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Where gems are mined

The gem world, laid out114 places

Natural gems come from a surprisingly short list of places. Ruby from Myanmar and Mozambique, sapphire from Sri Lanka and Madagascar, emerald from Colombia and Zambia, diamond from Botswana, Russia and Canada, jadeite from one valley in Myanmar, tanzanite from a single hillside in Tanzania, and carnelian, as for thousands of years, mostly from India. Pick a gem below, then tap a pin for the story of each place.

Part of the gem world, laid out.

Pins mark mining districts, not exact mines. Drag to move, pinch or scroll to zoom, tap a pin to read about it. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

List of every place on the map (114)
  • Garnet: Merelani Hills, Tanzania. Tsavorite (green grossular) comes from the same area as tanzanite. Position approximate.
  • Garnet: Taita-Taveta, near Tsavo, Kenya. The area that gave tsavorite its name, after Tsavo National Park. Position approximate.
  • Garnet: Middle Urals, Russia. The classic demantoid source, found in the 1800s and used by Fabergé. Position approximate.
  • Garnet: Garnet Ridge, Navajo Nation, Arizona, USA. Red pyrope garnets brought up in volcanic rock, sometimes called anthill garnets. Position approximate.
  • Garnet: Bohemian Central Highlands, Czech Republic. Source of the small deep red pyropes known as Bohemian garnet. Position approximate.
  • Garnet: Loliondo, Arusha Region, Tanzania. Orange spessartine garnet locality. Position approximate.
  • Garnet: Kunene Region, Namibia. Where bright orange mandarin spessartine was found in the 1990s. Position approximate.
  • Citrine: Rio Grande do Sul (Ametista do Sul), Brazil. Huge amethyst geode mines. Much of the world's commercial citrine is amethyst from here and from neighbouring Uruguay, heated. Position approximate.
  • Citrine: Araçuaí, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Pegmatite region that has produced natural citrine crystals. Position approximate.
  • Citrine: Kundelungu plateau, Katanga, DR Congo. Source of natural citrine points, often sold as Congo or Kundalini citrine. Position approximate.
  • Citrine: Dalnegorsk, Primorsky Krai, Russia. A famous mineral district that has produced rare natural citrine crystals.
  • Citrine: Anahí mine, Santa Cruz, Bolivia. The main source of natural ametrine: amethyst and citrine in the same crystal. Position approximate.
  • Citrine: Madagascar, Madagascar. Produces some natural citrine along with other quartz. Position approximate.
  • Aquamarine: Minas Gerais (Teófilo Otoni, Santa Maria de Itabira, Virgem da Lapa), Brazil. The classic aquamarine region, with many pegmatite mines. Home of the Santa Maria name and of the crystal that became the Dom Pedro. Position approximate.
  • Aquamarine: Zambezia Province pegmatites, Mozambique. Source of deep blue stones sold as Santa Maria Africa. Position approximate.
  • Aquamarine: Shigar and Braldu valleys, Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan. High-mountain pegmatites that give sharp, clear crystals, including those from Nyet Bruk. Position approximate.
  • Aquamarine: Erongo Mountains, Namibia. A granite range known for aquamarine crystals with black schorl tourmaline. Position approximate.
  • Aquamarine: Mount Antero, Colorado, USA. High-altitude aquamarine locality; aquamarine is the Colorado state gemstone.
  • Aquamarine: Madagascar, Madagascar. Pegmatites in the central highlands produce aquamarine and other beryls. Position approximate.
  • Sunstone: Plush and Rabbit Basin, Lake County, Oregon, USA. Copper-bearing labradorite sunstone, Oregon's state gemstone. The BLM runs a free public collection area here; private mines such as Dust Devil are nearby. Position approximate.
  • Sunstone: Ponderosa mine, Harney County, Oregon, USA. The second main Oregon sunstone deposit. Position approximate.
  • Sunstone: Tvedestrand, Norway. The classic historical sunstone locality: oligoclase in a quartz vein running through gneiss.
  • Sunstone: Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, India. Source of much of the inexpensive orange sunstone used for beads, spheres and . Position approximate.
  • Sunstone: Arusha Region, Tanzania. Oligoclase sunstone with golden hematite flashes; the Smithsonian holds a 17.91 ct faceted Tanzanian sunstone. Position approximate.
  • Topaz: Ouro Preto, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Almost the only source of golden-orange to pink imperial topaz.
  • Topaz: Katlang, Mardan, Pakistan. Rare natural pink topaz.
  • Topaz: Ilmen and Murzinka, Urals, Russia. Historic source of blue and imperial-coloured topaz crystals.
  • Topaz: Thomas Range, Utah, USA. Sherry-coloured crystals in volcanic rhyolite; topaz is the state gem of Utah.
  • Moonstone: Meetiyagoda, Sri Lanka. The classic source of moonstone with a blue sheen.
  • Moonstone: Tamil Nadu and Odisha, India. Most rainbow, peach and grey moonstone sold today comes from India.
