Bo Phloi

Bo Phloi is located about 120 km west of Bangkok, in Thailand’s Kanchanaburi Province. Kanchanaburi is known for its deep-blue Sapphires and has been one of the world’s main sources for decades. In the Bo Phloi area, there are several open pit-mines.

The Bo Phloi Bassin is situated along the southeastern portion of the Three Pagodes Fault in western Thailand. The bassin can be devided in three parts, being the Ban Chong Dan deposit, the Ban Bung Hua Waen deposit and the Khao Hin Lap & Khao Chon Kai deposits.
The recent excavations are situated in both the Ban Chong Dan and the Ban Bung Hua Waen deposit. The deposits consist of a 4-5 meter thick gem-bearing gravel bed.
Local prospectors have been searching for Sapphires in this area by pitting into the gravel layers about 1-2 meters deep. Until the last decade, mechanized Sapphire mining has been performed by many companies in the deeper layers to the west and in the centre of the bassin.

In the last decade, many of the large former mines pits, which formed many lakes, are recultivated by the mining companies and turned into palm gardens, recreation areas, fish farms and golf courses.