Coloured gemstone specialists are lifting the veil on exceptional stones at the Hong Kong International Diamond, Gem & Pearl Show, with highlights ranging from a record-breaking rough ruby and scintillating no-oil emeralds to enchanting layouts and sets in unusual cuts.

Santa Plus Co Ltd of Korea is drawing the crowds to its booth with a fascinating Mozambique rough ruby. At 81,000 carats, the 16.20-kilogram Heart of the Dragon is billed as the world’s second largest rough ruby. Its GIA certificate describes it as a purplish-red natural corundum of 22.40 x 21.50 x 18.50cm.

Erin Park, owner of Santa Plus Co Ltd, said, “We obtained Heart of the Dragon in 2009 and presented it at an exhibition in Korea. This is the first time for it to be displayed internationally and we hope to find it a suitable home with a buyer at the show.”  

Heeralal Chhaganlal Tank, for its part, is presenting a fine collection of no-oil Zambian emeralds, Burmese rubies and sapphires along with an exotic range of tourmalines and tanzanite stones. 

Also gracing its display windows are a set of elegantly cut chrysoprase stones, earring layouts with Mandarin garnets in colouful combinations, and gem-quality amethysts in special shapes including little tower cubes. 

“We do a lot of unusual cuts, which are in big demand right now from jewellery manufacturers, designers and brands around the world,” said Dharmendra Tank, owner of the India-based gemstone manufacturer. “Buyers increasingly seek different gemstones, colours and cuts to stand out from the rest.”

He expects strong demand this year for alternative stones such as spessartite, tourmalines, aquamarines, tanzanites, spinel and other exotic varieties.

Over at the booth of Taymans Fine Gems, the spotlight falls on a necklace layout with more than 85 carats of tanzanite from the same piece of rough. 

Owner Brieuc Taymans said, “This piece is unique in the world for its quality. Each gemstone has been carefully designed for the set, which enhances the necklace tradition through modern cuts. This is a statement piece for high jewellery creators.”

Other highlights from the Belgian company are an exquisite lagoon tourmaline from Namibia and a rare, 4.04-carat bi-colour Imperial topaz from Minas Gerais in Brazil. Also available are pairs of lagoon tourmalines from Brazil, Mandarin garnets from Nigeria, zircons from Cambodia and rubellites from Brazil for earring sets.