  • Moonstone: Mogok, Myanmar. Fine blue-sheen moonstone from the same valley as ruby.
  • Labradorite: Paul Island, Labrador, Canada. Where labradorite was first described, in the 1770s, and named after.
  • Labradorite: Ylämaa, Finland. Spectrolite: a dark labradorite flashing every colour, found in the 1940s.
  • Labradorite: Southern Madagascar, Madagascar. Most of the labradorite spheres, slabs and palm stones sold today.
  • Zircon: Ratanakiri, Cambodia. The source of most blue zircon, made blue by heating brown crystals.
  • Zircon: Ratnapura and gem gravels, Sri Lanka. Zircon in many colours from the island’s gem gravels.
  • Zircon: Jack Hills, Western Australia, Australia. Tiny zircon grains here are about 4.4 billion years old, the oldest pieces of the earth ever found.
  • Zircon: Tunduru and Umba, Tanzania. Red, orange and yellow zircon from gem gravels.
  • Alexandrite: Malysheva (Tokovaya) emerald mines, Urals, Russia. Where alexandrite was first found, in the 1830s. The classic source of strong green-to-red stones; little is mined now.
  • Alexandrite: Ratnapura and gem gravels, Sri Lanka. Alexandrite and cat’s-eye chrysoberyl from river gravels, sometimes in large sizes.
  • Alexandrite: Hematita, Minas Gerais, Brazil. A 1987 find that produced some of the finest alexandrite of modern times.
  • Alexandrite: Tunduru, Tanzania. Gem gravels that yield alexandrite with sapphire and spinel.
  • Spinel: Mogok and Namya, Myanmar. The classic source of red and pink spinel, in the same marble as Burmese ruby.
  • Spinel: Kuh-i-Lal, Pamir mountains, Tajikistan. The old source of "balas rubies", pink-red spinels prized by Persian, Mughal and Russian rulers.
  • Spinel: Mahenge, Tanzania. Famous for vivid hot-pink spinel since a large find in 2007.
  • Spinel: Luc Yen, Vietnam. Marble-hosted spinel, including rare cobalt-blue stones.
  • Spinel: Ratnapura and gem gravels, Sri Lanka. Spinel in many colours, including blue, from the island’s gem gravels.
  • Carnelian: Ratanpur and the Narmada valley, Gujarat, India. The classic source. Pebbles from these gravels have fed the bead workshops of Khambhat for thousands of years; most commercial carnelian still comes from India.
  • Carnelian: Khambhat (Cambay), Gujarat, India. Not a mine but the great bead-making town: carnelian has been heated, cut and drilled here since antiquity. Nearby Lothal has Harappan bead workshops from about 2500 BC.
  • Carnelian: Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The world's great agate and chalcedony region; much "Brazilian carnelian" is heated agate from here.
  • Carnelian: Artigas, Uruguay. Volcanic agate and chalcedony fields across the border from Rio Grande do Sul.
  • Carnelian: Madagascar, Madagascar. Sold as carnelian rough by lapidary suppliers, often mixed with agate.
  • Carnelian: Yemen, Yemen. A historic source of carnelian and agate ("aqeeq") for rings and seals across the Middle East.
  • Green onyx and chrysoprase: Chagai district, Balochistan, Pakistan. Source of the banded green and honey "Pakistan green onyx" carved into bowls, vases and coasters. It is onyx marble, a banded calcite, not true onyx.
  • Green onyx and chrysoprase: Tecali, Puebla, Mexico. Mexican onyx marble, carved here for centuries and once sliced thin enough to glaze church windows.
  • Green onyx and chrysoprase: La Toma, San Luis, Argentina. Banded green and honey onyx marble, quarried for carvings and decoration.
  • Green onyx and chrysoprase: Marlborough, Queensland, Australia. The best chrysoprase today: apple-green chalcedony coloured by nickel. Australia is the leading producer.
  • Green onyx and chrysoprase: Szklary, Poland. Historic chrysoprase mines that supplied much of the early chrysoprase used in European jewellery.
  • Green onyx and chrysoprase: Mtoroshanga, Great Dyke, Zimbabwe. Chrome chalcedony ("mtorolite"), a natural green chalcedony coloured by chromium.
  • Green onyx and chrysoprase: Idar-Oberstein, Germany. Not a mine: the gem town whose craftsmen perfected dyeing agate and chalcedony in the 1800s, the technique behind most "green onyx" jewellery.
  • Tiger's eye: Northern Cape (Griqualand West, Prieska), South Africa. The classic source of golden tiger's eye and blue hawk's eye, in ancient banded iron formations along the Orange River.
  • Tiger's eye: Pilbara, Western Australia, Australia. Source of 'tiger iron' and Marra Mamba tiger's eye, banded with red jasper and silver hematite.
  • Tiger's eye: Namibia, Namibia. Tiger's eye and pietersite, its swirling, broken-fibre cousin.
  • Amethyst: Ametista do Sul, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. A town named after the stone: amethyst geodes are mined from tunnels in old lava flows, some big enough to stand in.
  • Amethyst: Artigas, Uruguay. Deep purple geodes from the same lava plateau as southern Brazil.
  • Amethyst: Kariba district, Zambia. A leading source of dark, rich gem amethyst.
  • Amethyst: Four Peaks, Arizona, United States. Remote mountain mine known for deep reddish-purple amethyst.
