)order in the famed towns of &ong Bon and Bo
Rai. /ften known as Siam ru)ies' )oth the hai and 6am)odian ru)ies are identical to each other and
show e8cellent clarities that easily surpass those of Burmese origin.
A real 3ailin )argain is green sapphire. -anning the entire spectrum of green' 6am)odian green
sapphires are nothing short of magnificent. hough perhaps not the most sought after mem)er of the
sapphire family' this variety offers astonishing value for money. 2on

)elieve me? ake a look at our

un)elieva)le prices we have for green sapphire:
he town was 5uiet' its dusty streets giving away few secrets. It was hard to )elieve that 3ailin was the
last )astion of the +hmer Rouge' the revolutionary insurgents responsi)le for the genocide perpetrated
here only two decades ago. 2espite all this' 3ailin is a 5uiet laid )ack 6am)odian town. 1ustle and
)ustle free' it

not the kind of place you

pass through on the way to somewhere. In fact' the terri)le

road connecting it to the rest of the country means there are very few cars dotted around the 5uiet
streets' so it

easy to get around on foot. he town center is laid out in a kind of triangle with many
small stores actively dealing in ru)y and sapphire. So for the ne8t two days' I left *eff in the cafes and
restaurants and went a)out my )usiness.
9oving on two days later' the road .ourney from 3ailin to 3reh 4ihear didn

look that far on the map'

)ut once we we

e in the car' the full horror of this road unfolded )efore our eyes. he first stretch
from 3ailin to Battam)ang has got a lot )etter in the last year )ut is still horrendous ? red dust gets up
your nose' in your eyes and everywhere else you can imagine: As we nudged our way along the pot
holed highway I fre5uently noticed at various points the large red skull and cross)ones signs warning of
land mines in the )ush lands )eyond the road. *eff said nothing )ut I could see this wasn

e8actly the
holiday he had in mind.

So to lighten my traveling companion

load we )roke our .ourney at the place first
on his camera

list. Seam Reap' home to

Angkor Wat' one of the Seven Wonders of
the World. So much has )een said a)out
this past empire of the +hmer people' that
the only way to e8perience it is to see it yourself. Its )eauty and state of preservation is unrivaled. Its
mightiness and magnificence is impressive. Its artistic distinctiveness is as fine as that of the a. 9ahal
in India. I could have spent a full week here soaking up its splendor' )ut we had to press on. A further
hundred kilometers north of the ruins and we arrived at the gem mines of 3reh 4ihear' a mere
gemstone

throw from the 6am)odian0hai )order.

;ellow sapphires are a principle feature of the gem riches originating in 3reh 4ihear. Ranging from
deep sunflower shades to soft )uttercup yellows' the local variety here radiates charm and
sophistication. /ften under acknowledged' these wonderful gemstones occasionally appear in large
si,es that can )e secured for pleasantly low prices.
But it is ,ircon that has made 3reh 4ihear a name on the colored gemstone wall of fame. he finest
,ircon in the world is )orn in 6am)odia< with a high refractive inde8 this e85uisite )lue gemstone has
incompara)le sparkle and truly great pa,a,. he 6am)odian variety can reach up to #= 6arats' though
the staple si,e range is #0= 6arats. 9ost ,ircon actually starts its life reddish0)rown in color )efore
)eing heated to produce the delicious )lue that makes such a versatile and thoroughly en.oya)le
addition to any gemstone collection. We stayed a day and a half. I filled my )ag with un)elieva)le
5uality gemstones and .umped )ack into the car.
A series of dirt roads all performed misera)ly at keeping a straight line as the ne8t leg of the .ourney
had us snaking our way eastward. hankfully my >0wheel drive rental motor was up to the task. *ust as
nightfall was drawing in' we reached our ne8t destination.
Remote' primitive and stunningly )eautiful' Ratanakiri has its roots in the distant past and much of its
daily life has remained unchanged for centuries. Another ma.or center for 6am)odian ,ircon' I arrived
here with little )ackground knowledge as little is written a)out this remote province. It had a new
deposit of ,ircon discovered .ust a few years ago. With the gems mined from an alluvial layer a)out =0
?$ meters )elow the surface' Ratanakiri will long stick in my mind as an incredi)le )argain0house for
,ircon. Apatite as well as small amounts of high 5uality ru)y and sapphire is also unearthed here and
proved too good to pass up.

he near)y city of ung reng was where we said
farewell to the rental car and met our )oat to take
us down the mighty 9ekong River. /ne of the
longest rivers in the world' the 9ekong originates
in 6hina and is over ?$km wide in places and at
times' we felt lost to its vastness. housands of
years have seen little change to the River of
+ings' and with the sparse river traffic' the
9ekong only drew more attention to our
insignificance. he ne8t day we arrived in the
6am)odian capital' 3hnom 3hen.
I had a few hours to kill )efore picking up our flight to Bangkok and headed straight to the Russian
market' a canvas0covered sprawl containing hundreds of stalls' many offering an assortment of local
gemstones. Ru)y' sapphire' and ,ircon ?I

done real well on already' )ut I was delighted to find some

high 5uality apatite and 4ietnamese ru)y that I still had a )udget for.
he hour long flight to Bangkok afforded us panoramic views of the lush and verdant terrain )elow that
had taken days to traverse overland. 6am)odia is a )eautiful and often misunderstood country that
produces some of the world

finest colored gemstones. With stunning vistas' architectural splendors'

)right vivacious ,ircons and ru)ies and ma.estic )lue sapphires' 6am)odia

treasures are truly in

a)undance.

