The sparkle of Thailand gemstones III

In the past, people tended to shy a way form Thai settings because of the
unreliability of the precious metal content stamped on the outside. This problem has
Been largely overcome in recent times with all the leading jewelers guaranteeing the gold and silver used in the setting.Nowadays.18 Kr.actually means eighteen karats in weight. Moreover increasing members of overseas buyers are purchasing Thai-designed jewelry because it so closely follows the styles that happen to be popular in one country at any moment. This is because the Thais are shrewdly studying jewelry fashion: what may be popular in the Middle East is not necessarily going to sell well to Australians.Thus,what emerges from the cutting factories and design rooms of Thailand is the result of careful examination of worldwide fashion trends. And the cost is likely to be considerably less because of the country's highly competitive labor rates
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Against this background of gem mining, cutting and jewelry design, it’s hardly
Surprising to discover that Thailand in general and Bangkok in particular, are outstanding places to buy jewelry. Although much of the country's output goes overseas and those gems brought in for cutting are later re-exported, a good deal
Of quality stones and fine settings can be found in the showcase of jewelry shops and boutiques throughout Thailand.

Naturally, one would have to be an expert to know exactly what one is buying and to become an expert can take many years.Thus,the best advice to give a potential buyer comes from the Asian Institute of Gemological Sciences, Southeast Asia jewelry school, based in Bangkok. For more information http://www.aigsthailand.com/

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The sparkle of Thailand gemstones II

Although Thailand presently boasts only two diamond-cutting factories employing some 700 cutters, their progress in recent year has been astonishing. Once De Beers reaches an agreement with a local company and provides a regular supply of raw diamonds, then Thailand will be all set to repeat the success it enjoyed with colored stones.
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The stories about the discovery of diamonds in Thailand is in various remote provinces.
In Some are credible, others totally ludicrous. For instance, it is said that a vast diamond field exists in the western region of the country, close to the Kampuchean border. But because this land is under the jurisdiction of the military authorities and conflict happen recently, excavations will never be allowed.

There is, however, reason to believe some of the yarns about diamonds being picked up by people working in the tin-dredging industry in southern Thailand, notably off the island of Phuket.The black, monolithic boats that scoop up mud from the depths of the ocean frequently discover more than just tin, and diamonds are easy to spot amid the dark mass of sludge.Butfor the time being at least, diamonds have not been discovered in any commercial quantities in Thailand.

Equally, stories of miners risking life and limb to dig out a sapphire or ruby are
normally more apocryphal than accurate, though the rewards could make some of the more outrageous exploits just conceivable.

Yet despite the obvious interest of De beers in the country's cutting industry, plus the encouragement given by the Thai government, it seems that Thailand's real pre-eminence will continue to lie in the cutting and setting of colored stones.

Local cutters are usually apprenticed at the age of 12 or 13, fathers often passing on their skills to sons. In the larger gem companies, experts from overseas have been recruited to teach Thai cutters the most up-to-date designs and methods so that they compete on the world markets. Not only are sapphires and rubies cut, but
The entire spectrum of gemstones are shaped into beautiful objects; opals, tanxanites, emeralds, citrines, agate, ametyst and spinals.

At the same time, Thai artists and designers are conjuring up some of the most exciting jewelry setting. There is a definite trend away from exporting loose stones and move towards selling complete jewelry items overseas, with few exceptions,
Thailand's jewelry still relies heavily in manual labor to produce setting. While most of the foreign companies have completely automated plants, Thai setters work largely by hand. For excample,in the United states the findings, or links, for a bracelet are machine-cut from a tube of gold: in Thailand, these will be individually created by hand, Even gold-fasteners for ear-ring are produced by hand in Thailand, whereas in other jewelry centers these will almost certainly be 'staped'from a continuous length of precious metal. The advantage of Thai manual labor over automated manufacture is in the individually of the jewelry piece and the added strength of its setting. In addition, custom-made jewelry is still possible in Thailand, at a fraction of the price charged elsewhere.

