Its not a Blood Diamond, Its a Big Diamond!

Posted in News by AGavin on August 30th, 2007

Johannesburg - South Africans were waiting with bated breath Wednesday for confirmation that a grapefruit-sized greenish rock found in a river bed in North-West province was a 7,000-carat diamond, twice the size of the largest uncut diamond on record.

 A leading gemologist has said the 1.6 kilogramme stone would be the ‘eighth wonder of the world’ if confirmed as a diamond. Diamond mining giant De Beers has also said the discovery by a small unnamed rival in North-West province could be the ‘find of the century.’ 

But the secrecy surrounding the find and the seemingly perfect shape of the stone have sown doubts that the octahedral rock seen in a grainy photograph is indeed the mother of all diamonds, and not, for example, a crystal. Jolly told Business Day newspaper Wednesday the stone was found in an alluvial mine, the type of mining practised in the north-west. 

A spokesman for a Cape-Town-based leisure company that has a share in the mine also told Citizen newspaper the stone had been found ‘on the other side of Potchefstroom’ town in the province. Jolly, a property developer, who claims to have full mining rights, told Business Day he was waiting for the opinion of a gemologist but hoped to fetch up to 700 million British pounds for the gem if it was a diamond. 

One leading gemologist, Les Milner, who saw the photograph of the stone, has said that if it is a diamond it could be between 6,500 and 7,000 carats. Jolly has cited ’security’ concerns for his refusal to give specifics about his mining company. One expert told Business Day that if he does not hold a mining license, the stone belongs to the state. 

The largest uncut diamond on record, the Cullinan, was found near Pretoria in 1905. It measured 3 106,75 carats in its rough state and was later cut into smaller stones that adorn the British crown jewels.