Expedition Report To The Ruby Mining Sites

ExpeditionreporttotheRubyminingsitesinNorthern
Mozambique(NiassaandCaboDelgadoprovinces)
VincentPardieu * withStephaneJacquat,JeanBaptisteSenoble,LouPierreBryl,
RichardW.HughesandMarkSmith

*
GIALaboratory,Bangkok
FirstpublishedonDecember16 t h 2009,lasteditedonDecember23rd2009

Figure1:Rubyinmatrix,foundattheminingsiteinMsawizebyVP,beingpresentedbyaNiassaranger.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALab
Bangkok,November2009.

Introduction
Corundum has been known in Mozambique since the Portuguese colonial times (Afonso,
R.S.,Marques,J.M.,1998,Lchelt,S.,2004)butverylittleinformationhasbeenpublished
aboutrubiesorsapphiresfromMozambiqueinthegemologicalliteratureastheproduction
was so small and most of the stones produced were cabochon quality at best.
Nevertheless,thegemmarketsinBangkokandotherplaceshaverecentlystartedtoseean
increase in rubies coming out of Mozambique. Most of the stones seen were heavily
fracturedandmainlyusedasabasematerialforleadglasstreatment,butsomestonesseen
attheGIALaboratoriesinBangkok,NewYorkandCarlsbadwerefineenoughtobefaceted
andusedinjewelrywithoutanytreatment.Apreliminarystudyonrubiesreportedlyfrom
the Niassa province was released by GIA gemologists on March 22nd 2009 (Pardieu, V.P.,
Thanachakaphad,J.,2009).Aftersomeinquiriesitsoonbecameapparentthattherewere
several sources and a GIA Field Expedition to the various ruby mining areas of Northern
Mozambiquetookplaceandisstillongoingattheendof2009.

RubiesandsapphiresinNorthernMozambiquehavebeenminedfrom4differentdeposits,
3ofthemlocatedintheNiassaprovinceandoneintheCaboDelgadoprovince,overrecent
years.

AbriefintroductiontoMozambique:

Figure2:MozambiqueislocatedintheSouthEastofAfricaandissurroundedbyseveralimportantrubyandsapphireproducingcountries
likeTanzaniaandMadagascarwhichalsosharemanygeologicalfeatureswithMozambique.
Locationandhistory:MozambiqueislocatedinSouthEasternAfrica.Itisborderedbythe
IndianOceanontheeastandinthenorthbyTanzania,MalawiandZambia.Inthewestand
south it is bordering Zimbabwe, South Africa and Swaziland. Its coastline was explored by
Vasco da Gama in 1498 and it was colonized by Portugal in 1505. Thus Mozambique like
Brazil and Angola is a Portuguese speaking country. Mozambique became independent in
1975, after a 10 years long colonial war between FRELIMO and the Portuguese. After
independence it was the scene of a civil war lasting from 1977 to 1992 between Marxist
FRELIMOandAnticommunistRENAMO.Mozambiquenowhasamultipartypoliticalsystem
withFRELIMOandRENAMOasmainplayers,amarketbasedeconomy,andfreeelections
as the author could see in October 2009. As for mining it seems that South African and
BrazilianminingcompaniesareveryactiveinMozambique.
2
http://www.gia.edu/researchresources/newsfromresearch/index.html
Geology:MozambiqueisdividedbythemajesticZambeziRiverexploredattheendofthe
19thcenturybyDr.LivingstonewhodiscoveredtheimpressiveVictoriaFalls.Whilethelow
landstothesouthoftheZambeziRiveraremainlysedimentary,thehighlandsinthenorth
aredominatedbyaPrecambrianbasement;asectionofthefamousMozambiqueBeltthat
extends northwards to the Mediterranean. In this basement, large regions were
metamorphosed at hightemperature and highpressure during the PanAfrican tectonic
event(800550Ma 1 )creatingsuitableconditionsfortheformationofgemstones,including
rubiesandsapphires.
Thoseinvolvedingemminingexplorationarenowshowinginterestinthegemdepositsof
the PanAfrican Orogeny. Compared with the Himalayan range, which only has had
approximately40millionyearstoweatherdownitsgemdeposits,EastAfricahashad500
million years of weathering; this explains why East Africa and Sri Lanka possess huge
secondary gem deposits such as those in Ratnapura (Sri Lanka), Ilakaka (Madagascar) and
alsoTunduruinsouthernTanzania.ThelatterdepositsprobablyextendintoMozambiqueas
thegemrichRuvumaRiverbordersbothTanzaniaandMozambique 2 .
Gemologically,Mozambiquewasknownasagemproducingcountryforitsgarnets(Koivula,
J.I.,etal.,1996)mainlyproducedattheCuambamineintheNiassaprovince.Besidesthese
garnets Mozambique is famous for its pegmatite fields around Alto Ligonha; the city of
Nampulabeingthelocaltradingcenter.Thesepegmatiteshavebeenknowntoproducefine
aquamarine,morganiteandtourmaline(amongstothergems)formanyyears,butrecently
itattractedattentionafterthediscoveryofcooperbearingParabaTypetourmalinesnear
Mavuco.(Laurs,B.M.,Zwaan,J.C.,Breeding,C.M.,Simmons,W.B.,Beaton,D.,Rijsdijk,K.F.,
Befi,R.,Falster,A.U.,2008,Rondeau,B.,etal.,2007).
Asforrubiesandsapphires,finerubiesandsapphiresfromMozambiquewereunknownin
the market until recently. Lchelt wrote in Geology and Mineral Resources of
Mozambique(2004)withsomeinspiration:
Corundumisknownfromseverallocalities,butspecificallyfromtheCaboDelgado
Province (SW of Mueda, south of Rovuma River). Some attractive stones of reddish colour
were collected, but no transparent or semitransparent varieties were observed. Gemstone
qualities (ruby) have not yet been found. Afonso and Marques (1993) indicated Revu,
Cancheira, Mt Chissindo and the Mts PandibuCongune where corundum occurs. In the
Marrupa Unit, practically in the entire region between Nipepe and the Lugenda River
corundum is associated with basic rocks and crystalline limestones (skarn) and in alluvia
which accumulated around these deposits, similar to the occurrences in neighbouring
countries. Similar geological settings and conditions are also known from other areas, for
example south of the Rovuma River, but data on the geological components effecting the
mineralisation are not available for these regions. The possibilities of finding gemquality
corundumarethereforenottoberegardedasalmostnonexistingandthesearchforgem
qualitycorundumshouldcontinue.

