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Minas Gerais, whose name translates as “General Mines,” is regarded as the gemstone heartland of Brazil. North-eastern Minas Gerais contains one of the world’s greatest concentrations of complex gem-bearing pegmatites, renowned for aquamarine and other beryls, chrysoberyl, topaz, colourful tourmaline and kunzite. The regions surrounding Teófilo Otoni, Governador Valadares, Araçuaí and the Jequitinhonha Valley have supported generations of miners, crystal traders, lapidaries and artists. 
Ouro Preto is historically associated with the rare and beautiful Imperial Topaz, while the wider history of Minas Gerais includes early emerald discoveries, gold exploration and the diamond deposits that gave Diamantina its name. 
Elsewhere in Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul is especially rich in amethyst and agate, often discovered inside cavities within ancient basalt. Ametista do Sul is celebrated for its dramatic amethyst geodes, while the Soledade region became an important centre for preparing and trading these stones. 
The states of Paraíba and Rio Grande do Norte are known for the exceptionally rare copper-bearing Paraíba tourmaline, famous for its intense neon-blue, turquoise and green colours. It was first discovered in Paraíba during the late 1980s. Meanwhile, Pedro II in the state of Piauí is one of Brazil’s best-known opal-producing areas. 

The true richness of Brazil lies not only in the number of gems beneath its soil, but in the individual journey of each stone: the mine where it was discovered, the hands that carefully recovered it and the artist who eventually revealed its final form. Exact national production figures can be difficult to measure because many gemstones are recovered by small-scale or independent miners, known as garimpeiros.