At the February 2005 Tucson gem shows, a parcel containing about 180 grams of rough ruby and pink sapphire was available from a new locality in Kenya. Recently, more information has become available, along with both rough and cut samples of this new corundum that reportedly have not been treated in any way.

The deposit is located in the Kenya Rift Valley in the west-central part of the country, approximately 70 km east of Eldoret near Lake Baringo. In October 2001, a local gem prospector was shown samples of pink and red corundum from this area by members of the Tugen tribe who lived in Barsemoi.

The prospector later visited the locality and collected samples of gem-quality corundum from a dry river bed. He applied for a license with the Kenya Commissioner of Mines, and after a two-year process received a mining permit for a five-square-kilometer area. In June 2004, he resumed collecting surface material from the site and has obtained more than 2 kg of corundum, ranging from red to pink to pinkish violet.

So far, approximately 350 stones have been faceted at his office in Eldoret, and the largest weigh 2.80 and 3.71 ct (both oval cuts). Most of the stones range from 0.5 to 1.6 ct, and are bright purplish pink to purplish red (see figure).  

As of May 2005, approximately 400 local villagers were active in the region surrounding the original mining claim, expanding the corundum-bearing area to approximately 20 square kilometers. Preliminary indications suggest that this area has the potential to become a significant source of untreated ruby and pink sapphire. The gemological properties of this corundum are currently being studied at GIA, and will be reported in a future issue of G&G.

Dudley Blauwet
Dudley Blauwet Gems (Louisville, Colo.)

Brendan M. Laurs
Editor, Gems & Gemology