A network built around the stones
AGL was founded in Antwerp in 1989, in a city whose diamond-trading heritage stretches back more than five centuries. As our work expanded into coloured stones, we recognised that the most credible gemological reports come from laboratories embedded in the trading and mining communities themselves — not isolated in distant cities. Our Sri Lanka laboratory opened in Beruwala in 2018, placing AGL gemologists directly within walking distance of the Ratnapura and Beruwala sapphire markets. Our Shanghai office, established in 2015, gives Chinese collectors and the Asian luxury trade direct access to AGL grading.
Every certificate, regardless of which laboratory issues it, is recorded in the same secure verification database and is subject to the same analytical protocols. A diamond graded in Antwerp, a sapphire identified in Beruwala, and a jadeite pendant certified in Shanghai are all backed by the identical scientific methodology and the identical chain-of-custody discipline.
