In the capital of Sri Lanka, Colombo, for the first time a rare precious stone — the purple “Star of the Pure Earth” sapphire weighing 3,563 carats — was presented to the general public. It is emphasized that this precious stone, with its huge size, astonishing largeness and unique optical features, created another new page in the history of world gemmology. Such a find occurs very rarely, and it is exactly for this reason that it also aroused great interest.
It is reported that the sapphire was found in 2023 in the city of Ratnapura — a region known as the “capital of precious stones.” Many stones are mined there, but this find stands out especially by its scale and beauty. The interesting part is that at first it was purchased as part of a batch of other precious stones, and only after two years did the owners realize how rare it is, how it is a truly rare treasure. After that, the owners, who wished to remain anonymous, decided to have the stone examined in two independent laboratories.
According to gemmologist Ashan Amarasinghe, the sapphire has perfect asterism — a rare optical effect in which, when light falls on it, a six-rayed star appears. That is, when light hits the stone, a star-like image appears on it, which is considered a great value for any collector or gemmology enthusiast. Exactly this feature, as stated in the specialists’ conclusion, places it among the rarest precious stones in the world.
The initial value of the “Star of the Pure Earth” may reach from 300 million to 400 million dollars. It is said that the owners of this rare find, from which new records are expected on the precious-stone market, are for now ready to consider incoming offers to sell it, but they are not rushing the decision. In one word, this purple sapphire displayed in Colombo is bound to cause big discussions both on the world market and among fans and collectors.
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