  • Moissanite (natural): Canyon Diablo (Meteor Crater), Arizona, United States. Where Henri Moissan found natural in meteorite fragments in 1893. Natural moissanite comes only in microscopic grains, so every gem moissanite is lab-made.
  • Ruby: Mogok, Myanmar. The most famous ruby source in history, prized for "pigeon's blood" red.
  • Ruby: Montepuez, Mozambique. Discovered in 2009 and now a leading source of fine ruby.
  • Ruby: Chanthaburi, Thailand. Once a major mining area; now mainly a cutting, heating and trading hub.
  • Ruby: Jegdalek, Afghanistan. Marble-hosted ruby, mined since antiquity.
  • Sapphire: Ratnapura, Sri Lanka. The "city of gems": blue, pink, yellow and padparadscha sapphire from river gravels.
  • Sapphire: Ilakaka, Madagascar. A sapphire rush town founded in the late 1990s, now one of the world's biggest sources.
  • Sapphire: Kashmir (Padar), India. Velvety cornflower blue, mined mainly in the 1880s; the most valuable sapphire there is.
  • Sapphire: Yogo Gulch, Montana, United States. Small, naturally cornflower-blue stones that need no heating.
  • Sapphire: Anakie, Queensland, Australia. Dark blue and parti-coloured sapphire.
  • Emerald: Muzo and Chivor, Colombia. The benchmark for emerald colour, mined since before the Spanish arrived.
  • Emerald: Kafubu (Kagem), Zambia. One of the largest emerald producers today; slightly bluish green.
  • Emerald: Minas Gerais and Bahia, Brazil. Large volumes of commercial-grade emerald.
  • Emerald: Panjshir valley, Afghanistan. Bright emerald from high mountain mines.
  • Diamond: Jwaneng and Orapa, Botswana. Jwaneng is one of the richest diamond mines by value in the world.
  • Diamond: Mirny, Yakutia, Russia. Siberian pipe mines; Russia is the largest producer by volume.
  • Diamond: Ekati and Diavik, Northwest Territories, Canada. Mines beneath sub-Arctic lakes.
  • Diamond: Kimberley, South Africa. The 1870s rush that gave , the diamond-bearing rock, its name.
  • Diamond: Catoca, Angola. One of the largest kimberlite mines in the world.
  • Diamond: Argyle, Western Australia, Australia. Famous for pink diamonds; closed in 2020.
  • Jade: Hpakant, Kachin State, Myanmar. Almost all fine jadeite comes from here.
  • Jade: Motagua valley, Guatemala. Jadeite worked by the Maya and Olmec.
  • Jade: Northern British Columbia, Canada. Major source of nephrite jade.
  • Jade: Hotan (Khotan), Xinjiang, China. The legendary source of white nephrite, carved in China for thousands of years.
  • Jade: Lake Baikal region, Siberia, Russia. Bright green nephrite.
  • Jade: West Coast, South Island, New Zealand. Pounamu, nephrite treasured by Maori.
  • Lapis lazuli: Sar-e-Sang, Kokcha valley, Afghanistan. The world's classic lapis, mined for about 6,000 years; it reached ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia.
  • Lapis lazuli: Coquimbo region, Chile. Lighter lapis with more white calcite.
  • Lapis lazuli: Lake Baikal region, Russia. Siberian lapis.
  • Opal: Coober Pedy, South Australia, Australia. Opal town where many people live underground to escape the heat.
  • Opal: Lightning Ridge, New South Wales, Australia. Home of black opal, the most valuable kind.
  • Opal: Wollo (Welo), Ethiopia. Found in 2008; bright, affordable play-of-colour opal.
  • Opal: Queretaro, Mexico. Orange "fire opal".
  • Tanzanite: Merelani Hills, Tanzania. The only known source of tanzanite in the world.
  • Tourmaline: Minas Gerais, Brazil. Every colour of tourmaline, including watermelon crystals.
  • Tourmaline: Sao Jose da Batalha, Paraiba, Brazil. Where neon-blue copper-bearing "Paraiba" tourmaline was found in the late 1980s.
  • Tourmaline: Pala, California, United States. Pink tourmaline once sold in quantity to the Chinese imperial court.
  • Turquoise: Nishapur, Iran. Persian turquoise, mined for thousands of years.
  • Turquoise: Arizona and Nevada, United States. American turquoise, including the closed Sleeping Beauty mine.
  • Turquoise: Sinai Peninsula, Egypt. Mined by the ancient Egyptians from about 3000 BC; the goddess Hathor was called the Lady of Turquoise.
  • Turquoise: Cerrillos Hills, New Mexico, United States. Worked by Ancestral Puebloans for a thousand years; their turquoise traded as far as Chaco Canyon and Mexico.
  • Turquoise: Hubei, China. Today the largest producer of turquoise.
  • Ammolite, labradorite, meteorites: Southern Alberta (ammolite), Canada. Gem ammolite comes from fossil ammonites in this region.
  • Ammolite, labradorite, meteorites: Labrador (labradorite), Canada. The coast that gave labradorite its name.
  • Ammolite, labradorite, meteorites: Ylamaa (spectrolite), Finland. Labradorite with the full spectrum of flash, called spectrolite.
  • Ammolite, labradorite, meteorites: Campo del Cielo (meteorite), Argentina. Iron meteorites from a fall some 4,000 to 5,000 years ago.
  • Ammolite, labradorite, meteorites: Muonionalusta (meteorite), Sweden. An ancient iron meteorite found in northern Sweden, known for its etched crystal pattern.

