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The Largest Pink Diamond in 300 Years Has Just Been Unearthed
Science Alert ^ | 29 JULY 2022 | BRANDON SPEKTOR

Posted on 07/29/2022 10:50:42 AM PDT by Red Badger

The Lulo Rose weighs 170 carats. (Lucapa Diamond Corp)

Miners in Angola have uncovered a massive pink diamond that may be the biggest gem of its kind found in the past 300 years.

The pink diamond is estimated to weigh 170 carats, making it just a smidge smaller than the 182-carat Daria-i-Noor diamond – the largest pink diamond in the world, which today is part of the Iranian National Jewels.

The new diamond has been nicknamed the "Lulo Rose," after the Lulo mine in northeastern Angola where it was found, according to a statement from the Lucapa Diamond Company, which owns Lulo and one other diamond mine in Angola.

Since 2015, the Lulo mining project has uncovered 27 diamonds weighing more than 100 carats, including the largest diamond ever found in Angola: the 404-carat "4th February Stone," which sold for US$16 million in 2016.

The Lulo Rose, the fifth-largest diamond found at Lulo, is expected to sell for an even higher price.

Pink diamonds are relatively rare, and scientists still aren't certain about the phenomenon that gives these stones their rosy hue.

In 1999, miners in South Africa uncovered a rough 132-carat pink diamond that was later named The Pink Star. For nearly two years, experts slowly cut and ground the rock into a 59-carat jewel, and in 2013, The Pink Star sold for roughly US$83 million at auction, becoming the single most expensive gemstone ever sold.

The Lulo Rose also will have to be cut down from its rough form, which could result in its weight dropping by up to half, according to the statement. But even if the Lulu Rose is reduced to 85 carats, the vivid pink stone looks primed to set a new sales record of its own.

Humans have been collecting and trading diamonds since 2500 BCE, Live Science previously reported. For millennia, their dazzling appearance and extreme rarity made them a sought-after status symbol that only the world's wealthiest could afford.

Diamonds form deep underground – typically 100 miles (160 kilometers) or more beneath Earth's surface – when carbon deposits are exposed to the extreme heat and temperatures of the inner Earth. Some diamonds may burst to the surface during volcanic eruptions, but today most are found through mining efforts around the world.

Approximately 90 million carats of rough diamonds are mined for jewelry every year, generating more than US$300 billion in revenue worldwide; however, conditions for mining diamonds are often hazardous, and the industry has been associated with the displacement of Indigenous peoples, worker exploitation, pollution and human rights abuses, according to a report released in 2018 by the nonprofit Human Rights Watch.


TOPICS: Business/Economy; History; Society; Weird Stuff
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1 posted on 07/29/2022 10:50:42 AM PDT by Red Badger
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To: Red Badger

2 posted on 07/29/2022 10:54:46 AM PDT by BenLurkin (The above is not a statement of fact. It is either opinion, or satire, or both.)
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To: Red Badger

Gender Reveal party is planned for later.


3 posted on 07/29/2022 10:56:12 AM PDT by ClearCase_guy (We are already in a revolutionary period, and the Rule of Law means nothing. It's "whatever".)
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To: BenLurkin

Nicely done sir

👌


4 posted on 07/29/2022 10:56:58 AM PDT by V_TWIN (America...so great even the people that hate it refuse to leave)
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To: ClearCase_guy

It will burn almost as well as coal.


5 posted on 07/29/2022 10:57:45 AM PDT by MtnClimber (For photos of Colorado scenery and wildlife, click on my screen name for my FR home page.)
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To: Red Badger

After I hit the Megamillions tonite I’ll put a bid in on it. 😎


6 posted on 07/29/2022 10:58:24 AM PDT by V_TWIN (America...so great even the people that hate it refuse to leave)
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To: Red Badger

ACTUAL value? Maybe $200 because of the rarity.
DeBeers cooked up value? PRICELESS.

The joys of monopolies.


7 posted on 07/29/2022 11:00:19 AM PDT by FrankRizzo890
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To: BenLurkin
The Pink Panther in "Pink Ice"
8 posted on 07/29/2022 11:05:32 AM PDT by mewzilla (We need to repeal RCV wherever it's in use and go back to dumb voting machines.)
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To: Red Badger

The 182-carat Darya-i Noor diamond appropriated by the Iranian Islamists from the Peacock Throne.


9 posted on 07/29/2022 11:10:24 AM PDT by higgmeister ( In the Shadow of The Big Chicken)
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To: mewzilla

Thanks for that interlude.


10 posted on 07/29/2022 11:17:40 AM PDT by higgmeister ( In the Shadow of The Big Chicken)
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To: Red Badger

Are those tweezers or fire place tongs? I wish they would photograph these things next to something to show a size comparison.


11 posted on 07/29/2022 11:36:33 AM PDT by Farmerbob
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To: Red Badger
"when carbon deposits are exposed to the extreme heat and temperatures of the inner Earth."

Shouldn't that be "extreme heat and pressure"? That's what I learned as a kid.

12 posted on 07/29/2022 11:47:54 AM PDT by A Navy Vet (USA Birth Certificate - 1787. Death Certificate - 2021. )
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To: A Navy Vet

Yes........................


13 posted on 07/29/2022 11:50:30 AM PDT by Red Badger (Homeless veterans camp in the streets while illegal aliens are put up in hotels.....................)
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To: Red Badger
"the industry has been associated with the displacement of Indigenous peoples, worker exploitation, pollution and human rights abuses, according to a report released in 2018 by the nonprofit Human Rights Watch."

Of course they had to include that. Maybe these "scientists" should look into the almost slave labor for mining cobalt that is needed for their precious Electric Vehicles.

14 posted on 07/29/2022 11:51:06 AM PDT by A Navy Vet (USA Birth Certificate - 1787. Death Certificate - 2021. )
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To: Red Badger
Your tagline represents such a shameful failure of our Fed and State governments. It makes me sad. Most of these Veterans on the streets have mental/emotional impairment. They above all, should have the best treatment America can provide.

Solution: Kick the illegals out and assist the homeless Veterans into that housing. Each building would have a combat Veteran supervisor and an on-call shrink with experience in PTSD. Plus, social/jobs programs to help them ease back into a productive life and re-establish their self-esteem.

The above may not work for all, then there are medications that would be monitored by the staff.

15 posted on 07/29/2022 12:20:15 PM PDT by A Navy Vet (USA Birth Certificate - 1787. Death Certificate - 2021. )
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To: A Navy Vet

😢..............................


16 posted on 07/29/2022 12:31:42 PM PDT by Red Badger (Homeless veterans camp in the streets while illegal aliens are put up in hotels.....................)
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To: Red Badger

Agreed.


17 posted on 07/29/2022 12:54:28 PM PDT by A Navy Vet (USA Birth Certificate - 1787. Death Certificate - 2021. )
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To: Red Badger

The pink diamond ring I asked Beau to buy me for my Birthday was only $2.5 million.

He told me to, ‘forget it’ and didn’t I have barn stalls to clean? ;)


18 posted on 07/29/2022 1:09:02 PM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin (I don't have, 'Hobbies.' I'm developing a robust Post-Apocalyptic skill set. )
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To: higgmeister

Youre welcome!

I’ve been hearing Mancini’s theme in my head all day. (^..^)/


19 posted on 07/29/2022 1:12:23 PM PDT by mewzilla (We need to repeal RCV wherever it's in use and go back to dumb voting machines.)
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To: Red Badger

170 carats. How does that compare in size to a baseball?


20 posted on 07/29/2022 1:30:55 PM PDT by lurk (u)
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