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stylish %olite ) Topa* +,' -old Three .tone
/ing.
3erfect for all occasions' each ring features
nearly a full carat of African Iolite' accented )y
well over half a carat of richly colored Blue opa,'
all delightfully complimented )y the lustrous hues
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A perfect design for

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Ask...
Got a 5uestion a)out gems? (very week our Gemological 9anager answers one of the more popular
5uestions asked a)out gems and gemology.
2. % am looking for more information about Tsavorite

history and lore. (an you help

A. 2iscovered in ?@AB )y the now legendary Scottish
geologist' 6amp)ell R. Bridges' tsavorite has 5uickly
found favor as a precious colored gem of choice. Its
)rilliant green colors have overcome its lack of romantic
lore and ancient history.
&ative to the dry grasslands of the high0plateau frontier
)etween +enya and an,ania' tsavorite first came to
light in the famed tan,anite producing area of 7elatema.
2iscovered as small green crystal pieces and granules inside geode like formations' gemological tests
showed that these stunningly )eautiful crystals were in fact a variety of green grossular garnet.
Showing high transparency' high luster and )eautiful green colors' gem e8perts and aficionados 5uickly
displayed interest. he pro)lem for the admirers of this de)utant .ewel was that deposits were small'
and socialist era an,anian laws restricted mineral e8ports. Bridges and other reputed gem prospectors
such as 3eter 9organ and *ohn Saul Cdiscoverer of +enya

ru)y minesD speculated that more

tsavorite deposits would )e found across the )order in +enya. With intuition and geological knowledge
paying off in ?@B?' Bridges rediscovered the )rilliantly green .ewel for the second time within the
)oundary of +enya

fa)ulous savo Game Reserve.

3rospecting around the same area of the savo Reserve
as Bridges' 3eter 9organ went on to discover the first
su)stantial tsavorite deposit in the aita 1ills. Straddling
the prominent +ide 1ill' the 7ualenyi 9ine produced the
first commercial amounts of tsavorite. !nder the more
laisse,0faire and unrestrictive laws of +enya' mining and
e8porting commenced and the world )egan to receive its
first taste of this )eautifully colored gem.
(ver the creative opportunist with (ast African gems'
1enry 3latt of iffany E 6o.' &ew ;ork' named the )rilliant
green .ewel

savorite? after the )eautiful savannah parklands where it was rediscovered. In ?@B> at
3latt

)ehest' iffany

started a marketing campaign that helped propel tsavorite to fame.

With )eautiful green hues similar to the very )est emeralds' the .ewelry world was enamored )y
tsavorite

charms. It is a truly rare gem' which could well )e unavaila)le in future years to come.
While some =$ deposits have )een found in +enya' an,ania' 9adagascar and even Fam)ia' only a
handful of small mines produce commercially via)le 5uantities. 3roduction is highly unpredicta)le with
large crystal si,es seldom )eing recovered ?all helping to add to the gemstone

cachet as a
genuinely rare .ewel.
Some GA years after Bridges discovery' tsavorite has comforta)ly esta)lished itself as one of the world

most )eautiful' precious and desira)le gemstones.

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of your dreams' simply com)ine our unrivaled selection of Gems' 2iamonds E 3earls with over ?'$$$
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his week

showcase is an ?H +arat Gold 3endant set with a #.$# 6arat 6olor 6hange Sapphire with
two $.$> 6arat Accent 2iamond. Total $rice4 5.067+.81. 1andcrafted E shipped in only ?> days from
receipt of order.
To order a similar design, select -emstone $endants and this design will appear on the first
page of the -em .coop -allery. 9or rapid assistance or advice, email support:thaigem.com
A &ew Gem Iui, Winner

6ongratulations to 9s. Sheryl Stanley of Westminster' 6olorado for
winning a )eautiful #.HB 6arat 3ink ourmaline.
2. .imply tell us, in which ;uropean language were
Tourmalines known as <aschentrekkers<, the reason why they
were given this name and the modern term for this curious
effect.
=. Tourmalines were known as

schentrekkersin >utch. They

were called this name because of their ability to attract ashes when heated and subse&uently
cooled. %n fact, the >utch used them to clean old ashes out of their pipes. = more modern term
for this phenomenon is called

yro!electricity
6lick here to view previous Gem Iui, 5uestions and winners.
he Gem Iui,
haigem.com gives you the chance to win a )eautiful $.HA 6arat 6eylon Sapphire:
?ame the (ambodian city that means <@lue .apphire<, the ancient language from which the
word derives, and its recent revolutionary overlords.
Send your answer to gem5ui,Jthaigem.net )y 9arch #=' #$$G. he winner will )e selected randomly
from all correct answers. Gem Iui, winners will )e informed via email and also announced in the Gem
Scoop. All decisions are final.