1
Ma:Megannumis,aunitoftimeequaltoonemillion(106)years
2
Anannualreportonthemineralindustry,includinggemstones,isproducedannuallybytheUSGeological
SurveyYager,T.R.(2007),Themineralindustryofmozambique2006,
http://minerals.usgs.gov/minerals/pubs/country/2006/myb32006mz.pdf,.
3

Figure3:Rubyandsapphiredeposits(hexagons)inEastAfricaincludingNorthMozambique.
4
ThediscoveryofgemqualityrubiesinMozambique
The first time one of the authors (VP) heard about rubies from Mozambique was while
visitingThaiburnersinvolvedintheleadglasstreatmenttechnologyin2005.Atthattimehe
was told that most of the ruby material used for the treatment was coming from
Andilamena (Madagascar), but some stones were also coming from Tanzania and
Mozambique 3 .
The new lead glass technology involved a relatively low temperature heat treatment
process (600 to 1100 degrees C) and the use of a high refractive index glass (rich in lead,
bismuth and/or barium) which was able to turn clean but heavily fractured stones into
stonesthatappearedattractive(Pardieu,V.,2005)butwhichareunstabletonormalwear
(due to the softness of the glass), elevated temperatures and to chemical agents, serious
issues for jewelers and the public alike during cleaning, repairing or setting processes.
(McClure,S.F.,Smith,C.P.,Wang,W.,Hall,M,2006).

Figure4:LeadglassfilledrubiesmadewithrubymaterialfromNiassa,seeninBangkokinJanuary2009.Roundedgasbubblesarevisible
inthestoneontheright.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALabBangkok,February2009.

The arrival of this new treatment boosted the ruby production in African mining areas 4 :
Lead glass filled rubies became serious market competitors for the fracturehealed (flux
3
VisitingMozambiquein2009,VPreceivedconfirmationfromgeologistsworkinginLichingathatrubymining
nearMarrupa,atRuambeze,increasedaround2005producingsomeheavilyfracturedstoneswhichweresold
inTanzania.
4
During the summer of 2005 VP witnessed more than 10,000 miners mining rubies near Andilamena in
Madagascar to provide material for the lead glass treatment. A few fine rubies were also produced which
could be considered a byproduct of this treatment since mining would not have been profitable if the low
gradematerialsuitableforleadglasstreatmentwasnotfindingamarket.
5
healed)rubiesfromMongHsuinBurma(Myanmar).Africawasneverthelessstilllackingin
gemquality rubies until 2008 when highquality stones were discovered in Tanzania near
Winza(Schwarz,D.,Pardieu,V.,Saul,J.M.,Schmetzer,K.,Laurs,B.M.,Giuliani,G.,Klemm,L.,
Malsy,A.,Erel,E.,Hauzenberger,C.,DuToit,G.,Fallick,A.E.,Ohnenstetter,D.,2008).Ruby
dealers, who previously had concentrated on trading in Burmese rubies, began to buy
African gems with increasing interest; particularly since the rubies from Burma, already
facingstiffcompetitionfromcheapleadglasstreatedstones,hadadditionaldifficultiesdue
to the US and European Trade Sanctions on Burmese gems. With so many buyers, the
demandforTanzanianrubiesescalated.Tanzanianbrokersactivelysearchedforgemsinthe
entireregiontosupplythisdemand.

Figure5:ArubycrystalfromWinzainitsdarkamphibolematrix.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALabBangkok,September2009.

InSeptember2008VPwasinformedbyAbdulY.Msellem 5 thatnewrubieshadappearedin
themarketinWinza.ThestonesweredescribedasverysimilartoWinzabutsilkier.Itwas
soonclearthattheywerecomingfromtheNiassaprovinceinNorthernMozambique.
TheinterestofTanzaniandealersandminersinthenewMozambiquematerialgrewrapidly
sinceWinzarubiesoftopqualitysoldeasily,butthelowerqualitystones 6 haddifficultiesin
findingamarket;ThaiandSriLankanburnershadreportedlylittlesuccessintreatingthem.
However, the prospects for the new material from Mozambique were better as not only
couldthebeststones(reportedly5to10%ofproduction)findareadymarket,butalsothe
lower quality stones (90% of the production) were reportedly suitable for lead glass
5
AbdulYMsellemisaTanzaniangembrokerwhoworkedasaguideduringVPsvariousexpeditionsinEast
Africa.
6
Mainly pink, purple and blue sapphires. As with most primary deposits, low quality material in Winza
representmorethan95%oftheproduction.Ifthismaterialcannotfindamarket,theminingactivityusually
decreasesrapidlyastheminerscannotsellmostoftheirproduction.
6
treatment (Pardieu, V., Thanachakaphad, J., 2009) which could in turn find an easy mass
market.
In September 2008 many Tanzanian miners and dealers left Winza to travel to the new
deposit located near Msawize village in the Niassa National Reserve, a protected area
whereminingis,bylaw,notallowed.
IllegalminingwascarriedoutnearMsawizeuntilJuly2009.Between100and700diggers
were involved and these were financed by dealers from Tanzania and other African
countries e.g., Nigeria, Guinea, and Senegal. A report relating the governments concerns
over the issue of illegal ruby mining was published on March 5th 2009 (Mozambique:
GovernmentConcernedAboutIllegalMining,2009).
WhenthedryseasonreturnedinJuly2009andaftertheaccidentaldeathofaminerwhena
tunnelcollapsed,theMozambiquegovernmentandtheNiassarangersimplementedseveral
lawenforcementoperationstocontroltheillegalmininginthisprotectedarea.Themining
activitydecreasedparticularlyafterthecreationofpermanentcampsattheendofAugust
2009,fromwherearmedpolicemenfromtheForcaGuardaFronteiraandNiassarangers
controlledaccesstotheminingsite.
OnSeptember8th,2009,Dr.AnabelaRodrigues,DirectoroftheNiassanationalreservegave
apresentationattheCommunitiesandSmallScaleMiningmeetinginMaputo(Rodrigues,
A., 2009) detailing the problems the reserve had with illegal ruby mining near Msawize.
The next day, and by coincidence, the rangers in Niassa arrested VPs expedition team
(fourteenpeopleonmotorbikes)asitapproachedtheminingsite.Thisarrestresultedfrom
whatseemstohavebeenmiscommunicationbetweenthepeoplefromtheLichingamining
department,whowerehelpingtheexpedition(aminingtechnicianandanarmedpoliceman
weretravelingwiththeexpeditionandwerealsoarrested)andtheRangerswhowerenot
informed of the visit and had orders to arrest all intruders. However, this incident
exemplifiedtheproblemsfacedbythereserveandgave VPthewonderfulopportunityto
interface with the Director and staff and learn more about this important factor in ruby
mining.
Afterthreedaysunderarrestinthebushtheexpeditionwerefreed,butweredeniedaccess
totheminingsite.Followingthisadventure,cordialrelationswereestablishedbetweenVP
and the Niassa Reserve management, which led to an invitation to return to Niassa in
November 2009 to finally visit the ruby mining site with the official blessing from all
concerned.Theinvitationwasacceptedwithmanythanksandresultedinaverysuccessful
expedition as VP was permitted to collect vital reference samples from the mine that will
greatlyenhanceGIAsfurtherresearchonthisdeposit.
MiningactivitynearMsawizedecreasedsignificantlyinthesummerof2009andthiswas
probablymostlyduetothelawenforcementmeasuresbutanotherfactorwasthediscovery
7
of a new ruby deposit in April 2009 7 between Pemba and Montepuez in Cabo Delgado
province 8 .

