What is the largest diamond in the world?

The largest diamond in the history of mining this precious stone was discovered in the north-west of South Africa. The stone weighs more than 6 thousand carats. At the same time, South African media report that we are talking about a gem-quality diamond – highly transparent and free of defects. Previously, the largest diamond discovered in Brazil was considered to be one weighing 3600 carats (0,72 kilograms), which, however, could not be used for jewelry purposes. Previously, the largest jewelry diamond was the “Cullinan” weighing 3106 carats (621,2 g). This gem-quality stone was also found in 1905 in South Africa. If the diamond discovered in South Africa is close in its characteristics to the “Cullinan”, then Its value, even in uncut form, at auction can be at least 15 million pounds sterling (about 30 million US dollars). What name the rare diamond will receive has not yet been determined. It is also not specified which company owns the enterprise where the stone was found, however. It is known that almost all diamond mining in South Africa is controlled by the De Beers Group. The largest diamond, the Cullinan, was found in South Africa at the Premier mine almost by accident. Mine manager Frederick Wells was making his evening rounds in January 1905 and, in the rays of the setting sun, he saw a strong shine on the wall of the quarry. It was not easy to get to the place that interested him, because the search point was 9 meters under the edge of the quarry. After the excavations, the workers saw a stone measuring 10×6,5×5 cm, which had broken off from a larger octahedral crystal. At the same moment it became clear that in front of them was a very large diamond. And after that, jewelers declared that the stone was also of rare purity (there were almost no inclusions, bubbles or cracks in it) and a white-blue color unusual for African diamonds (in Africa, most stones have a yellowish tint). In honor of the mine owner, Thomas Cullian, the largest diamond was named “Cullian” and was put on public display in a bank in Johannesburg. For five whole years everyone could admire it, because no one had enough money to buy such a stone. In order for the stone to remain in the republic, it was even proposed to collect a shilling from each resident. But politicians of the Transvaal Republic intervened, who decided to buy the crystal for 150 pounds sterling (although, according to experts, it was already worth 8 million pounds sterling, or equal to the cost of 94 tons of gold) and give it to the English king as a sign of reconciliation after the Boer War. Edward VII did not appreciate the gift weighing 3106 carats (621,2g), but still gave it to the famous Dutch company “I. J. Asher and Co.” The best lapidary in Europe, Joseph Assker, took up the study of the stone. He knew how, as grinders say, to “open” a stone. To do this, it was necessary to find a point on the surface of the diamond, by grinding which you can look inside the diamond and determine the direction of one single blow, which allows you to dismember the stone along existing cracks and free yourself from foreign inclusions in it.
The largest diamond, the Cullinan, had cracks, so it could not be made into one giant diamond. Josef Assker studied the unique Cullinan diamond for several months before making a barely noticeable scratch on it. After this, in the presence of several famous jewelers, in the midst of solemn silence, Assker put a chisel to a scratch on the diamond, hit it with a hammer and lost consciousness.
