Sapphire - one of the world’s most loved gemstone

2012 and the hunt was on: 10,000 people; cities being built in the middle of the jungle; gemological researchers flown in by helicopter. And—soon after—the military. Our Gem Hunter Don Kogen tells the story of Madagascar’s short-lived Didy deposit, which produced lucrative Kashmir Sapphire lookalikes, as he traces his experience with the storied Sapphire. Starting with legendary Paddar Kashmir Sapphire, which dates back to the Maharajas in ancient India, and commands the highest prices due to its historical value, our Gem Hunter discusses: his journeys of over 800 miles by foot between Azad Kashmir and Paddar to learn about the Kashmir Sapphire; the Sapphires of Sri Lanka and the Mogok Stone Tract; the qualities of heated and unheated Sapphires of various origins; and, finally, the California Gold Rush-style phenomenon of the Didy deposit in Mada ...