Serious mining started near Montepuez in June/July 2009 as several hundred and then
severalthousandpeople(minersanddealers)reportedlydescendedonthenewsource.At
thistimetheminingactivitywasillegalandwasagaincreatingsomeseriousconcernforthe
Mozambiquegovernment(Mozambique:IllegalMiningStillRampant,2009)
VPheardaboutthenewrubydepositnearMontepuezinJune2009whilepreparingforhis
visittoMozambique:AdealerreturningfromMozambiquetoldhimthattherewerethree
rubydepositsinNorthernMozambiqueproducingsomegoodstones.Oneofthesesources,
near Lichinga, was said to produce pink to red stones, one near Marrupa to produce
brownishredstones,andanewonenorthofNampulawasreportedlyproducingverynice
pigeonbloodredstones.
In July 2009 Mark Saul 9 confirmed that some new ruby material was being mined near
Pemba.Thebeststones,uptofivecarats,werereportedlyofhighquality.
A few days later, gemologists at the GIA laboratories in Bangkok and Carlsbad were
presentedwithrubiesreportedlyfromarecentnewfindinMozambiquenearMontepuez.
As a result a preliminary study of new rubies from Mozambique was published in the
autumn of 2009 (McClure, S.F., Koivula, J.I., 2009) while VP was already in the field in
Mozambique.
DuringtheexpeditionsvisittoMozambiqueintheautumnof2009,itwasfoundthatthe
mining site near Pemba is located in a private hunting concession close to, but outside,
Quirimbas National Park. Unlike the deposit near Msawize that is located in a national
reserve and hence it is illegal to mine there, this area could then be legally mined with a
properlicense.However,thearrivalofthousandsofillegalminerscreatedconflictswiththe
people working there.A police operation reportedly took place in July 2009, but the local
situationwasstillunclearwhentheexpeditionfirstattemptedtovisittheareainSeptember
2009. Furthermore it was election time in Mozambique and campaigning had begun. The
miningofficerinPembaaskedtheexpeditiontoreturnaftertheelectionwhenitmightbe
easiertovisitthenewrubydeposit.
During the time between VPs first attempt in September 2009 and his second visit to
MozambiquebeginninginNovember2009,itseemsthattheauthoritieswereabletofirmly,
butalso,itseems,peacefully,convincemostofthedealersandminerstoleavetheillegal
miningsite.DuringthesameperiodadelegationofThaiofficialsvisitedtheCaboDelgado
provinceandthecitiesofPembaandMontepuezinordertosearchforawaytotrytobuild
some collaboration between the two countries and to speak about the situation of many
7
VPwasintroducedontheminingsiteinDecember2009toMr.SulemanHassan,a25yearsoldMozambican
whoclaimedtohavediscoveredrubiesthereinApril2009,searchingsomewood.
8
DuringourvisittoPembainSeptember2009,andlaterwhilevisitingTanzaniangemminingareasandgem
trading centers, the VP met several West African, Thai and Tanzanian dealers who confirmed that they had
moved their interests from the Niassa ruby mines, or the tourmaline mines near Mavuco, to the new
Montepuez ruby deposit in Cabo Delgado around June/July 2009. This action was mainly due to some
seriouspoliceoperationstargetingillegalminersfromtheseminingareasinMavuco(April2009)andMsawize
(July2009)andthussignificantlyaffectingthegemstoneproductionwhichdeclinedconsiderably.
9
FromSwalaGemTraders,inArusha,Tanzania.
8
ThainationalswhofaceddifficultieswiththepoliceinNorthernMozambiqueastheywere
arrestedinpossessionofrubieswhichisillegalinMozambiqueifyoudonthaveanofficial
license 10 .
During the IGC congress, held in Arusha, Tanzania (9th to 14th October, 2009), VP was
informed by Tanzanian dealers that a Chinese or possibly a Thai Company had arrived in
Montepuezwithheavyminingequipment.
On returning to Northern Mozambique after the elections at the beginning of November

2009,itwasstillnotpossibletovisittheminingarea,asthesituationtherewasstillnot
suitabletoenableavisit.InthemeantimeVPreceivedconfirmationthattheownerofthe
private game farm, a Mozambican company called Mwiriti Lda. had obtained five legal
mininglicensescoveringmostofthedepositandthataThaiminingcompanyfromBangkok
hadalreadymovedsomeminingequipmentthere.
On December 2009, VP 11 was invited to return to Mozambique by the Niassa national

reserveinordertoparticipateinthereserveannualcongressinPembafromDecember03rd
to05th.ItwasalsoagreatoccasiontomeetfinallythepeoplefromMwiritiwhowerealso
attendingthecongress.Afterseveralmeetings,weobtainedonDec06th2009thesupport
of Mwiriti to visit the new ruby deposit near Montepuez. VP, accompanied by American
gemologistsRichardW.HughesandMarkSmith,couldthenvisitthenewminingareasnear
MontepuezclosetoNamahumbirevillageonDecember07th2009and closetoNamahaca
villageonDecember08th2009.
Itwasalongwayfullofsurprisesandinterestingencounterstobeabletovisitthesenew
miningsites,andVPwillrememberthatpatientia(bepatientinPortuguese)isdefinitely
acommonlyusedwordinMozambique.
ABriefsummaryoftherubyandsapphiredepositsinNorthernMozambique:
The Ruambeze (or Luambeze) deposit, Niassa Province (To be visited): This deposit is
possibly the oldest ruby deposit in Northern Mozambique. It is located between Marrupa
andMeculaintheNiassaprovincealongLuambezeRiver.Itwasreportedbylocalpeopleto
have been discovered about 20 years ago. Geologists at the Lichinga mining office during
theexpeditioninNovember2009informedVPthatitwasdiscoveredin1992.
The mine appears to produce dark red (appears orangey or brownish) cabochon grade
materialthatissometimessuitableforleadglasstreatment(Figure4).Thebrownishaspect
comesfromthe(numerous)fissuresthatarefilledwithwhatispossiblylimonite.
A technician from the Lichinga mining office who visited the area informed VP that the
depositwasnothighlyproductiveasitisveryremote:AfterleavingtheMarrupaMecula
road, a 60 km drive on bush tracks only suitable for motorbikes is necessary to reach the
deposit which is possibly located in a private hunting block along the Luambeze river.
NeverthelesspeopleattheLichingaminingofficeinformedVPthatseveralapplicationsfor
mining licenses have recently been submitted to the government. Currently it seems that
the deposit is mined by a few local (illegal) miners and that rubies were also said to be
10
VPrecentlyreceivedconfirmationthatthedelegationdidnotvisittheminingsite.
11
VPwasaccompaniedbyAmericangemologistsRichardW.HughesandMarkSmith
9
collected from deep holes sometimes at depth of up to 30 meters. The aspect of the
samples obtained (Figure 7) suggests that most of the stone were mined from secondary
depositprobablyincloserelationwiththeprimarydeposit.
Geologist Joao Marques from Gondwana, who VP met in Maputo in November 2009,
informed the author that to his knowledge the deposit was so far only producing at best
cabochongraderubies.

