Up to $2 billion for the Cullinan The 3,106.75ct Cullinan rough diamond is the world’s biggest gem grade rough diamond ever discovered. Terrific huge diamonds have had a great decade. The previous five years have seen the discovery of four of the world’s biggest diamonds! Despite the fact that legendary gems like the Cullinan Diamond in the British Crown Jewels are well known, you may not be aware of the very large diamonds unearthed recently, all of which are worth millions of dollars and millions more.
Despite the fact that the largest diamonds aren’t usually the greatest, recent discoveries of huge crystals have yielded some of the best grade diamonds. Newly found super-sized diamonds of high grade may soon enter the ranks of the world’s most valuable gems. The Cullinan Diamond, the largest diamond in the world, was found at the Premier Mine in South Africa in 1905 and is the largest ever found.
Known as the Cullinan Diamond after the mine owner, Thomas Cullinan, the uncut 3,106 carat stone weighed a whopping 1-1/3 pounds! Moreover, 2.5 inches tall, the Cullinan rough was just about 4-inches in length, 2-inches wide, and 2-inches wide again. The large diamond crystal was discovered by Frederick Wells, the supervisor of the Premier Mine near Pretoria in Transvaal, what is today South Africa. He originally doubted that the huge crystal was in fact a diamond because of its unusual shape.
Diamonds such as the Taylor Burton Diamond, the 353-carat rough that became Premier Rose, and the 599-carat rough that generated a De Beers Centenary Diamond have all come from the Cullinan Mine, which has now been renamed. One of the most renowned diamonds from the Premier Mine is the 755.50 carat Golden Jubilee Diamond, which is currently on exhibit with other legendary gems at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Diamond Hall of Fame. The government of Transvaal dispatched the Cullinan to Europe as a sign of patriotism and gave it to King Edward VII of England on his return from the First World War.
The cutting was done in Amsterdam. Joseph Asscher, a famous diamond cutter, is reported to have collapsed after chopping the stone in half. He sliced it up into more than a ten-diamond-sized chunk. There are many big Cullinan diamonds now on exhibit in the Crown Jewels of England. It is the 530.40-carat Great Star of Africa or Cullinan I Diamond, which is set in the Sovereign’s Sceptre with Cross, which is the largest stone cut from Cullinan. This 317.40-carat cushion-cut diamond from the Cullinan is commonly referred to as the Second Star of Africa. Among the British Crown Jewels, the Cullinan II Diamond adorns the Imperial State Crown, which may be seen in the Tower of London.
Many lesser Cullinan diamonds, including the third and fourth-biggest, are owned by Queen Elizabeth in addition to the Crown Jewels’ larger Cullinan diamonds. These gems include 94.40-carat pear-shaped and 63.60-carat square-cut brilliant. “Granny’s Chips” is the name given to the brooch by Queen Elizabeth II. The Asscher Diamond Company kept them in Amsterdam as payment for cutting the Cullinan, but the South African government acquired them and presented them to Queen Mary, who handed them down to her granddaughter Queen Elizabeth, who now holds them in her treasury. As the biggest diamond unearthed, the Cullinan is a Type IIa diamond, recognised for its remarkable colour and clarity.
The Cullinan is a D-color diamond with a high potential for perfect clarity. This raw diamond was used to cut diamonds weighing a total of more than 1,063 carats. Without a doubt, the Cullinan is the most costly diamond ever found. Other than the deep blue Hope Diamond, frequently referred to as “America’s Crown Jewels,” the most renowned diamond doesn’t have a hue.
How much more costly is the Cullinan Diamond than the Hope Diamond? We’ll never know which of the two diamonds would prevail in a royal jewels duel since neither will ever be sold. The 76-carat Archduke Joseph Diamond, which sold for $21.5 million or $282,894 per carat, is the most expensive colourless gem per carat ever sold. That indicates that the Cullinan Diamonds are worth far more than $300 million when they are valued as a group. A $2 billion estimate is based on both their status as part of the royal jewels and their significantly bigger size.
