About Us

“I want you to understand that the island of Ceylon is, for its size, the finest island in the world, and from its streams come rubies, sapphires, topazes, amethyst and garnet."
~ Marco Polo

Kalam Alawdeen, the founder and owner of Starlanka Fine Gems, Inc., began his career in the gem trade over 45 years ago. He was born in Sri Lanka and at a young age he developed a passion for Ceylon gemstones. As a child, he began learning about the gem trade while working with his uncle. He possessed an eye and a knack for selecting the finest Ceylon Sapphires, skills that he is now passing on to his children. He has since migrated to Los Angeles, where he shares his sapphire collection with the rest of the gem trade.

His passion for gemstones and gemology has grown over the years. He continues to visit Sri Lanka and other gem producing parts of the world to acquire the absolute best sapphires. Kalam personally and meticulously selects rough stones and oversees the cutting, faceting and polishing of gemstones before they are brought to our customers. Due to this very selective process, we can personally guarantee that our sapphires are all natural. We can also guarantee the following:

• No Synthetic or Lab Created Gemstones in our stock
• No Diffusion Treatment of any of our stones
• No Beryllium Treatment of any of our stones
• No Fillers in any of our stones
• No Irradiation Treatment of any of our stones

We know our clients and friends desire high quality, fine sapphires and we aim to provide them with just that. Our extensive collection of sapphires is acquired directly from the source in Sri Lanka, also known as Ceylon.

We have a small office and showroom in downtown Los Angeles and welcome visitors. We hope you enjoy exploring our collection as much as we enjoyed bringing it to you. We also hope that you make your purchase knowing that we value quality over quantity.