Figure6:RubyandsapphiredepositsofNorthernMozambique.Map:R.W.Hughes,2009
Even though the expedition could not visit the deposit we had the opportunity to study
some samples 12 in Lichinga from some licensed gem dealers, as well as at the Lichinga
miningoffice.Thesegemdealers,usuallyforeignersfromWestorEastAfrica,typicallytake
thestonestoSongea(Tanzania),Bangkok(Thailand)orHongKong(China).
Note: A microscopic examination of the samples using a GIA dark field loupe enabled
membersoftheexpeditiontoseethatthematerialonlycontainedafewmineralinclusions
12
ItwasinterestingtoseethatmostoftheparcelswesawinLichingawereinfactamixtureofstonesfrom
RuambezeandMsawize.Thedealersregularlypointedtoalltheorangyspecimensandindicatedthatthey
werefromRuambeze.LatergeologistsfromLichingaproducedsimilarmaterialsaidtobefromtheRuambeze
deposit.
10
(usuallycolorlesszirconlikecrystals).Themostcommonmicrofeaturesweretwinplanes
andtheirassociatedintersectiontubes.Healedfissureswerealsocommonbutthematerial
isusuallyheavilyfracturedwithmanyopenfissuresfilledwithwhatispossiblylimonite.

Figure7:RubiesreportedlyfromtheRuambezedepositobtainedfromagemdealerinLichinga.Photo:JBSenoble,September2009.
The Ngauma deposit,Niassa province (To bevisited): The Niassa (Ngauma) bluesapphire
mining area was reportedly discovered about one year ago and is southwest of Lichinga
betweenLione(anareaknownformanyyearsforitsaquamarine)andItepelas.Itproduces
largedarkbluecorundumcrystalswithmanyfissuresandtwinplanes.Themateriallooksto
havedistinctcolorzoningandsomeverylargestones(uptoseveralhundredgrams)were
seen in Lichinga. People at the Lichinga mining office confirmed what the Lichinga gem
dealers had said about this deposit. To their knowledge only one group of small scale
(illegal)minersarecurrentlyworkingthere.VPwasinformedinPembainDec.2009thatthe
NgaumamaterialwasfindingamarketinThailandascarvingmaterial.
11

Figure8:CorundumsamplesseenbytheauthorattheLichingaminingoffice:LeftlowqualityrubiesreportedlyfromRuambezearea.
Center:asmallstonefromM'sawizearea.Right:Corundum(associatedwithschorlandkyanite)fromanewunknownsourceinNiassa
probablyaroundCuamba.PhotoV.Pardieu/GIALabBangkok,Nov.2009

Figure9:SapphiresreportedlyfromNgaumadeposit,seenattheofficeofaWestAfricandealerinLichingainSeptember2009.Photo:J.B.
Senoble,September2009.
12

Figure10:Stonybluecorundum(sapphire)reportedlyfromNgaumaseenattheLichingaminingofficeinNovember2009.Photo:V.
Pardieu/GIALabBangkok,November2009.

TheNiassarubydeposit,Niassaprovince,Mozambique(VisitedonNovember6thand7th
2009 by VP): The deposit is located in the Niassa bush at a very remote place called
Machimbu 13 neartheLuatizeRiver(GPS:124053Sand364920E).Theclosestvillage
is Msawize more than 40 kilometers North West of the mining site. The Msawize village
belongstotheMavagodistrictofNiassaProvince.Itislocatedabout200kilometerstothe
northeastofLichinga,thecapitaloftheNiassaprovince.Thewholeareaislocatedinside
theNiassaNationalReserve,a44,000squarekilometersprotectedareaalongtheRuvuma
River and the Tanzanian border which is dedicated to conservation. Within the Niassa
nationalreservebylaw,atleastintheory,allminingactivitiesareillegal.
ThestonesfromthatdepositarecommonlyreferredasLichinga,MsawizeorNiassa
inthetrade.InthisreportwewillrefertostonesfromthisdepositasNiassaasthisisthe
nameweusedforthepreliminarystudyaboutthismaterial(Pardieu,V.P.,Thanachakaphad,
J.,2009).
InordertoreachtheMachimbuminingarea,itisnecessarytodriveabout43kilometers
from Msawize into the bush using tracks that are only suitable for a car for the first 20
kilometers (in the dry season). Then for the remainder of the journey with the bush and
numerousriverbedstonegotiate,thetrackisonlysuitableformotorbikesandpedestrians.
InSeptember2009,peopleatthe Lichingaminingofficeinformedtheexpeditionthatthe
depositwasdiscoveredinSeptember2008byalocalhuntertryingtocatchananimalthat
washidingunderground.Whilediggingtocatchtheanimalthehunterfoundastone.He
13
MeaningmineinSwahililanguage.
13
reportedlysoldthestonetoaTanzaniantraderinLichingawholaterreceivedalotofmoney
foritinTanzaniaandsubsequentlyreturnedtogetmorestoneswithotherpeople.Rapidly
many people from Mozambique, Tanzania, Kenya, Congo, Nigeria, Guinea, Mali, Senegal,
SomaliaandBurundistartedminingthereandtradinginMsawizeandLichinga.
DuringavisitinNovember2009thetouristoperatorinchargeoftheareawheretheillegal
miningsiteislocated,relatedaninterestingstoryresultingfromtheresearchtheydidfrom
their side after discovering the presence of the illegal miners in October 2008. Between
2005and2007afamilywasfarmingtobaccointheareawhereminingcurrentlyoccurs.The
farmerwasknowntohavesomeexperienceinminingandduringthisperiodhediscovered
rubies. The stones were taken to Msawize, however no market was found for them. The
family left the area in 2007, when the tourist operator started working in the area but
rumorsaboutthefindslowlyspreadandinSeptember2008,shortlyaftertheopeningofa
bridge over the Ruvuma, south of Songea, groups of Tanzanians reached Msawize after
hearingwordofthefindinLichinga 14 .
It appears that mining at Machimbu was performed by possibly up to 1000 illegal miners
fromSeptember2008totheendofJuly2009.Theminerswerereportedlyonlyusinghand
tools and while the expedition was present on site VP noted that an area of about 400
meters long by 200 meters wide had been mined. In the north of the area several deep
miningpitshadbeendugwheretheprimarydeposithadbeenfoundnearasmallstream.
Ontheothersideofthestreamintheeastoftheminingareawaslocatedthemainmining
campwheretheremainsofabout100to 150hutswasnoted.Anothersmallercampwas
locatedontheothersideofthedepositwheretheremainsofabout30hutscouldbeseen.
The rangers informed the expedition that the police destroyed all of the huts in August
2009.
While visiting and studying the mining area on November 06th and 7th, 2009 VP made
observations, took photos and collected samples which enabled geologists Walter Balmer
andDr.GastonGiulianitomakethefollowingobservations:
PreliminarycommentsfromgeologistsWalterBalmer 15 andDr.GastonGiuliani 16
The Msawize ruby deposit seems to be confined within metagabbro and gabbroic gneiss.
Rubiesareminedfromtwotypesofdeposits:
An eluvial rubyrich soil that is between 1 and 2 meters thick and corresponds with the
weatheringoftheinsiturubydeposit.Therubiesarefoundinassociationwithredgarnets.
A primary deposit where the ruby is found in association with white feldspar and a dark
greenamphibole,incloseassociationwithmica.

