As with the Burmese kings before them, the British suffered losses due to theft and were also hampered by flooding. Hoping to minimise costs, they also capped the price of compensation to discourage residents from building houses worth more than the cap.Įven after moving the town, the company faced obstacles. To facilitate this, the British company compensated those living on the land. In fact, the company discovered ruby not just in the mines but also under the town of Mogok itself so the British simply moved the town. The company brought in modern mining equipment, improved infrastructure and built roads, drainage tunnels and washing plants. Rothschild and the Exploration Co won the tender and leased the land to the Burma Ruby Mines. The British took control of the area in 1886 and London jeweller Edwin Streeter and N. The Shan originally settled the area in the 6th century AD but in 1597 the King of Burma took over the mines from the Shan, ordering that all rubies above a certain size and/or value be turned over to him, yet not everything went back to the king.Įnterprising miners would break larger stones into smaller pieces that could be kept and sold. Rubies from the Mogok Stone Tract are the stuff of legend and for good reason: more fine rubies have been clawed from the soil in this land than any other place on the planet. It lay at the entrance of Myanmar’s Mogok Stone Tract, home to the world’s finest rubies, and each villager secretly hoped the previous night’s rain had washed a bit of treasure across their path.
If it had rained the night before, others would join her, not to go to school but to scan the ground ahead.
Billie Hughes visits the ruby capital.Įarly each morning Saw Sanda Soe would begin her long walk to school. The path down Myanmar’s infamous Mogok Stone Tract is perilous but the promise of riches continues to attract intrepid gemstone explorers.