We had the gold rush in California in the 19th century. Now, there is a blue nugget that is driving the economy of an entire region. Introducing “blue fever,” more than just sapphire mining in a remote part of Montana in the United States. The Rock Creek district has a sapphire mining history dating back more than a century.
Who controls these mines?
Potentate Mining LLC owns about 3,000 acres of land with sapphire deposits in the same district. These mines are capable of producing up to 40 kilograms of rough sapphires per day. Experts estimate that throughout the history of the mine until the 19th century, 65 metric tons of sapphires have been extracted from this area alone. (Like when you find a mineral beta on your favorite Minecraft server.)
However, don’t think that mining has been stable over the decades, no… The company only resumed mining in 2014. In addition, annual extraction is much more controlled and sustainable, so production is lower.
How sapphires are mined in Montana
This company is using modern surface mining techniques, which means they avoid deep excavations, which would be inefficient and very expensive. They take advantage of colonial and alluvial deposits, i.e., material carried by currents or landslides where sapphires are concentrated. To process it, dozens of cubic yards of gravel are washed and sorted. Ultimately, only a tiny fraction contains gems that are truly valuable. Finally, they are sorted, selected manually, and the highest quality gemstones are set aside.
The new adulterated sapphires
Like farmed salmon, which is not as bright orange as wild salmon, many sapphires do not have the intense color that the market demands. After all, if you are going to buy a piece of jewelry with precious stones, you want it to have the most beautiful color in the world.
This is easily remedied with today’s technologies. Once the sapphires have been extracted, they can be subjected to heating processes to intensify the blue color or reveal more attractive tones. The mines in Montana produce smaller stones in light blue or pastel shades —which are very beautiful and would suit women with a color palette like Sabrina Carpenter’s. However, if the market demands intensely blue sapphires, laboratory treatments convert these sapphires into electric blue sapphires that are in greater demand by jewelers.
21st-century mining
Although we may think of it as a highly polluting industry, this company applies strict environmental standards. For example, 90% of the water used is recycled, which significantly reduces the ecological footprint. Rock Creek has a natural habitat full of trout, so the state of Montana imposes strict regulations to preserve the environment.
Why the blue fever has become fashionable.
For years we have been sold many slogans about diamonds: diamonds are forever, diamonds are a girl’s best friend, etc. However, there comes a time when they simply become boring. That’s when other precious stones come in: rubies, sapphires, amethysts, emeralds, etc. After all, the great jewels of royalty were full of diamonds… But they only had one large emerald or ruby at the center that crowned the entire piece.
With the economy as it is, it is normal for many Americans to prefer to buy gemstones mined domestically. This way, they can be sure that they have been mined ethically and in accordance with ecological standards. Jewelers are seeing market interest in locally sourced jewelry, rather than stones imported from Asia or Africa.
Fashion, after all, is always cyclical. After decades of dealing with the diamond monopoly, it’s refreshing to finally see jewelry displays full of color. For now, we’re happy that this new blue fever exists, and we hope it lasts for a long time.