14
TheimportanceofthenewbridgeovertheRuvumaRiverinthesouthofSongeawasalsoexplainedtoVPby
AbdulYMsellem,agembrokerfromTanzania,asitreportedlyenabledSongeabasedgemdealerstoeasily
visitLichinga,wheretheyheardabouttheMsawizerubyfind.ButAbdulcouldnotconfirmwhetherahunter
oratobaccofarmerdiscoveredthearea.
15
Currently working on a PhD on the geology of ruby deposits of East Africa at Chulalongkorn University in
Bangkok,Thailand.
16
FromCRPGNancyUniversity,France.
14
UponVPsreturntotheGIALaboratoryinBangkokRamanMicrospectroscopywasusedto
examine the samples collected from the Msawize ruby deposit. GIA gemologist, Pantaree
Lomthong,identifiedthefollowingminerals:
Thewhitefeldsparappearstobeanorthite
Thedarkgreenamphiboleappearstobeactinolite.
Associatedwiththerubycrystalsisarimwhereepidoteandscapolitearepresent.
Smallgreendiopsidecrystalswerealsoidentifiedinthefeldsparmatrix.
Studying geological maps obtained in Maputo at the geological survey of Mozambique

indicatesthatthedepositisassociatedwithanearbyfault:

Figure 11: Geological map of the presenting the ruby mining area visited by the author in relation with the local geological features
describedbyBingenetal.Map:modifiedfromBingenetal.,Direco Nacional de Geologia, Moambique, 2006
15

Figure12:VP(nearest)escortedbyMozambiquepolicemenandNiassarangersarrivingattherubyminingsitenearM'sawizeandfinding
thefirstdiggings.Photo:DavidChambal,NiassaNationalReserve,2009

Figure13:AlargeminingpitattherubyminingsitenearM'sawizeconfirmedthatthedepositisaprimarydeposit.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIA
LaboratoryBangkok,November2009.
16

Figure14:Notalloftherubieswereminedfromtheprimarydepositasthetopsoilallaroundwasalsocollectedandwashedforgems.
Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,November2009.

Figure15:Aveinofdarkgreenamphiboleassociatedwithfeldsparandmica.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,November2009.
17

Figure16:Closeupofthefeldspar(white),mica(brown)andamphibole(darkgreen)association.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratory
Bangkok,November2009.

Figure17:Viewfromwithintheminingpittothenorthsideofthepit.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,November2009.
18

Figure18:Detailsofthefeldspar(white),mica(brown)andamphibole(darkgreen)associationonthenorthisdeoftheminingpit.
Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,November2009.

Figure19:AsecondminingpitwhereDavidChambalpointstoasmallgallerythatwasexcavatedinthelowerpartofthepit.Photo:V.
Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,November2009.
19

Figure20:Withinthisgalleryitseemsthattheminersmainlyconcentratedonminingthedarkgreenamphibole.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIA

Figure21:Whilestudyingtherocksintheminingpit,thepolicemenatgroundlevelwerecollectingsomesamplestobringtoVPs
attention.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,November2009.
20

Figure22:ANiassarangerpresentingVPwithaninterestingspecimenwhererubyisassociatedwithamphiboleandfeldspar.Photo:V.

Figure23:SeveralrubyspecimensandtheiramphiboleandfeldsparmatrixhostscollectedonsitebyVP.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIA
21

Figure24:CloseupofafinerubyspecimenfromMsawizewhererubyisinclearassociationwithamphiboleandfeldspar.Photo:V.

Figure25:Averyinterestingrubyspecimen(associatedwithblackamphibole)thatwasconfiscatedfromanillegalminerafewdaysbefore
theauthorsvisit.This"pseudospinel"shapeoftherubycrystalhasonlybeenobservedinrubiesfromWinza,Tanzania.Photo:V.
Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,November2009
22

Regarding sizes and quality, it seems that the material produced in Niassa covers a wide
rangeofsizesandqualities.VP heardaboutseveralnotablegemsover10caratsandsaw
several attractive faceted stones of up to 5 carats. Most of the faceted stones seen in
Thailand from Niassa were less than 2 carats and ranged from pink to dark red. While
visitingMozambiqueinSeptember2009theexpeditiondidnotseeanygemqualitymaterial
that we could be certain was mined near Msawize as most of the good material had
reportedlyalreadybeensenttoBangkok,whilstthestonesstillinthehandsofthedealers
workinginNampulaorPemba,hadalreadybeenmixedwithrubiesfromMontepuezarea.
Regarding micro observations, the examination of the rough in the field using a 10x dark
fieldlouperevealedfewmineralinclusions.Themostcommonobservationsweretwinning
and associated intersecting tubes (containing Boehmite) and a few healed fissures. Very
few mineral inclusions were observed in Niassa stones; however those that were present
look similar to those observed in the stones reportedly from Niassa studied at the GIA
Laboratory Bangkok at the beginning of 2009. Some stones also seem to host some low
densityrutilelikeneedlesorparticles.
ConfirmationthatthismaterialisthesameasthestonesstudiedattheGIALaboratoryin
BangkokispendingacompletestudyofthereferencesamplescollectedinthefieldbyVPs
latestexpedition;areportwillbeavailableshortly.

Figure26:RubiesfromNiassa(depositnearMsawize).Photo:J.B.Senoble,September2009.
23
The Namahumbire and Namahaca ruby deposit, Cabo Delgado province (Visited on
December06thand07th2009byVPaccompaniedbyRichardW.HughesandMarkSmith):

