Ratnapura, Sri Lanka – Workers digging a well in a backyard in the Ratnapura region of Sri Lanka have found the world’s largest collection of blue sapphires. The rock weighs 510 kg and is worth 100 million US dollars, which is equivalent to 518 million Brazilian reals.
Named “shell sapphire” – a word derived from the English language and referring to the discovery of good things by chance – the rock was discovered a year ago. However, the owners chose to announce the event only this week, according to News In Asia.
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The sapphire owners waited to give details for two reasons: the country’s situation in relation to the Covid-19 pandemic and because they believed they could sell it for $1 billion, given the scarcity of the stone.
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“The person who was digging the well warned us about some rare stones. Later, we found this huge specimen,” said the owner of the rock, known as Mr. Gamaj, in an interview with the BBC.
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Gamage claimed security reasons for not revealing his full name. Sri Lanka is one of the world’s largest exporters of rubies and other precious stones.
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According to Gamage, it took nearly a year to clean up the rock. It was necessary to remove mud and other impurities. While cleaning, some stones fell off from the agglomerate. The rock-cut sapphire is considered to be of high quality.
“I’ve never seen such a large specimen before.” Gemologist Jamini Zoisa told the BBC that it may have formed about 400 million years ago.
