gems, bery, beryl, emerald, Colombia, Muzo, Chivor, Bogata

Colombia is currently one of the world’s leading emerald producers, with clear evidence that the mines of the eastern Cordillera were exploited for over five centuries before the Spanish conquest, leading to the common assumption that archaeological finds of emeralds further south—in southwestern Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru—originated from these well-known sources. However, this paper argues that these southern" emeralds likely came from distinct sources in Ecuador, a possibility previously considered but left unresolved by Samuel K. Lothrop in 1937. Although the Spanish never located these Ecuadorian mines, early colonial historical records document their existence, and archaeological evidence supports their production. Moreover, the pattern of emerald use in Ecuador and southwestern Colombia significantly differs from that of the Colombian Altiplano, further suggesting independent sources in Ecuador."