Rough Ruby From Mong Hsu, Burma: The Route To Market

(via Kammerling, 1994) Rough ruby from Mong Hsu, Burma:

1. The initial journey is from the mine site to the town of Mong Hsu. The ruby is then taken by road to the city of Taunggyi, 275 km away. Here there is a government-sanctioned market where dealers can trade their stones legally for a fee.

2. From Taunggyi the vast majority of the rough ruby the travels east to the town of Keng Tung rather than traveling down to Rangoon.

3. The next stage is the Burmese town of Tachiliek, just across the border from Thailand.

4. From Tachiliek the rough is taken across the small Moei Kok River into Thailand.

5. Trading is intense in the small Thai town of Mae Sai, just a few hundred meters across the border. Rough untreated rubies are openly traded in shops and sidestreet tables. The center of the ruby trade is the street that has become known locally as Soi Tab Teem (Ruby Lane). Most business goes on between Thai dealers from Chantaburi and Burmese traders who make the daily trip across the bridge from Tachiliek. The cost of setting up a shop in Ruby Lane is reportedly only some US$400 +/-. A table on the main Soi costs around US$80 +/-, while on a side-Soi can cost as little as US$40 +/-. Parcels range from one to two pieces up to 1kg (5000 carats). If a sale is made, the goods are passed over and payment is in Thai baht.

6. The rough is then taken to Chantaburi where the stones are heat treated to remove the distinctive blue cores that typify this material. They are then cut and polished.

7. The fashioned and treated stones may then be sold onto larger dealers in Bangkok, to be sold on the local market to manufacturers, and to foreign buyers from all over the world.