Figure27:TheMontepuezrubydeposits.
TheMontepuez 17 rubydeposit,asitiscommonlycalledinthetrade,iscomposedof(at
least)twosubdepositslocatednearNamahumbireandNamahacavillages(Figure27)about
30 kilometers east of Montepuez City in the direction of Pemba, the capital of the Cabo
Delgadoprovince.AtthetimeofthevisitsbyVPspartymostoftheforeignbuyers(mainly
Thai,WestAfricanandTanzanian)wereresidentinNampula,PembaorMontepuez,while
several thousand diggers and small brokers were living in the forest or at Namahumbire,
NamahacaorNanhupuvillages.
It is said to have been discovered in April 2009, near Namahaca village by Mr. Suleman
Hassan(Figure29),whotoldusthathefoundthestones whilecuttingsomewoodinthe
forest.
Howeverwhilestudyingrecentgeologicalmapspublishedin2006,corundumisindicatedas
beingpresentonthemapnearNamahacavillagerightintheareaofthedepositvisitedby
theVPspartyonDecember07th2009(Figure28).
AftervisitingMozambiquetwiceinSeptemberandNovember2009,VPwasabletogetin
directcontactwithMwiritiLda,thePembabasedMozambiquecompanythatwasgranted
five mining licenses (respectively of 320, 500, 500, 11000 and 22000 hectares) by the
17
AsitiscommonlynamedbygemdealersinMozambiqueandabroad.
24
Mozambique government, covering most of the deposit south of Namahumbire village.
AfterseveralmeetingsduringtheNationalReserveCongressinPembainDecember2009,
the GIA Laboratory of Bangkok expedition lead by VP and traveling on this occasion with
RichardW.HughesandMarkSmithwasallowedtovisittheminingsitebyMwiritiLda.This
partywasthefirstgroupofforeignersallowedtovisitthearea(atleastofficially,asseveral
hundredforeigntradersmostlyWestAfrican,TanzanianandThaihadvisiteditbefore).
The manager of Mwiriti also informed VP that they had contracted Dragon Gems
EnterprisesCo.Ltd.aBangkokbasedThaiCompanytoworkpartofthedeposit(Figure33).
Headdedthattheywereinterestedinworkingthedepositwithforeigninvestors.
VPs party was also informed that some ruby rich areas located around Namahaca village
are outside the areas covered by the Mwiriti licenses (Figure 28). It seems that the
authoritieshavedecidedthattheareaclosetoNamahacashouldbeleftforlocalpeopleto
mine.ThepartywereinformedthatrubieswerefirstfoundthereinApril2009andthena
fewweekslaterintheareascurrentlycoveredwiththeMwiritilicensesabout10kilometers
southofNamahumbire.

Figure28:GeologicalmapoftheMontepuezminingareashowingthelocationsvisitedbytheauthorandinpinktheareacoveredbythe
Mwiritimininglicensesinrelationwiththelocalgeologicalsettings.NotenearNamahacatheredspotonthemapindicatethatcorundum
wasknowninNamahacabythegeologistwhostudiedthatareabefore2006.Map:modifiedfromBingenetal.,Direco Nacional de
Geologia, Moambique, 2006
On December 06th 2009 the party was able to visit the mining area inside the Mwiriti
licensessouthofNamahumbire.
25

Figure29:SulemanHassanpresentingasmallrubynearMontepuez.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,December2009.
26

Figure30:ArrivingatNanhupuvillage,asmalltradingvillageabout10kilometersfromthemainminingsiteonthemainroadlinking
PembatoMontepuez.InthesehutsmanysmalltradersincontactwithillegalminersawaitbuyerscomingfromPembaorMontepuez
daily.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,December2009.
th

Figure31:December06 2009:OnthewaytothemainrubyminingsitenearNamahumbire.Severalsecuritycheckpointsarelocatedall
aroundthearea.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,2009.
27

Figure32:VP,RichardHughesandpeoplefromMwiritiarrivingattherubyminingsitenearNamahumbirewhereseveralmachinesare
alreadyatwork.Photo:MarkSmith,December2009.

Figure33:AThaiminerandsomeheavyequipmentworkingtherubydepositnearNamahumbire.Photo:MarkSmith,December2009.
28

Figure34:RichardHughes,MarkSmithandpeoplefromMwiritistudyingrubymaterialneartheminingpitsdugduringthesummerof
2009byillegalminersnearNamahumbirevillage.Photo:V.Pardieu,GIALaboratoryBangkok,December2009.

Figure 35: Escorted by one of the soldiers keeping day and night watch on the mining area, VP inspects the mining area near
Namahumbire.Photo:R.W.Hughes,December2009.
29

Figure36:OverseveralhundredmetersthearealookedlikeaFirstWorldWarbattlefield.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,
December2009.

Figure37:Detailsoftypicalminingpits(about4to8metersdeep)nearNamahumbire,thenumerouspitshavealreadybeendamagedby
thearrivaloftherainyseasonattheendofNovemberandwillsoonbeflooded.PhotoV.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,December
2009.
30

Figure38:Intheminingpitsrubiesarefoundinassociationwithwhitefeldsparanddarkgreenamphibole.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIA
LaboratoryBangkok,December2009.

Figure39:Thefloorallaroundtheminingareaiscoveredwithdarkamphibole,whitefeldsparandrubiestoosmalltohavebeencollected
bytheminers.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,December2009.
31

Figure40:DetailsofafewsmallrubiesstillassociatedwithamphiboleandfeldsparcollectedonsitebyVP.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIA
OnDecember07th2009,wevisitedtherubyminingareasnearNamahacavillage,withthe
helpofthelocalauthoritiesatNamahumbire,andwithChiefDalderfromNamahaca(Figure
51)andseveralothervillagers.

Figure41:NamahacavillageislocatednearasmallinselbergontheroadlinkingMontepueztoPemba.Thevillageiscomposedofseveral
hundredhuts.ItwasnearthisvillagethatthefirstrubiesfromMontepuezwerefoundinApril2009bySulemanHassanandbeforethat
in2005byNorwegiangeologists.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,December2009.
32

Figure42:VParrivingattherubyminingareanearNamahaca.Photo:R.W.Hughes,December2009.

Figure43:GemologistRichardW.Hughes,searchingthegroundoftheminingsitenearNamahacaforrubysamples.Photo:V.Pardieu
/GIALaboratoryBangkok,December2009.
33

Figure44:NeartheriverbedatNamahacathestonesfoundonthegroundaredifferentthanthoseatNamahumbire:hereitismostly
quartzandtherubieswereobviouslytransportedbywater.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,December2009.

Figure45:AtypicallowqualityrubyfoundonthegroundoftheminingsiteatNamahaca:thestonefissuresarebrownishduetothe
presenceoflimoniteandthestoneshowssomeabrasiontypicalofsecondarydeposits.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,
December2009.
34

Figure46:MarkSmithandourMozambiqueguidesstudyaprimarytypeminingpitinthejunglenearNamahaca.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIA

Figure47:Left:MarkSmithfinallydecidedtodescendintotheminingpitprovidingVPausefulhumanscaletoshowthedepth.Right:
detailsofthesurfaceoftheminingpitwheretheminerockisweatheredfeldsparinassociationwithwhatisprobablyamphibole(dark
areas).Photos:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,December2009.
35

Figure48:OneofourMozambiqueguidesfromNamahacapresentssomesmallrubiesfromtheprimarypitMarksmithandVPjust
inspected.Thequalityhereisobviouslybetterthanthestonewefoundpreviouslyfromthesecondarydepositinthestream.Photo:V.
Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,December2009.

Figure49:Ontheground,neartheprimarydeposit,therocksaredifferentfromthoseseenbythepartynearthestream.Whilstquartzis
stillpresentwealsofoundalotoffeldsparandwhatlookstobeblacktourmaline.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,December
2009.
36

Figure50:AtNamahacaaminerpresentssomelowqualitystonesfromNamahumbire(leftinthepaper)andfromNamahaca(rightinthe
plasticbag).Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,December2009.

