Gemstone Atlas

Each stone floats above its main deposit. Tap one to see where it comes from, what it is worth per carat, and every country it is found in.

Tap a stone on the map.
Or pick one from the list below.

Every stone, by country

See also the map of the great gem lands

Where stones are born

Gems are not scattered at random: they follow geology. Basalt brings up the sapphires of Australia and Cambodia; the pegmatites of Brazil and Mozambique yield tourmalines and aquamarines; Burmese marble makes the most sought-after rubies in the world. This interactive atlas places each stone above its main deposit, and lights up every country it occurs in as soon as you select it.

Why origin changes the price

Two stones that look alike are not worth the same depending on where they come from. A Kashmir sapphire trades at several times the price of a sapphire of the same colour from elsewhere, because the deposit has been exhausted for over a century. A Mogok ruby, a Muzo emerald, a Brazilian Paraíba tourmaline: the name of the place is part of the price. That is why laboratories certify origin as much as species.

How to read the price ranges

The figures given are orders of magnitude per carat, for a cut stone of ordinary quality. They replace no expert opinion: within one species, the gap between an ordinary stone and an exceptional piece runs into tens, sometimes hundreds. Colour, clarity, cut, any treatment and the certificate each weigh more than the species itself.