The world's 15th-largest rough diamond - about the size of a golf ball and dubbed the Lesotho Promise - was bought by a South African diamond cutting company today for $16.6 million at the end of a five-day silent bid competition in Antwerp. Lesotho's Natural Resources Minister Mamphono Khaketla, whose government and mining company Gem Diamonds co-owned the 603-carat stone, announced the sale to the South African Diamond Corp, or Safdico, in the heart of the port city's diamond district. "We called the diamond the Lesotho Promise. We promise you more of the same and better in the future," Khaketla told reporters. Safdico is the manufacturing arm of famous British gem maker and seller Graff Jewelers. The company said it would cut and polish the very clear gem at its Antwerp factory after carefully studying the rock's fissures and cracks to ensure it finishes off the product the best way possible. Experts have already graded the Promise with a Class D status, meaning it is of the clearest quality, with no colour blemishes. Safdico said it aims to produce a large rock, above 60 carats from the rough diamond and smaller polished stones, aiming to resell them for above $US20 million ($A26.97 million). The Lesotho Promise was found in August at the famous Letsing mine, where in 1967 a 601-carat stone was discovered and was named the Lesotho Brown because of its colour. Gem Diamonds chief executive Clifford Elphick said there were three other "very serious bidders" quite close to winning the final bid for the giant gem, but he refused to divulge who they were. News reports said other bidders included jewelry maker Omega Diamonds from Australia and Antwerp-based diamond seller Rosy Blue.
Christie's Hong Kong jewelry sale set for December 1st is to be led by a five-carat, cushion-cut pink diamond. Named "The Vivid Pink," the stone is described as the largest fancy, potentially flawless-diamond placed in an auction.
Diamonds have been a source of fascination for centuries. They are the hardest, the most imperishable, and the brilliant of all precious stones. The word "diamond" comes from the Greek word adamas, meaning "unconquerable".
A diamond is a transparent gem made of carbon, one of the earth's most common elements.
The formation of diamonds began very early in the earth's history, when the condensation of s
olid matter into a sphere caused the centre of the planet to become subjected to incredible extremes of temperatures and pressure.
It was these conditions that caused deposits of carbon to begin to crystallise deep in the earth. As the earth's surface cooled, volcanic activity forced streams of magna (liquid rock) to the
surface, carrying with it the diamond crystals. Later, the diamond-bearing rock hardened, encasing the diamonds in vertical volcanic "pipes".
But not all diamonds are found where they first came to the surface. Subsequent erosion of
the topsoils over millions of years washed some of the diamonds into streams and rivers, and sometimes as far away as the sea. It is highly probable that they were first discovered in areas such as these, far away from their original location.
The atomic structure of a diamond gives it the property of being the hardest substance known to man, natural or synthetic. The diamond is thousands of times harder than corundum, the
next hardest substance from which rubies and sapphires are formed. Even after many
years of constant wear, diamonds will preserve their sharp edges and corners
when most other stones will have become worn and chipped.
However, many people expect a diamond to be unbreakable. This is not true. A diamond's
crystal structure has "hard" and "soft" directions. A blow of sufficient force, in a very exact direction, can crack, chip, split or even shatter a diamond.
Diamonds need caring to keep them looking at their brilliant best. They should be cleaned at least once a month to keep away the "dullness" that can be caused by skin oils, soap, cosmetics and even cooking grease. The only substance that does not stick to a diamond is water. A clean diamond will reflect better light.
From myths about valleys of diamonds protected by snakes, to the production of millions of carats in rough diamonds each year, the history of diamonds is one of mystical power, beauty and commercial expertise.
The first recorded history of the diamond dates back some 3,000 years to India, where it is likely that diamonds were first valued for their ability to refract light. In those days, the diamond was used in two ways-for decorative purposes, and as a talisman to ward off evil or provide protection in battle.
The diamond was also used for some time as medical aid. One anecdote, written during the Dark Ages by St Hildegarde, relates how a diamond held in the hand while making a sign of the cross would heal wounds and cure illnesses. Diamonds were also ingested in the hope of curing sickness. During the early Middle Ages, Pope Clement unsuccessfully used this treatment in a bid to aid his recovery.