But the calculation turned out to be correct. Having regained consciousness, Assker repeated this operation several more times on the diamond fragments that arose from the first blow, eventually obtaining 2 very large monolithic blocks, 7 medium-sized ones and about a hundred small pieces of pure bluish-white water. It took almost four years to cut the resulting stones and in 1912, in Paris, upon completion of the work, a grand banquet was given. As a result, “Cullinan-I” weighing 530,2 carats of pear-shaped (or teardrop-shaped) pandelok with 74 facets, “Cullinan-II” 317,4 carats of “emerald” shape, “Cullinan-III” 94,4 carats were obtained , “Cullinan-IV” 63,6 carats and smaller diamonds called “Small Stars of Africa”. Each of these stones has its own story: “Cullinan-I”, as a gift to the English king, adorns his scepter and is currently kept in the Tower of London. “Cullinan II” was inserted into the crown of the British Empire, and is now also kept in the Tower of London. “Cullinan IV” was inserted into the crown of Queen Mary in 1911, and in 1959 it was presented set in a brooch at the Eternal Diamond exhibition in London, and is currently also kept in the Tower of London. To this day, many jewelers regret that such a rare stone could not be preserved entirely – it was broken into a total of 105 fragments, the total weight of which is 1 carats, which is only 063,65% of the total weight of the Cullinan. Of these, 34,25 of the largest stones are the pride of the English crown. The largest diamond is sometimes also called the “Star of Africa” (but this is usually when talking about the whole diamond found). He knew how, as grinders say, to “open” a stone. To do this, it was necessary to find a point on the surface of the diamond, by grinding which you can look inside the diamond and determine the direction of one single blow, which allows you to dismember the stone along existing cracks and free yourself from foreign inclusions in it. The largest diamond, the Cullinan, had cracks, so it could not be made into one giant diamond. Josef Assker studied the unique Cullinan diamond for several months before making a barely noticeable scratch on it. After this, in the presence of several famous jewelers, in the midst of solemn silence, Assker put a chisel to a scratch on the diamond, hit it with a hammer and lost consciousness. But the calculation turned out to be correct. Having regained consciousness, Assker repeated this operation several more times on the diamond fragments that arose from the first blow, eventually obtaining 2 very large monolithic blocks, 7 medium-sized ones and about a hundred small pieces of pure bluish-white water. Natural diamonds weighing more than one hundred carats are a real sensation. There are not many positions on the list of the largest diamonds. There are very few such specimens in the world, and until the second half of the nineteenth century (before the discovery of African diamond deposits), large diamonds were almost never found. The most expensive diamonds Such precious stones were the exclusive prerogative of kings, emperors and other powerful persons. Bloody wars often broke out for the sake of these beautiful crystals, and thousands of people died. Large diamonds were not only a beautiful trinket, but also a source of power and authority. Suffice it to recall Napoleon Bonaparte, who at a critical moment for his empire took out a huge loan, pawning the legendary Pitt diamond. The largest diamonds are: “Cullinan” – South Africa, 3106 carats Cullinan The largest diamond mined to date is the Cullinan diamond. which before processing weighed a whopping 3106 carats, equivalent to 621 grams. The huge mineral was accidentally discovered more than a century ago in a South African diamond mine. owned by T. Cullinan. Diamond Cullinan Frederick Wells, the manager of the diamond mine, was lucky enough to notice the grandiose crystal. when he was doing his evening rounds. A half-kilogram diamond was literally lying underfoot, as if impatiently awaiting his finest hour. And soon it happened. The Cullinan was sold to Great Britain for $800 and given as a birthday present to King Edward VII. It was decided to entrust the cutting of such an outstanding diamond to the Dutch company Asscher Brothers, who examined the stone for two years. Only after a thorough analysis they decided to divide the stone into 9 large and 96 small diamonds. The largest diamond in the world Even after crushing, the two diamonds continue to hold the title of the largest diamonds in the world. These are the “Great Star of Africa” (or “Cullinan I”) weighing 530 carats and the “Little Star of Africa” (also known as “Cullinan II”) weighing 317 carats. The largest diamond is set in the British royal scepter, and the second stone adorns the crown of the Queen of Great Britain. The largest diamonds are: “Braganza” – Brazil, 1680 carats Excelsior – South Africa, 995,2 carats “Star of Sierra Leone” – Africa, 968,9 carats “Great Mongol” – India, 787,5 carats carbonado CAR – 740,25 carats. “President Vargas” – Brazil, 726,2 carats “Jonker” – Africa, 726 carats “Jubilee” – Africa, 616 carats “Baumgold” – Africa, 609,2 carats “Lesotho” – South Africa 601,25 carats “Imperial” – 469 carats “Regent” – India 410 carats “Orlov” – India 300 carats “Tiffany Yellow Diamond” – Africa 287,4 carats “Centinery” – Africa, 273,85 carats “Star of Yakutia” – Yakutia 232,1 carats Precious Diamonds of India: Koh-i-noor
Regent
Derianur
Sancy
Orlov
Шах
Eugene
Hope
Tuscan (Florentine)
Star Este
polar Star
Green Dresden Diamond Precious diamonds from Brazil: Star of the South
English Dresden diamond
Minas Gerais
President Vargas Precious diamonds from Africa: Cullinan
Excelsior
Jubilee
De Beers
South African Star
Tiffany
Red Cross
Colenzo
Cuban Capitol