South Africa, the leading producer of the highest quality natural white diamonds, and founding country of the world’s largest rough diamond, The Cullinan weighing a total of 3 106 carats celebrates its African sister’s achievement – a record sized rough diamond unearthed in Botswana.
Mark Gieljoumie, GIA graduated Gemmologist and Diamond Expert here at The Diamond Works Institute shares details on this phenomenal find. A massive 2,492-carat rough diamond, believed to be the second biggest ever found, has been unearthed in Botswana, according to a mining company.
Canadian mining company Lucara Diamond Corp. announced on August the 22nd, 2024 that the “exceptional” gem was found intact in its Karowe mine. Calling it a “remarkable” find, the company celebrated it as “one of the largest rough diamonds ever unearthed.”
The diamond was detected, unearthed and recovered thanks to the company’s Mega Diamond Recovery (MDR) X-ray Transmission (XRT) technology, which is designed to “identify and preserve large, high-value diamonds,” the company said in a press release.
William Lamb, president and CEO of Lucara, said in the release: “We are ecstatic about the recovery of this extraordinary 2,492 carat diamond.”
Rough diamonds are usually classified as being gem-quality, near-gem or industrial-quality, depending on their colour, clarity, size and shape. The stone is still to be evaluated.
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