For centuries, Sri Lanka has been famed for its high-quality gemstones, which are reputed to be some of the best in the world. In fact, there are records which show that merchants travelled from far and wide to trade goods for Sri Lankan jewels. Even in the present day and age, the island lives up to its reputation and exports various gems to different countries like Thailand, China, USA and Germany. K. L. D. Dayasagara, the Director of the Gem Testing Laboratory of the National Gem and Jewellery Authority, gave Roar Media some insight into the gems found in Sri Lankan mines.