During the Middle Ages more attention was paid to the worth of diamonds, rather than the mystical powers surrounding them. Due to the heightened public awareness of the value of diamonds, mine owners perpetuated myths that diamonds were poisonous. This was to prevent the mineworkers swallowing the diamonds in an attempt to smuggle them out of the mines.
During the mid-nineteenth century, diamonds were also being discovered in eastern Australia. However, it was not until late 1970's, after seven years of earnest searching, that Australia's alleged potential as a diamond producer was validated.
Fancy green diamonds are also available. Usually, penetration of the colour is not very deep and is often removed during the fashioning of the stone.
Fancy blue diamonds are available in a wide range of shades, from the blue of the sky to a more "steely" colour than sapphire.
Fancy yellow diamonds come in a broad range of shades ranging from light yellow to a rich canary colour.
A limited quantity of fancy yellow diamonds is recovered from the Argyle mine.
Cubic Zirconia
Cubic Zirconia (CZ) is the most commonly encountered diamond simulant. All commercial CZ is formed in laboratories however, it is also found in nature. In both its synthetic and natural forms, CZ is colourless but colour can be introduced. A thermal pen tester can quickly and easily detect CZ.
Synthetic moissanite is a new diamond simulant to join the long list of products that imitate diamonds. Although moissanite is being marketed as a new unique, synthetic gemstone, some of its properties are close enough to those of diamonds to lead to confusion in the trade.
Attractive champagne diamonds with secondary pink colour are also available and command a higher price per carat than champagne diamonds. These stones display slight to bold flashes of pink in their fire.
Champagne diamonds are naturally coloured diamonds that are produced in a wide range of colours from light straw to rich cognac.
White diamonds are produced by mines all over the world in a wide variety of shapes and sizes.The white diamonds recovered from the Argyle mine are particularly brilliant and of high quality.
The pink diamond is the world's most rare and valuable diamond.T
he Argyle mine is the world's foremost source of unrivalled intense
pink diamonds, producing 95% of the world's supply. However, an extremely small proportion of Argyle Diamonds production is Pink colour, in fact less than one tenth of 1% is classified Pink.
The legend of Argyle pink diamond has grown over the past ten year
s. At the 1989 Christie's auction in New
York a 3.14 carat Argyle pink sold for $1,510,000.
Privately, Argyle has sold
pink diamonds for up to $1
million a carat.
For years the white diamond was considered the world's most
beautiful diamond, until the discovery of the Argyle mine heralded the arrival of the Argyle pink diamond. Never before had pink diamonds displaying such intense shades of colour been seen. The pink diamonds of India, Brazil and Africa w
ere characteristically light in colour and paled even further when placed beside the intensely pink Argyle diamonds. The natural colour diamonds have in fact been around as long as the classical whites but in much smaller quantities and never in great demand.
determined by the intensity of colour. Argyle selects only its most vibrant pink diamonds for polishing at its head office in Perth. There, the stones are polished in a wide range of cuts, such as round brilliant, marquise, oval and pear, to enhance their natural beauty. Polished pink diamonds are available in the same size ranges as traditional commercial sizes.
Once a year, Argyle Diamonds issues a special release of outstanding pink diamonds that are sold by special bids in the international and invitation-only, Pink Diamond Tender.
“The Taylor-Burton” – discovered in De Beers’ Premier mine in 1966. It weighed 240,80 carats but cut into a smaller 69,42 carat diamond and later auctioned for US$1 050 000 and renamed “Cartier”. It was bought by actor Richard Burton and given to his wife Elizabeth Taylor. In 1978, Taylor sold it to raise funds for a hospital in Botswana.
“The Excelsior” is the second largest diamond discovered. It initially weighed 995,2 carats but was later cut into 10 pieces. An African mineworker found the diamond and kept it secret until he could hand it over to his mine manager. His reward? Some money, a horse and a saddle.
“The Star of Africa” – or the Cullinan 1 – is named after Sir Thomas Cullinan, owner of the mining company in SA that found it. It weighs a truly massive 530,20 carats and has 74 facets. The stone is set in the sceptre of King Edward VII and can be viewed at the Tower of London.
Koh-I-Noor – or “Mountain of Light” – weighs in at 186 carats. Discovered in 1304 and once owned by the builder of the Taj Mahal, the stone was recut in the reign of Queen Victoria and now forms part of the British crown jewels.
