Burmese rubies, tainted by the corrupt regime that controls mining and trading, forces buyers to look elsewhere for ruby gemstone suppliers.

Thailand has its own ruby regions, as does Cambodia, such as the famed Pallin ruby fields, although many of the areas have been over-mined and produce fewer and fewer gems. Some Burmese (Myanmar) ruby gemstones have also been smuggled out and sold as Thai stones, making their way into mainstream jewelry, causing people to be wary of buying ruby stones from Thai suppliers.

Despite Burmese rubies being passed off as Thai items, it’s good to know, that if you can establish that the ruby gems (in jewelry you may be contemplating buying) were in fact mined in Pallin (which means “blue sapphire”), in the Cambodian province of Battambang near Thailand, or from the regions of Bo Rai and Nong Bon (in Thailand) from where the famed “Siam rubies” originate, then you can be confident that they’re not financing a dictatorial regime. If they’re truly Thai, Cambodian or even Vietnamese, the quality, color and clarity of the ruby stone will probably be excellent. It’s important that buyers be aware that Thai and Cambodian rubies may be darker than the Burmese ones mined from Magok. In some ways the deeper color makes them appear closer to a garnet or because they lack the fluorescence that Burmese rubies posses. Even so, genuine Thai and Cambodian gems are usually a good buy.

Many parts of Cambodia are well known for green and blue sapphires, but there are red-red rubies worthy of collecting from the region, even investment quality gems that range in size from a single carat to 5 carats. We speak of sapphires in the same breath as rubies because they are essentially the same – the only thing that separates a sapphire from a ruby is the red color. What are often called “pink rubies” are in fact pink sapphires because to really be a ruby there must be more red than any other color. Buyers will want to be aware of the Phenom Phen Toul Tom Pong gem market (also known as the Russian market) where high quality sapphire and ruby stones from Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand are traded at reasonable prices. Notice the picture (taken by Wimon Manorotkul) that exemplifies the color of a ruby stone mined from the Cambodia-Thailand region.

Sri Lanka is another region that has sapphires and ruby gemstones, usually more pink than red, but nonetheless of fine quality. They also mine some of the famed star rubies, but perhaps the most important Ceylon or Sri Lankan ruby stone is the Padparadscha.

Star rubies, even if they’re pink and not pigeon blood red like the Burmese rubies, fetch a high price – even for a medium quality star ruby stone from Sri Lanka, you’ll need to budget about $1,000 per carat.

Tanzania is one of the best places for fine ruby stone mining. There are small companies that work locally to offer employment to local miners and a British Tanzanian joint venture called RubyFair which offers both jewelry craftspeople and collectors a means to buy ethical gems for reasonable prices. To learn more about RubyFair please go to Ruby Gems to get details about the Tanzanian operations.

The hope that Greenland might be a source for “clean” conflict free ruby gemstones may or may not come to pass. There appears to be a conflict between the Inuit people and True North Gems, the Canadian company had obtained the right to explore and perhaps eventually trade rubies commercially, which appears to be going ahead as of last reports in 2009.

The True North website has a variety of Greenland ruby gemstone jewelry on display, as well as a series of photographs on processing and exploration, although as of yet, we are unsure if loose rubies are for sale on the open market or if Greenland ruby stone jewelry can be bought in shops or online. As we investigate we’ll offer information.

If you have news on where the ethical loose ruby stone can be bought, or where unique ruby jewelry can be found (crafted in a responsible and environmentally conscious way), please write us so we may investigate and update information.

For ideas and suggestions where to buy ruby jewellery using Tanzanian gems, please refer to the posts regarding ruby bracelet designs, ruby diamond ring creations and ruby eternity ring jewelers. We also have recommendations on where to buy ethical ruby jewellery from a variety of UK designers and where to get some unusual ruby necklace items custom made or how to choose a ruby pendant from two well-known design houses that use conflict-free gems and reclaimed or recycled precious metals.

Ruby wedding rings and cocktail style gemstone rings are also available through select designers who choose not to buy stones from questionable sources. Please feel free to browse articles regarding white gold ruby ring ideas for more information on where to shop.