Vietnam abounds in natural resources and precious gemstones in particular. Vietnam gemstones such as ruby, sapphire, spinel, zircon, olivin, topa and granat..., have in recent years been a heated issue in domestic and international markets. Especially, Vietnam's ruby is highly valued in terms of not only deposits but also quality, said to be equal to that of Myanmar. Vietnam's two largest ruby mines are Yen Bai and Nghe An.

     The Department General of Posts and Telecommunications (DGPT) issues a special stamp set entitled Vietnam gemstones. The set consists of two models:

Model 1: The 1,960g ruby, found in Tan Huong, Yen Binh, Yen Bai Province on April 6, 2000, having a face value of VND400

Model 2: The 2,160g Vietnam Star ruby, considered a national treasure, also found in Tan Huong on April 25, 2000, which has been decided by the Prime Minister to be preserved as a national treasure, with a face value of VND6,000