Figure51:ChiefDalderfromNamahacavillagepresentingalowquality,butneverthelessinteresting,rubyspecimenfoundonsiteduring
thepartysvisitnearNamahaca.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,December2009.
37
WhilstwewereunabletovisittheminesnearMontepuezduringthefirsttwoexpeditions,
wewereneverthelessabletocollectsomeusefulinformationaboutthedeposits,andhad
theopportunitytostudynumerousparcelsofrubies,reportedlyfromMontepuez,provided
bydifferentdealersfrommainlyfromThailand,Tanzania,Guinea,SenegalandMali.
Alltheparcelswerecomposedofverysimilargems,whichwasagoodindicationthatthey
werecomingfromthesamesource.Onaveragetheywereredderanddespitethefactthat
they were usually flatter than the Niassa material seen, they were much better quality
comparedtotheNiassastoneswesawinEastAfricaduringtheseexpeditions.Nevertheless,
atthattimeofourvisit,mostofthefineLichingamaterialhadprobablybeenexported,
and the material seen was mostly reject grade, thus the comparison is probably not very
relevant.

Figure52:AWestAfricandealerpresentingaparcelof"Montepuez"rubiesofmixedquality.Mostofthematerialissuitableforleadglass
typetreatmentasifthecolorisfinethestonesareheavilyfractured.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,November2009
Whilst a few stones had some brown discoloration due to the presence of limonitelike
material filling surface reaching fissures 18 , most of the material we saw from traders was
typically composed of very fine tabular hexagonal crystal specimens (Figure 52, Figure 53
andFigure56).Thesurfaceaspectofthestoneswassimilartothesurfacefeaturesofthe
material mined from primary deposits (sharp angles and growth features, clean fissures).
Wefoundintheseparcelssomerubycrystalsassociatedwithdarkgreenandwhitemineral
matrixinseveralparcels,whichafteranalysisattheGIALaboratoryinBangkokwerefound
tobefeldspar(anorthite)andamphibole(actinolite)respectively,indicatingthatthedeposit
was probably a primary deposit amphibole and feldspar related quite similar to what we
sawinNiassa.DuringourvisitattheminingsiteonDecember06thnearNamahumbireand
onDecember07thwhilstvisitingsomeminingpitsnearNamahacawecouldfindtheresome
18
Thatmaterialwasreportedlycollectedfromtheareasaroundstreamspassingthroughthedepositandon
December 07th while visiting the mining site near Namahaca village we could seeand collect on the ground
someverysimilarmaterial(Figure44,Figure45andFigure51).
38
verysimilarmaterial(Figure40andFigure48)neverthelessacompletestudyinthelabwill
benecessarytoconfirmifthematerialarethereallythesame.
Miners and dealers who visited the site during the summer of 2009 said that the deposit
covered a very large area, possibly several kilometers in length. As VP and his group only
visited the mining site for two days we could of course not determine the exact size and
importanceofthedeposit.Todothis,andtogiveanestimationoftheimportanceofthe
rubyreservesnearMontepuez,willdemandsomeseriousgeologicalstudieswhichwilltake
muchlongerthantwodays.Nevertheless,visitingtheminingareawehadthefeelingthat
thedepositindeedlookstobeofsomeimportance.
We visited two separate areas, near Namahumbire (GPS: 130518S and 392035E) and
Namahaca (GPS: 130332S and 391108E) villages respectively, a distance of about 18
kilometers (on the map). In these two areas rubies are found in a primary type deposit
associatedwithaneluvialtypedeposit,resultingfromtheweatheringoftherubyrichhost
rocks, and some alluvial type deposit 19 , since streams passing over the deposit transport
somerubymaterialaway.Weweretoldthatthedepositwasnearlyregularandextended
over nearly 30 kilometers, which if verified would mean that the deposit is indeed very
important.Neverthelessacarefulstudyofgeologicalmapsofthearea(Figure28)suggests
instead that the two deposits at Namahaca and Namahumbire might be in fact separated
andnotreallycloselyrelated.
TheminingareavisitedbythepartynearNamahumbirevillageonDecember06th2009was
verylargecomparedtothatseenbyVPinMsawizeinNovember2009andcouldindeedbe
theresultoftheworkofthousandsofdiggers.FromSeptembertoNovember2009,priorto
visiting the mines, the discussions VP had with dealers who visited the deposit suggested
that it was composed of eluvial and/or possibly alluvial type deposits along a stream
dominatedbyhillswheretherubiesarefoundinaprimarydepositinawhiteordarkrock.
Visiting the mining area VP was able to verify this information. We saw that rubies were
found in a very weathered rock composed mainly of feldspar and amphibole (Figure 38,
Figure39,Figure40)atdepthsof1to10meters(Figure37).Theareawhereillegalmining
wastakingplaceatNamahumbirewasmorethan2kilometersinlengthandatleastseveral
hundredmetersinwidthinquiteaflatforestcoveredarea(fromFigure32toFigure36).
The mining pits we investigated at Namahumbire were all targeting a primary deposit.
Studying the geological map it seems that the deposit is associated with a brittle fault
(Figure28)
Ontheotherhand,mostoftheminingtakingplaceatNamahacawasalongastreamfullof
quartz(fromFigure42toFigure44).Wefollowedthedepositforaboutonekilometeruntil
westoppedfindinganyevidenceofgemmining.Inonesmallarea,onahillsidedominating
the stream, we found several mining pits where a primary type ruby deposit was being
mined(Figure46,Figure47).Hererubieswerefoundinwhatappearedtobeasweathered
feldspar (Figure 48). Nearby we found several freshly broken rock samples with quartz,
feldsparandblacktourmalinesuggestingthepresenceofanearbypegmatite(Figure49)It
seemsthattheNamahacadepositisquitedifferentfromthedepositnearNamahumbirean
observationwhichseemstobeconfirmedbygeologicalmaps(Figure28).
19
ParticularlynearNamahaca
39
PreliminarydescriptionoftheMontepuezrubymaterialseenvisitingMozambique:
TheMontepuezmaterialrangesfromslightlypurplishredtored(fromFigure53toFigure
57)itusuallylookslesspinkandlesspurplishthantheNiassamaterialminednearMsawize.
Mostofthemateriallookstobeslightlymilkyorsilky(Figure59).TheMontepuezstonesare
usuallyflatterandexhibitmanymoremineralinclusionscomparedtotheNiassastones.
Large gem quality rough stones of up to 20 carats have reportedly been mined near
Montepuez.InOctober2009VPwasabletostudyalargetabularsilkyrubycrystalweighing
nearly40grams(Figure53).
Whilst most of the material is heavily fractured (hence suitable for lead glass treatment)
some exceptionally clean material was also seen in the Mozambique market during these
expeditions.InOctober2009VPwasabletostudyalargeparcel(approximately1kilo)of
small size (around 1 carat) high quality rough material (Figure 57 and Figure 58). In
September2009hewasabletosee,amongotherfinestones,anexceptionalroughstone
weighingaround 10carats(Figure55). Thestonehadnofissuresand nearlynoinclusions
except for one tiny crystal and few needles, proving its natural origin. Such exceptional
stones,usuallyaccountingforlessthan1%oftheproductionfromtheprimarymines,can
beconsideredabyproductoftheminingformorecommercialqualitystoneswhichrequire
treatmentstofindamarket.
After studying many stones in the field using his GIA dark field loupe, VP was able to see
thatthemostcommoninternalfeaturesinMontepuezmaterialaretransparentroundedto
euhedralcrystals.ThesecrystalswerelateridentifiedasamphiboleattheGIALaboratoryin
Bangkok. Dark opaque crystals (probably rutile), intersecting tubes possibly filled with
boehmite,twinplanes,broadneedlesandminuteparticlesarealsocommonlyfound.
It is interesting to note that some Montepuez stones can be very clean and host short
needles and rounded transparent crystals. Such an association can produce stones which
lookquitesimilartotheinclusionscommonlyseeninBurmeserubiesfromtheMogokarea
throughthemicroscope.Neverthelesspreliminaryanalysisindicatesthatchemistry,andthe
fact that the rounded inclusions are usually amphibole, will help gemologists to correctly
identifytheoriginofsuchstones.
Ourvisitswereinterestingaswewereabletoobtainnumerousgoodreferencesamplesfor
ourstudiesandconfirmthattherubiesminedinNiassanearMsawize,andtherubiesfrom
theMontepuezareaareminedfromtwoverysimilardeposits.Thisisnotverysurprisingas
our preliminary examinations at the GIA laboratory suggested that both materials were
quitesimilarinmanygemologicalaspects.
Wewilldetailthismaterialinfuturepublicationafterstudyingthematerialcollectedonsite
inthelaboratory.
40

