We say what we know. We don't claim what we can't prove.
The gemstone trade has a long history of vague provenance claims. 'Ethically sourced' and 'conflict free' are phrases that appear on countless websites, often without the documentation to back them up. We take a different approach.
Where we have full documentation of a stone's journey from mine to cutting wheel, we say so explicitly. Where we don't, we don't make claims we can't support. We believe this kind of honesty is more valuable to our clients and to the industry than marketing language. Our sapphires are responsibly sourced.
Our cutting facility
Every stone Sol Sapphires sells is cut at Sapphirus Lanka, our lapidary and faceting factory in Sri Lanka. Sapphirus Lanka has been cutting gemstones for over a decade. We own the factory. We know the team. We know how every stone is handled from the moment rough arrives to the moment a finished stone leaves.
This direct ownership of the cutting process means we can guarantee the quality, consistency, and cut standard of every stone we sell, something very few suppliers can honestly claim.
Heat Treatment
All heat treatment is carried out in-house at our cutting facility in Ratnapura. This gives us complete control over the process and full transparency over what has, and hasn't, been done to every stone.
We do not deal in beryllium-treated or otherwise enhanced stones. Every sapphire we sell is either unheated or heat-treated in the traditional and accepted way, and that status is documented and disclosed on every stone or parcel.
Where we claim mine direct
For the following origins, we hold full documentation of the stone's journey from mine to Sapphirus Lanka, including mining certificates, supplier agreements, and chain of custody records. For these stones we state "mine direct" on every listing.
Mozambique and Australia — Our Mozambique and Australian sapphires are sourced directly from Fura Gems, one of the world's leading responsible gemstone mining companies. Fura Gems operates with full transparency and environmental accountability, and we hold complete chain of custody documentation for every parcel we purchase from them.
Montana, USA — Our Montana sapphires come directly from Potentate Mining, the largest active sapphire mining operation in Montana, located in the Rock Creek deposit in the Sapphire Mountains. We hold full traceability documentation back to the mine for every Montana sapphire we carry.
If you are a trade buyer who requires documentation for any of these stones for your own compliance or client reporting requirements, we will provide it. Please contact us directly.
Where we don't claim mine direct
For stones from Sri Lanka, Madagascar, Tanzania, Vietnam, Kenya, Nigeria, and other origins, we work with limited trusted suppliers and our own network built over decades in the trade. We know where these stones come from. But we do not always hold the formal documentation to prove the full chain of custody to the mine level.
Rather than make claims we cannot fully support, we simply state "Cut at Sapphirus Lanka." That is what we can verify. That is what we will say.
Labour and working conditions
Sapphirus Lanka employs over 200 skilled cutters, and they are the most important people in our business. Without them, there is no Sol Sapphires. Without them, there is no Sapphirus Lanka.
Lapidary work at this standard takes years to master. Our cutters are craftspeople in the truest sense, and we treat them accordingly. We are committed to paying better than fair wages across our workforce.
But our commitment goes beyond compliance and our statutory requirements. We support our team and their families when they need it, whether that is assistance with education, healthcare, or personal circumstances. We believe that if a person spends their working life building our company, they deserve more than a wage. They deserve to know that the company has their back.
We also hold ourselves accountable beyond our own standards. Sapphirus Lanka works with some of the world's leading jewellery brands, and with that comes scrutiny. We undergo regular audits, whether self-conducted, through independent third parties, or through direct factory visits by our brand partners. We pass these audits consistently, and we treat each one not as a compliance exercise but as an opportunity to identify areas for improvement. The bar we set for ourselves is not the minimum required. It is the highest standard we can achieve.
Our position on the trade
The gemstone industry is complex. Supply chains are long, documentation is inconsistent, and the line between what is genuinely ethical and what is simply marketed as ethical is often blurry. We don't pretend otherwise.
What we commit to is this. We will never knowingly source from operations that exploit workers or cause unnecessary environmental harm. We will always be honest about what we know and what we don't. And we will continue to improve our documentation and traceability as the industry develops better standards.
If you have questions about a specific stone's origin, ask us. We will tell you everything we know.
Contact
For sourcing documentation, compliance enquiries, or any questions about our supply chain, contact us at yahren@solsapphires.com
