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Bultfontein Mines (South
Africa)
The mine is situated
in the suburbs of Beaconsfield, about three-quarters of
a mile southwest from the Dutoitspan.
It is the second
largest of the Kimberley mines. Possibly it has some
subterranean connection with its immediate neighbor, as
it is reported that the Dutoitspan and the Bultfontein
are dipping to-wards each other at the low levels now
being worked.
In the eighties, after records were kept, the output
from this mine ranged from 500,000 to 700,000 carats
per annum, and sold for an average price of 18s. to
22S. per carat.
The diamonds of the Bultfontein are usually small,
white octahedrons. The color is very good, but the
majority of them are found with flaws. Colored
stones are rarely found. Open working was carried to
a greater depths in this mine than the other
Kimberley mines. Four hundred feet was the usual
limit, but the Bultfontein was dug to a depth of 460
feet.
In the first years of its
history, this mine was not worked with the same energy
as the Kimberley and De Beers. It was not as rich in
diamonds as they, nor were there as many large stones
found in it to excite hope. The diggers hovered about
the rich Kimberley, hoping to make a strike there. When,
however, the Kimberley diamond-bearing area became well
defined, and the surface was all taken up, the
Bultfontein was worked steadily with good results.
Later, as a public demand for stock in diamond mines
developed, a number of companies were floated on this
field, and the various managements, in the effort to
earn dividends, prosecuted the work with vigor. In the
eighties, after records were kept, the output from this
mine ranged from 500,000 to 700,000 carats per annum,
and sold for an average price of 18s. to 22S. per carat....
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For more than 100 years, the name De Beers has evoked
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A symbol of innocence, justice,
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Information Summary...
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Bultfontein Diamond Mine
