The Intriguing Story of the 507 Carat Diamond

Rough diamond, before processing.

Diamonds, being one of the most expensive natural gemstones on the planet, are loved by many for their beauty and rarity. Diamonds are highly regarded and cherished by men and women all over the world as one of the most magnificent and rare precious gemstones. It’s so rare that huge diamonds are rarely found, but on September 24, 2009, an astounding 507 carat diamond was discovered, making it one of the 20 largest high quality diamonds in existence. The diamond was discovered by Petra Diamonds in the Cullinan Mine (previously named the Premier Mine) South Africa, and initially it was projected to be worth about $20 million United States dollars, enough to finance the costs of the Cullinan Mine for 2 years. However, once the diamond was sold, it fetched quite a higher sum.

Initial examinations of the gem, which was found amongst other large, white diamonds in the mine – ones that measured 53.30 carats, 58.50 carats, and 168 carats, showed that it was very exceptional in both clarity and color, making it have incredibly high potential quality when polished. The 507 carat diamond, which is about the size of a chicken’s egg, was sold in 2010 by Petra Diamonds for an incredible $35.5 million dollars, the highest selling price for a rough diamond in history breaking the previous record, and much higher than the initial projected worth of $20 million. The diamond, which weighed just over 100 grams, was purchased by Chow Tai Food Jewelry, a private jewelry retailer based in Hong Kong, China.

The Cullinan Mine, which was discovered in 1890 and was sold by De Beers, the largest diamond producer in the world, to Petra Diamonds for approximately $150 million dollars in 2007, has also been the home of many other significant finds, one of which is the Cullinan Diamond. The Cullinan Diamond, also called the Great Star of Africa or Cullinan I, is the largest gem-quality diamond to ever be found, coming in at 3,106.75 carats. It has been estimated to be worth over $400 million. It was found on January 25,1905 by miner Thomas Evan Powell and named after the owner of the diamond mine at the time, Sir Thomas Cullinan. Another diamond to have been found in the Cullinan Mine is a 101.27 carat diamond that was found in May of 2008 and sold for over $6.2 million at Christie’s in Hong Kong.