Jungle-Gems.com October 2002 Newsletter

Hello from Minas Gerais Brasil, the heart of the Brasilian colored gemstone trade. Here you will read about what is new in the gemstone business, what is being talked about, and what the latest gossip is…

Headline of the Month: HUGE diamond rough found!

Brasil is known for large diamond rough but… 174 GRAMS? Needless to say, we were very impressed by such a magnificent gemstone. We were fortunate to arrange the first showing of this rare sized stone. There is still no set price, as even the owners are unsure of its value. Anyone out there want to make an offer? Feel free to visit us here in Brasil and have a look at this rare beauty!
We encountered many other fine pieces of diamond rough in all sizes. One other outstanding rough stone was a 34ct of exceptional color and clarity, priced at US$450,000.
The State of Matto Grosso has been turning out some fine stones recently, and there may be a big change soon in our State of Rondonia. One of the leading candidates for Governor in the coming election intends to open up some previously restricted diamond mining areas. If this indeed comes to pass, many diamonds which are now contraband goods, will become legal to trade in. We’ll soon see who wins the election…

September is a slow season for us here in Brasil with all the big foreign gemshows open: Hong Kong, Tucson and Denver among others. Most of the bigger dealers are out of town this time of year. We try to find any new production during this time, as the local buyers are fewer.

One of our better new finds is a production of bright quartz crystal lasers coming from the State of Goias. Production is limited at this new site, but we managed to get almost 50kg of non-damaged top quality material. We are hoping for more. The mineowners and operators are knowledgeable about unacceptable dings and knicks on the quartz, and we expect to have more fine goods available soon at jungle-gems.com.



We also obtained a small production of dark smokey quartz lasers, and scepters, on a beautiful sandy-beige feldspar matrix. All of our stock is in top condition, ding-free. You can see these stones at our booth in the Desert Gardens Gem & Mineral Show starting Jan 2 in Quartzite Arizona.


We have been getting much polished quartz for our clients in recent months, and much is still available. Prices vary, and are never consistent, but some very good buys can be had in quantity orders. Sizes range from 10gr/pc to huge 100kg polished points. Spheres are also available in quantity in numerous different materials.

At our Teofilo Otoni office Andalucites, apatites, and imperial topaz are popular all of a sudden. We have recently had multiple requests for each of these stones. They are all difficult to find in over 2ct sizes clean, but we seek out the best available from the local cutters.

Here is a switch: turquoise imported to Brasil? Some associates have found that the flow of gemstones can go two ways. Brasil is known for exporting gemstone material, but few dealers capitalize on importing material for the local consumer market. Turquoise has never been found in Brasil, but has become very popular of late.

We have found a deposit of rutilated quartz which we are urging the owner to pursue. We have strong demand for rutile quartz and we are hoping to be able to offer this material soon. Nearby this site there is a source for water clear quartz, very bright and clean, excellent material for carving

We are finding more and more Aquamarine here in Rondonia. We have lots of 240kg and another of 2500kg, which is all cab grade at best. However, we also found some facet grade crystals of ok color. The downside of these crystals is that they are less than 2gr pieces. Nothing really nice yet, but we keep looking. However, in our Teofilo Otoni office we saw a 480gr facet grade aquamarine speciman recently found in the Brasilian State of Espirito Santos.



We have been traveling so much lately that this newsletter is somewhat late in arriving. We will do our best to get out our next issue on time.

Regards from Brasil ~ Kirk “Tomas” Bond & Jeff Gale