Gilgit-Baltistan Gemstones: Pakistan's Mountain Treasure House گلگت بلتستان کے قیمتی پتھر

Where the gems are found

Gilgit-Baltistan is Pakistan's far north, where the Karakoram, the Himalaya and the Hindu Kush meet. Its gem areas fall into a few broad groups.

• Hunza and Nagar: ruby and spinel in marble on the valley sides, plus pink fluorite and other collector minerals. See Hunza ruby.
• Skardu, Shigar and the Braldu valley: pegmatite pockets with aquamarine, topaz, tourmaline, morganite and quartz. See Skardu aquamarine.
• Haramosh and the Stak area: more pegmatites, known for aquamarine, tourmaline and garnet.
• Gilgit and the nearby valleys: garnet, epidote, sphene and quartz, along with material from all over the region passing through the town's dealers.

The two main trading towns are Gilgit and Skardu. From there, much material goes south along the Karakoram Highway to Rawalpindi and Peshawar.

Why the mountains produce so many gems

The collision between India and Asia that raised the Karakoram also cooked, folded and melted the rocks caught in between. That produced two very different gem settings close together.

Marble. Old limestones were turned to marble under heat and pressure. Where the marble had pockets rich in aluminium and poor in silica, ruby and spinel grew. This is the Hunza type of deposit.

Pegmatite. Granite melts rose and cooled, and their last, fluid-rich portions set as coarse veins. Where gas and water gathered, open pockets formed and crystals grew freely. Beryllium gave aquamarine and morganite, boron gave tourmaline, fluorine gave topaz and manganese helped form orange garnet. This is the Shigar and Haramosh type.

Because the mountains are still rising and eroding fast, fresh pockets keep being exposed on the steep slopes.

The main stones of Gilgit-Baltistan

Many other minerals, such as apatite, fluorite and titanite, are found too, mostly for collectors.

A short history

People in these valleys have known about the crystals around them for generations, but the region opened to the wider trade in the later twentieth century, after the Karakoram Highway and better roads to Skardu made travel easier. Since then Gilgit-Baltistan has become one of the best-known sources of mineral specimens in the world and a steady supplier of gem rough to Pakistan's cutters. Tourism has helped too: visitors to Hunza and Skardu now make up a real part of the local market for crystals and cut stones.

We do not quote production figures or name individual mines as current sources; output changes with weather, access and luck, and reliable numbers are not published.

How mining and trade work

Almost all mining here is small-scale. A family or a small group holds a claim, works it with hand tools, drills and small charges, and brings out what it finds. Many workings are at high altitude and can only be reached in summer.

Good crystals are often kept whole for collectors, because a fine specimen can be worth more uncut. Broken or less attractive material goes to cutters. Rough changes hands several times between the valley and the cutting bench, which is one reason origin can blur along the way.

If you live in or visit the region, the bazaars of Gilgit and Skardu are interesting places to look. Take the same care you would anywhere: ask what the stone is, whether it is treated and what the weight is, and get it in writing. Our city pages for Gilgit and Skardu have local buying tips.

Buying a collector specimen

Many visitors to Gilgit and Skardu come home with a crystal rather than a cut stone. A specimen is judged differently from a gem. Look at the sharpness of the crystal faces, the colour, how well the crystal sits on its matrix and whether anything has been damaged or repaired. Breaks glued back together are common, because crystals often come out of pockets in pieces; a seller should tell you about any repair. Avoid specimens where crystals have been glued onto matrix they did not grow on.

Ask for the mineral name and the locality as the seller understands it, and keep a note of it. Collectors value an honest locality label, even when it is only as precise as the valley.

Caring for stones from the region

Aquamarine, topaz, tourmaline, ruby and spinel are all hard enough for everyday jewellery with sensible care. Clean them with warm soapy water and a soft brush. Keep topaz and fractured tourmaline away from knocks and ultrasonic cleaners, and keep coated or irradiated stones away from strong heat. Store each stone separately so harder stones do not scratch softer ones.

How origin is proven, and how it is not

A stone bought in Gilgit or Skardu is not automatically from Gilgit-Baltistan. Material from Afghanistan and other parts of Pakistan moves through the same towns. Aquamarine, tourmaline and topaz from similar pegmatites look alike wherever they formed.

Laboratories can confirm what a stone is and whether it has been treated. Origin opinions are offered mainly for ruby, sapphire and emerald, and only sometimes. For most stones from this region, your protection is a clear description from the seller and a stone that is good in its own right.

Buying Gilgit-Baltistan gemstones: practical advice

1. Know the stone. Ask for the mineral name in plain words: aquamarine, topaz, tourmaline, spinel. Local names vary.
2. Ask about treatment. Aquamarine is often heated, and some topaz is irradiated or coated. Disclosure matters more than origin.
3. Specimen or gem? A crystal on matrix and a cut stone are priced differently. Decide which you want before comparing.
4. Check durability. Topaz can split along its cleavage and some tourmaline is fractured. Choose a protective setting for rings.
5. Compare by the right ratti. The standard gem ratti is 0.91 carat; the jeweller's ratti is about 0.61 carat. The carat to ratti converter helps.
6. Test valuable stones. Independent lab testing can be arranged on request. See how to read a lab certificate.

For current prices of these stones, see the monthly gemstone price guide.

Gilgit-Baltistan stones at GemStore

We stock several of the stones this region is known for, including this 2.10 carat tourmaline and this 12.90 carat aquamarine. The origin shown on any listing is the origin as supplied to us, and not every stone in these categories is from Gilgit-Baltistan. Ask on WhatsApp if origin matters to you. We deliver across Pakistan, including Gilgit and Skardu, with cash on delivery.