Posted on 09/11/2010 3:32:18 PM PDT by epithermal
An “exceptional” 196ct rough white diamond was recovered from Gem Diamonds Ltd’s majority-owned Letseng mine in Lesotho last month.
On announcing its August 24 recovery, the company said: “this remarkable rough diamond is expected to achieve a substantial price per carat as preliminary examinations indicate that it is expected to produce top colour and top clarity polished diamonds”.
The Letseng mine has produced three of the world’s 20 largest diamonds since Gem Diamonds acquired the asset in 2006. These include the 603ct Lesotho Promise (in August 2006) worth US$12.4 million, the 493ct Letseng Legacy (in September 2007) worth US$10.4 million, and the 478ct Light of Letseng (in September 2008) worth US$18.4 million.
Clifford Elphick, Gem Diamonds chief executive, said: “Letseng continues to live up to its reputation as a unique producer of exceptional diamonds and the recovery of this remarkable 196ct white diamond reinforces its position as one of the great mines in the diamond industry.”
Gem Diamonds owns 70% of the Letseng mine, with the remainder held by the government of Lesotho.
lol
I recall the incident and there were follow-up stories at the time that gave more information on the hoax. I can't locate them at the moment but will post links if I find them.
that would make some awesome sawblades.
The link is working now. Can’t imagine why the fool would try and pass that off as a diamond. What on earth could he gain by that?
I think the person was mentally unbalanced. I’ve looked at several follow-up articles and they all indicate something along those lines. Some say it was actually a resin casting of an octohedral crystal, not fluorite. Whatever it was it wasn’t a diamond.
no such thing as too big for a ring...you can always put your arm in a strong sling...
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