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The sparkle of Thailand Gemstones Part I

Without fuss of fanfare,a sparkling revolution has been going on in som of the remotest corners of Thailand.From beneath the parched and arid soils of Kanchanaburi in the west and Chantaburi in the east, a vast array of colored gemstones woth millions of dollas are being extracted every year by a small army of workers.

These'rough'stones are normally either sapphires of various hues or rubies,two of the most sought-after precious gems in the world today.But there are others zircons,
quarth,garnets and occasionally,even fabulous diamonds.

While the rest of Thailand busies itself with tending the rice paddies,worshipping in the temples and entertaining tourists from overseas,this quiet revolution is becoming increasingly important in the country'financial accounts.

Miners with nothing more than a pick,a shovel and a steely determination are beavering away alongside modern companies using sophisticated equipment in a concerned effort to persaude the earth to part with its precious bounty.

There's no guarantee of success,of cause.But Thailand hardly boasted a gems and jewelry



industry 15 years ago and today it ranks as one of the country's most important foreign exchange earners,And some lucky ones have indeed struck it rich.

Once the gem in its raw form has been successfully located,it is usually sold to a middleman who then arranges for it to be cut in one of the thousands of cutting factories dotted throughout Thailand.Here ,under the watchful eye of skitted cutter, the stones will be fashioned into a fabulous treasure that will eventually command a
small fortune in the chic showrooms of gem dealers in Paris,Rome,New York or London.

But this is not just a one way trail,While Thai miners labor over their diggings,
thousands upon thousands of precious stones from ever corner of the globe are pouring into Thailand:sapphires from Burma,Sri Lanka and Australia:rubies from Burma, Pakistan and the African continent :and diamonds from South Africa and Russia.

But why? Thailand is certainly not wealthy enough to buy all these valuable stones,so why bring them here,?The answer is that all these gems are not destined for the local market,They have been brought to Thailand in their raw form,to be cut
by Thais whose expertise in this delicate trade is already widely recognised,

For those"in the know,"Thailand is now the world's premier colored gem cutting nation,having long surpassed West Germany's Idar-Oberstein and other major centers
in term of both quantity and quality,But what has made Thailand's rise so utterly irresistable is the fact that this country is also one of the world'sgreatest sources of gemstones.For the first time, a major supplier is also a leading cutter.

Thailand's ascent to become such an important gem center is quite remarkable,From a single lapidary employing just 480 cutters in 1946,the industry today provides employment for as many as 600,000 Thais.This emergence from virtual obscurity has accelerated in recent years,with the cost of labor in other nations increasing dramatically and the supply of precious stons from traditional sources showing signs of depletion.In contrast,Thailand has not suffered from the ravages of inflation to the same extent as other countries,and has also continued discovering newsources of gemstones.

In 1981, more than US$300 million worth of precious loose stones were expoted from
Thailand,This may represent just the tip of a large iceberg,since records of purchases by tourists and other casual visitors are not kept,Thailand,like several other enlightened nations,decided five years ago to ease the restrictions on the import and export of gems in a bid to cut out smuggling and also to promote this still young industry.The results were effective and dramatic.Thailand suddenly came from behind in the gems race and took over first place,Its gems and jewelry industry had come of age,Dealers from every nation rushed to Bangkok with either their money of their raw gems to buy or to have their stones cut by Thailand's army of cutters.

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Thailand Handicrafts

Shopping for Thai handicrafts is undoubtedly a delightful activity. Thai handicrafts are not the domain of one sector of the country. They are produced by artisans from all over Thailand. From Chiang Mai com the famous wood carvings,silver,jewelry,lacquer ware and beautifully painted umbrellas, Northern Thailand's hill tribes produce wickerwork,weaving,embroidery and musical instruments, From Khorat come pottery and stoneware, From Bangkok and adjacent up-country areas come bronze ware,porcelains,silk flowers and ready-to wear clothes.
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Thai handicrafts used to be elaborate creations that were more ornamental than practical.Nowadays, designs are simpler, more contemporary and modern, they blend easily with the modern world's life-style.However, as far as possible, the handicrafts are fashioned to retain their individualities and origins. Thai handicrafts are easily identifiable.

