[Tidbits] The Land of the Mongol

The Land of the Mongol

And so…the great Mongol ruler who was acknowledged the Universal
Ruler in 1206…had a grandson…and his name was Kublai Khan…and
he was the grandson of Genghis Khan. And Kublai Khan–immortalized in
the poem by Samuel Coleridge-- invaded and conquered Pagan…capital
of Burma…and the Burmese…now mostly of Mongol
descent…flourished… and produced the most magnificent rubies the
world has seen.

To the Ancients…the ruby had great magical powers. It could ward
off the plague and warn of poison. It prevented one from having
foolish thoughts. It awarded one invulnerability to life’s slings and
arrows. The Burmese believed that in order to attain the full
protection of the ruby…it was not enough to wear one as a ring or
other piece of jewelry…rather the stone must be imbedded into the
flesh…thereby becoming one with its owner. Those who wore rubies
this way could stroll about confidently–even in Central Park in the
dead of night–assured that they could not be wounded by sword or
spear…or gun or switchblade. Yessiree folks…the ruby is more
protective than the most intricately woven bullet-proof vest. It is
impregnable against armor piercing missiles. It is the gem of gems.

I have a ruby ring to show you. It is described as “The Property of A
Gentleman” …and little more. It is cushion-shaped and weighs about
14.05 carats. It is flanked on each side by a triangular cut diamond
and it is mounted in platinum. I estimate today’s worth at around
$750,000…a figure I extrapolate from 1989 estimates. It may well be
worth more.

The appearance of rubies over 10 carats in size is becoming more and
more rare …a fact which increasingly raises their value as time goes
by. For those of you on the hunt…who want to know where to find
such fine gemstones…may I direct you to the region of Mogok in upper
Burma, northeast of Mandalay on the Irrawaddy River. The Mogok valley
is only 20 miles long and two miles wide and has a scant population of
around 20,000…most of whom are engaged in either mining or cutting.
The competition appears minimal folks. Go for it. Bring those rubies
back by the wheelbarrow-full. And don’t forget my cut… for were it
not for me…would you have found Mogok northeast of Mandalay alone?

For those of you who are new to this thing called Tidbits…may I
direct you to my home page at www.tyler-adam.com where you will
scroll down the table menu till you get to the box that says
Tidbits…and inside the box where it says Tidbit Graphics…click on
the link that says: Ruby…where you will see a graphic of our Ring.

And there ya have it. That’s it for this week folks. Catch you all next
week. Benjamin Mark

TYLER-ADAM CORP.–Jewelry Manufacturers
Tel: 1-800-20-TYLER
E-Mail to: webmaster@tyler-adam.com