Description
The art of fashioning stones in Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon) goes back more than 2,000 years, and gems have been mined on the island for even longer⁶. Gemstones are deeply tied to Sri Lanka’s history and the island is referenced in many historical texts, from Pliny in 77 AD² to Marco Polo in ~1300¹⁰. Polo tells us, ‘You must know that rubies are found in this Island and in no other country in the world but this. They find there also sapphires and topazes and amethysts, and many other stones. The traditional method of gemstone faceting was carried out through traditional artistry and skilled heritance of a selected few by the use of the ‘Hanaporuwa’ or the Bow Cutting Method by the Gemstone and Jewelery industry of Sri Lanka.