In Bangkok, Thailand handicrafts are available in several air-conditioned shopping arcades and department stores, such as Siam paragon, Central World, Peninsula Plaza,
Central Department Store,Marbooncrong Department Store, River City,Thaniya Plaza,Narayana Phand,Bangkok's largest emporium of Thai handicrafts on Rajdamri Road,
is a government-sponsored company which offers almost any kind of quality handicrafts?
from all parts of Thailand such as Thai silk,mudmee,cotton,jewelry,bronze ware,niello care,pottery,porelains,miniature clay and fish mobiles.

Silom Road and parts of Charoen Krung and Surawong Road are famous for being the
"Gems and Jewelry streets,"Here,one finds the largest selection of Thai gems and
jewelry in the country and also a wealth of Thai handicrafts and souvenirs. Several
Respectable Thai silk shops. Such as Jim Thompson's and Design Thailand souvenir shops are scattered all over this area.

Chatuchak weekend Market, now Available for everyday’s as you want to shop.
Bangkok's largest open-air market and Air-conditioning store, opposit Morchit Northern and Northeastern Bus terminal, is another delightful shopping center for
Thai handicrafts, usually of the cheaper types.

Out of Bangkok,Bangsai Royal Folk Arts and Crafts Center at Bangsai in Ayutthaya
70 kilometers from Bangkok, is another major Thai handicrafts center, it was established in 1980 under the royal patronage of Her Majesty the Queen. Covering an
area of about 1000 rai,this sprawling complex is where villagers from all over Thailand come to receive special training in the art of Thai handicrafts, Besides shopping for Thai handicrafts at a work, Some of the best buys are yanlipao basketry, miniature clay dolls, artificial flowers, hand woven silk, bronze ware, rattan basketry,woodwork,glassware and ready-to-wear clothes.

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Thai Food.

For lovers of good food, Thailand is a veritable paradise. Every major cuisine is represented in some of the world's finest restaurants at unbelievably reasonable prices. The Thai cuisine offers a huge variety of mouthwatering dishes but for the first
-time visitor to make a choice without any guidance might pose quite a problem.

The ideal traditional Thai meal aims at being a harmonious blend of the spicy, the subtle, the sweet and the sour, and is meant to be satisfying to the eye, nose, and palate.
Dished include steamed rice, accompanied by a clear soup (bitter melons stuffed with minced pork), a steamed dish (seafood in curry sauce), a fried dish (fried fish with garlic and pepper), a hot salad (beef slices on a bed of letteuce, chillies, onions, mint
Lemon juice and fish sauce), and a variety of sauces, including the essential salt substitute, mapla (fish sauce), into which food can be dipped. This is normally followed by a sweet dessert (lotus seeds in syrup and crushed ice, for example), and finally, fresh fruit (like mangoes, duriam, jackfruit, papaya, watermelon, pineapple, and more) of which Thailand boasts an abundant year-round supply.

Food varies from region to region. Often there are modifications to standard dishes, and frequently there are local specialties, In Chiang Mi for example, thefood is generally milder than enjoyed in the central plains.Naem, a chili-filled pork sausage, is a northern delicacy.




Northeastern food is mostly very spice with explosive salads and special broiled,
Minced meat dishes mixed with miniature throat-savaging chilies.

Southern cuisine makes delicious use of the creatures which beam in the nearby sea.Lobsters, crabs, scallops.fish and squid are common ingredients, and exotic dished like jellyfish salads can be found.

Thailand Profile

Thailand,meaning"Land of the Free,” is in Southeast Asia Known for centuries by foreigner as "SIAM," it is bordered by the Union of Myanmar to the north and west, the Lao People's Democratic Republic to the northeast, Cambodia to the east and Malaysia
To the south. Thailand has an area of some 510,000 square kilometers, approximately the size of France, and a population of some 65 million.Geographically, the country is divided into six regions-the mountainous morth, the sprawling northeast plateau, the central plains, the eastern coast, western mountains and valleys, and the southern peninsula.
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Thailand enjoys a tropical climate with three well-defined seasons: the hot season
(March-May),the rainy season(June - October)and the season(November- February).Average temperatures are about 28 C(83 F),ranging in Bangkok, for example from 35 C(96 F)in April to 17 C(62 F )in December.