Why gems cluster in so few places

Each gem needs an unusual recipe. Ruby needs chromium but almost no silica, which happens where limestone was cooked into marble deep in a mountain belt, as in Mogok. Emerald needs beryllium and chromium, two elements that rarely meet, and in Colombia they met when hot, salty brines leached both out of black shale and deposited emerald in veins. Diamond forms 150 kilometres down and only reaches the surface in narrow volcanic pipes of kimberlite. Carnelian and agate form wherever silica-rich water fills holes in old lava, which is why they come from the great volcanic plains of India, Brazil and Uruguay. Rivers then carry the hardest crystals downstream, so many famous sources, like Ratnapura in Sri Lanka, are gravel beds rather than rock mines.

Lab-grown stones skip all of this: they come from factories. See which gems can be lab-grown and where the world cuts its gems.

Gem guides

Carnelian Green onyx Lab gems worth buying Gem treatments explained The gem world, laid out

Frequently Asked Questions

Which country produces the most gemstones?

It depends on the gem. Myanmar dominates fine jadeite and historic ruby, Colombia and Zambia lead emerald, Botswana and Russia lead diamond, Sri Lanka and Madagascar are the great sapphire islands, and India supplies most carnelian and cuts most of the world's diamonds.

Is there a gem found in only one place?

Tanzanite. Every tanzanite in the world comes from a few square kilometres in the Merelani Hills of northern Tanzania, near Mount Kilimanjaro.

Do lab-grown gems come from a place too?

Lab gems come from factories rather than mines. Most lab , spinel and cubic zirconia is made and cut in Wuzhou, China, and lab diamonds are grown largely in China and India.

Sources