Figure53:A37gram"Montepuez"rubyspecimen,seeninthemarketinNorthernMozambique.Thislargecrystalissemitransparentand
possessesnumeroussmallbandsofneedlesandparticles.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,November2009.

Figure54:Aparcelof"Montepuez"rubiesseeninArusha,TanzaniainOctober2009.Thesmallstoneswereveryclean,whilethelarger
onesweremoreincluded.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,October2009.
41

Figure55:Averyfine"Montepuez"roughrubycrystalweightingmorethan10carats.Thestonehasnofissuresanditsonlyinclusions
wereatinytransparentcrystalandafewneedles.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,September2009.

Figure56:"Montepuez"rubyrough.Thematerialhasagreatcolorbutistypicallyflatandmostofthestoneshavealotoffissures.
Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,November2009
42

Figure57:Aparcelofsmall,clean,veryfine"Montepuez"rubies.Thestoneswereselectedfortheircolorandclarityinordertoproducea
highqualityparcel.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,November2009.

Figure58:Smalltransparent"Montepuez"rubies.Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,November2009.
43

Figure59:Silky"Montepuez"rubies,Photo:V.Pardieu/GIALaboratoryBangkok,November2009.
ComparisonbetweentheLichingaandMontepuezmaterialsandfurtherstudies:
OnvisitingThaidealersinNorthernMozambique,itwasinterestingtoheartheiropinions
about the Mozambique material. Most of them were very excited about it. The following
explanationsweregiventoVP:
TheLichingarubies(MeaningtherubiesminednearMsawize)arereportedlythe
bestmaterialforunheatedstonessinceabout10%oftherubiesfromMsawizeare
fineenoughnottorequireanytypeofheattreatment.(VPnote:Thissoundshigh,
but maybe it is only concerning the material that was found at the beginning of
mining in the topsoil.) On the other hand, 85% had to be treated using lead glass
technologyand5%usingaboraxfluxtechnology.Theirshapewasalsousuallybetter
(meaningnottooflat).

TheMontepuezmaterialhasamoresaturatedredcolorbutisusuallyflatterand
has more inclusions (crystals and milky/silky) than the material from Lichinga.
Reportedlylessthan5%ofthestonesarefineenoughtobeusedinjewelrywithout
treatment,whilst70%oftheproductionhasagreatcolorbuttoomanyfissuresand
thus is fine for lead glass treatment and 25% (the milky stones) can be improved
usingaboraxfluxtypeheattreatmenttechnology.Themaindifficultyregardingthis
lasttreatmentisthefactthatthematerialusuallyhasmoremineralinclusionsand
the chemistry is different from the Mong Hsu Burmese material 20 , thus the
20
OurfirstinvestigationsatthelaboratoryshowthattheMontepuezmaterialisricherinironcomparedtothe
MongHsumaterial.
44
parametersofheattreatmentaredifferentandmostofthestonesproducedwillnot
haveaverygoodclaritygrade(TE2usuallyatbestfollowingtheLMHCworksheet).
This information while interestinghas yet to be confirmed. In the next few weeks we will
work on the material from Northern Mozambique before and after treatment (with lead
glassandwiththemoreconventionalfluxtypeheattreatment)andwillpublishourresults
onwww.giathai.netandwww.gia.edu.
Overall,theMontepuezrubieslookthemostpromisingastheircolorisreminiscentofthat
foundinBurmesestonesandimportantlythestonescanbeminedlegallysincetheyarenot
located in a National Reserve. Thus potentially, and if things go well Mozambique rubies
couldbeaninterestingalternativefortherubymarket.
Acknowledgements
Special Thanks are due to Mr. Eduardo Alexandre, the Mozambique National Director of
Mines, Mme Fatima Jussub Momade, Advisor to the Minister of Mineral Resources of
Mozambique, the people from the Direco Nacional de Geologia of Moambique, the
peoplefromMwrititiLdaandfromtheSGDRN(NiassaNationalReserve)tohaveallowedus
to visit the new ruby mining sites, to the people from Namahaca and Namahumbire and
particularly Chief Dalder, to the Niassa L2 block tourism operator for their welcome and
support,tothegeologistsfromtheLichingaminingofficefortheirtimeandtheinformation
they provided the expedition, to Moussa Konate from Mozambique Gems and the West
African, Tanzanian and Thai dealers we met for their help, to Abdul Msellem and the
Tanzaniangembrokersandminerswemetinthefield,MarkSaulfromSwalaGemTraders
company(Tanzania),theICAAmbassadortoPortugal:RuiGalopimdeCarvahlo,geologists
Joao Marques (from Gondwana), Walter Balmer and Dr. Gaston Giuliani for their much
appreciated collaboration and we do not want to forget the rangers and policemen of
Niassa as he spent with them in the Niassa bush some of the best time he had in
Mozambique.
Many thanks also to Ken Scarratt, Nick Sturman, Jitlapit Thanachakapad, and Pantaree
LomthongfromGIALaboratory,BangkokandBrendanLaursfromGemsandGemologyfor
theirmuchappreciatedsupport.
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ExpeditionreporttotheRubyminingsitesinNorthern

On returning to Northern Mozambique after the elections at the beginning of November

On December 2009, VP 11 was invited to return to Mozambique by the Niassa national

Studying geological maps obtained in Maputo at the geological survey of Mozambique

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