Basically an agrarian society, Thailand is abundantly blessed with natural resources, The major exports, along with an enormous variety of agricultural products including corn and tapioca: a wide selection of tropical fruits:teak:livestock:and array of fresh seafood.


In addition, Thailand’s fauna and flora are richly divers--elephants, tigers, leopards,
snakes,lizards,monkeys,birds,butterflies,wild flowers,trees,native plants and
hundreds of different varieties of orchids.
Endowed with a fertile land and a mild climate, the Thai people share several
Distinctive characteristices.They enjoy a rich cultural heritage, a very real and strong sense of freedom, and they have a high respect for their elders, in addition,
They are fun-loving, generous, hospitable, tolerant and usually friendly.
Thailand has been a constitutional monarchy since 1932, with the king exercising
His legislative power through a National Assemble his executive power through a
Cabinet headed by a prime minister and his judicial power through the law courts,
The king, regarded as the protector of all religions, is well loved by his people and royal family is held in great respect.


During the past centuries, the Thais were able to build up their own unique culture, traditions and customs, all of which are underlined by strong Buddhist influence, Theravada Buddhism is the professed religion of more than ninety percent of
All Thaïs. Buddhism first appeared in Thailand during the third century Bichat Nacho Pathom, after the Indian Buddhist Emperor Asoka (267-227 B.C.)Sent missionaries to Southeast Asia. It has long been a custom for Buddhist Thai males to
enter the monkhood once in their livers to study the teachings of the Buddha.
Ordinations traditionally take place at the begining of the Buddhist Lent.As the Thais have always subscribed to the ideal of religious freedom,sizeable minorities of Muslims,Christians,Hindus and Sikhs freely pursue their respective faiths.
Importantly, Thailand is the only Southeast Asian country never to have been colonized by western powers, This is obviously the explanation for its unique character, continually developed during more than 800 years of independance.For the most part, free from racial or religious prejudice and aided by a natural inclination for adaption values, Thailand has maintained a high level of development throughout its history.

On Thailand Histories

THE HISTORY ON THAILAND

The first” Thai" independent state was founded in Sukhothai in 1257, the city where successive Khmer governors had once had their headquarters. Central Thailand had been divided into northern and southern sections of the Khmer empire and Sukhothai had been the administrative headquarters of the northern part. Towards the end of the twelfth century a ruler ascended to power who was to become on of the dominant figures in Thai history, the limits to his great drive and ambition were particularly the Khmer empire and the Mongol court of China. King Ramkamhaeng pushed his borders in all directions-north towards Chiang Mai and Luang Prabang, west towards present day Burmar and south to the Malay Peninsula.

Sukkothai prospered and grew strong and for the first time saw the Thais develop civilization of their own, with distinct styles of art and architecture. The King was the adapting a new alphabet to Thai usage from the Khmer one. The first example of the new script, carved in stone in 1292, is idealized descriptions, no slavery, guaranteed inheritance and free trade.



But the new state did not last long. In a century and a quarter the kingdom was superseded by the rise of another city state,Ayutthaya,founded in 1350,which was to dominate the central and southern region for the next four centuries.

The sixteenth century saw Ayutthaya's first contact with Europeans who were astonished at its prosperity and size. The Dutch established their first trading post there in 1608 and King Ekatotsarot sent envoys back to The Hague, the first record of Thais appearing in Europe. A few years later English emissaries arrived from the court of James I and, like the Dutch, they were welcomed and given trading rights.



Ayutthaya had continual and prolonged conflict with her nearest neighbor, Burma, culmination in 1767 in a 14-month siege and total destruction of the city by the Burmese.

One of the surviving generals of the defeated Thai army,Phraya Taksin, escaped from Ayutthaya and raised an army which successfully expelled the Burmese from the country. He was crowned king within a year and established the capital at Thonburi on the west bank of the Chao Rphraya River.



One of the King Toksin’s generals later succeeded him and founded the present Chakri dynasty. As King Rama I, he established the present capital in Bangkok in 1782.



Thailand changed from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional monarchy in 1932.
the present King, His Majesty King Bhumipol Adulyadej,is the ninth king of the Chakri dynasty.