Traceability, Ethically Sourced Gemstones- we are a mine direct source with our own buying office at source, dealing directly with miners ‘on ground’

We have full traceability of our stones from exactly which mines they have been mined from, who the miners are, where the mines are located, if the mine is in production right now and what the mine is producing at this moment.

We Support Mining Communities

We buy mostly from small scale artisanal miners as well as local community groups in the mining villages who we believe support their communities. This in turn benefits their families and the areas in which they live, thus raising their livelihood and increasing their quality of life within those communities and mining areas. With a vast network of miners as such, we’ll mostly be speaking to miners as they are sat at their mines sifting through stones. We speak local languages fluently, and understand and respect local cultures and needs.

We also direct local miners on how to make effective use of their Capital and resources. We advise them to grade, sort and cobb their material right at the mines as it comes out, getting the most out of their stones, and making calculated decisions on what would be most profitable for them. We encourage mining villages to form small groups and mine together thus increasing their capacity, and to employ the townsfolk to set up small cobbing and sorting units there.

We make sure they benefit their local communities as well as carry out ethical mining i.e. no child labour, minimum impact to environment, sustainable mining, and community based mining to help their local villages where miners comprise mostly of local villagers taking the proceeds back home.

We believe the future of a constant supply of good quality rough depends on the development of small miners capacity and looking after their needs best. In other words, we follow the "teach a man to fish" principle. Sometimes miners will come in not knowing how to grade their stones nor how to clip them or remove impurities on the outside of the stone; we explain, and take the time to teach and educate them. We work at root level with miners and there is a great deal of mutual respect in our relationships with them.

This is very important to us: We pay fair prices to miners so we always have a ‘win win situation’; and both miners and us are happy. We like miners to have a content, wholehearted and satisfied feeling about a sale with us, and it is important to nurture a sense of goodwill and happiness in all transactions. We believe in strong, long-term relationships with miners and buyers that we supply, that are rock solid and built over time.

Meet one of the miners we work closely with:

The gentleman pictured owns all the Mandarin Spessartite Garnet Mines in Loliondo (Arusha, Tanzania). He is of the Sonjo tribe, and his mine is where the Sonjo and Maasai tribes mine together. He also owns all the Orange Kynite mines in the area; so any of the Orange Kynite crystals you may have come across that are mined in Tanzania, come from one of his mines; also in the Loliondo area!

He involves his local community in communal mining where all communities benefit.

These are the Maasai miners from Longido; cobbing and sorting their goods (Gem Rubies, untreated), that were mined the day before.

We are Gems of East Africa, www.gemsofeastafrica.com, a London, UK based wholesale and retail, mine direct, gemstone dealer, selling facet rough, excellent cut stones and selected rare fine crystals online, through our website.

YOU DON'T NEED TO BE A TRADE BUYER TO BUY FROM US. All our prices are wholesale and below wholesale rates for anyone to buy even if you are not in the trade, so at the same price we would sell to a wholesaler in bulk, we sell to you as singles here at that price.

We solve the problems associated with quality gem sourcing by providing a platform where it is: easy to buy, easy to pay using PayPal/Cards, Fast/Cost Effective FedEx ship or Registered Mail, selected gemstones, mine direct and ethically sourced, we are members of various gem associations too. All stones are perfectly graded, selected gemstones. We have been online since 2002 (20 years).

We add new material every day.

You don't need to go through masses of mine run material offered through the general internet, looking for good stones or worry on grading issues and how to how you are going to ship the stones out of Africa, we have already done it for you!

We just upload everything that comes in to this website as it comes in.

We work to bespoke orders too and have access to almost all stones coming out of the East African region. We are a 4th generation gem dealer, buying directly from small scale artisanal miners at source providing ethically sourced, traceable gemstones at much below wholesale prices to everyone.

We sell to the general public as well as to the entire gem community including: gemstone dealers, jewellers, designers, wholesalers, re-sellers, retailers, investors as well as personal gem and crystal collectors buying to create or expand their own collections! We have been serving the gem community online since 2002.

We buy directly from miners at source, by selecting the best stones one by one. Initially, only selling wholesale to the trade, now selling to anyone, all at the same low price as we would sell to a gem dealer or wholesaler from this website.

We buy from small scale community-based miners whom we’ve known personally over decades and whom we’ve built long term, ‘WIN WIN’ relationships with. All our stones are Ethically Sourced and Traceable.

We select the best, one by one, buying only the best, cleanest, brightest and most visually appealing stones from miner lots and offering them out here on our website.

Having been in the gem trade for so long, we have plenty of experience in buying and perfect grading of rough stones, which is not as easy as it seems. Once graded, we buy stones based on quality and appeal factors in rough. In cut, we put emphasis on the importance of good cutting on a stone and understand how a perfect cut dramatically adds value to the stone.

Unless we state 'native cut', all stones are cut to excellent precision standards with a high polish.

We set the standard in facet rough grading of gemstones.

We are very well known by the miners in East Africa and get to see first hand, material, as it comes out of the mines and in some cases within hours of it being mined.

We speak local languages fluently and work very well with local miners and understand their needs. We know almost all miners in East Africa and they know us. We have built relationships with them of trust and long-term supply based on respect and trust and in many cases guide them in their mining activities.

Since most are small artisanal, community or family-based mining activities, many of the nearby villages and communities are involved in the mining and hence share in the profit for their community’s upliftment and well being.

Sourcing at ground level direct from the miner who pulls it out of the ground, sometimes on his small farm or nearby, gives us unmatched access to a huge variety of stones in all types and all sizes and grades, all coming in from different locations, which we then add on this website.

Literally you never know what stones come in next, so please subscribe to our email lists for updates as stones are added.

Shipping - Local UK $5 per pack, International tracked and signed $20 per pack, 48 hours to the US and 2-5 days anywhere else: FedEx International PRIORITY shipping at a special rate of ONLY $40 per pack, this will get to you in 48 hours on business days. Choose shipping options on checkout.