The largest diamond in over a century has been discovered in Botswana: 2,492 carats

GABORONE, Botswana (AP) — The largest diamond discovered in more than a century has been unearthed in a mine in Botswana, and the country’s president showed off the fist-sized stone to the world at an exhibition ceremony Thursday.

The Botswana government said the massive 2,492-carat diamond was the second largest diamond ever discovered in a mine. It is the largest diamond discovered since 1905.

The diamond, whose name has not yet been released, was presented to the world at the office of Botswana President Mokgweetsi Masisi. It weighs about half a kilo and Masisi was one of the first to hold it in his hands.

“It’s shocking,” Masisi said. “I was lucky enough to see this in my lifetime.” He gasped and exclaimed “wow” before calling senior government officials to look into the situation more closely.

Authorities said it was too early to assess the stone’s value or decide how it would be sold. Another, smaller diamond from the same mine in Botswana sold for $63 million in 2016, a record for a rough stone.

“This is a historic moment,” said Naseem Lahri, CEO of Lucara Diamond Corp., the Canadian mining company that discovered the diamond in Botswana. “I’m very proud. This is a product of Botswana.”

Lucara said in a statement Wednesday that it had recovered the “exceptional” rough diamond from its Karowe mine in central Botswana. Lucara said it was a “high-quality” stone and was found intact. It was located using X-ray technology designed to detect large, high-value diamonds.

“We are thrilled with the recovery of this extraordinary 2,492-carat diamond,” Lucara Chairman and CEO William Lamb said in a statement.

Its weight would make it the largest diamond discovered in 119 years and the second largest ever mined after the Cullinan Diamond discovered in South Africa in 1905. The famous Cullinan weighed 3,106 carats and was cut into precious stones, some of which are included in the British Crown Jewels.

A larger, less pure black diamond was discovered in Brazil in the late 1800s, but it was found above ground and was thought to be part of a meteorite.

Botswana, a country of 2.6 million people in southern Africa, is the second largest producer of natural diamonds after Russia and has mined all of the world’s largest stones in recent years. The Karowe mine has produced four other diamonds of more than 1,000 carats in the past decade.

Prior to this discovery, the Sewelo diamond, discovered in the Karowe mine in 2019, was recognized as the second largest diamond mined in the world at 1,758 carats. It was purchased by French fashion house Louis Vuitton for an undisclosed amount.

The 1,111-carat Lesedi La Rona diamond, also from the Karowe mine in Botswana, was purchased by a British jeweller for $53 million in 2017. Another Karowe diamond, The Constellation, sold for a record $63 million.

Diamonds are formed when carbon atoms are compressed under high pressure deep underground. Scientists say that most diamonds are at least a billion years old, and some are more than three billion years old.

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AP Africa News: https://apnews.com/hub/africa