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The
Excelsior
Diamond
The Excelsior Diamond The world's biggest diamond,
believed to be twice the size of the Cullinan, has
been discovered in the North-West Province of South
Africa. The find has electrified the diamond
community, but the circumstances of the discovery
are shrouded in mystery. The diamond is expected to
attract furious bidding from buyers worldwide. The
Excelsior was found on June 30, 1893 at the
Jagersfontein Mine by a worker while loading a
truck. The man was able to hide the diamond from the
supervisors but delivered it to the manager of the
mine himself. Until 1905, when the larger Cullinan
diamond was found, the Excelsior was the largest
known diamond in the world. It had a blue-white tint
and weighed 971-3/4 carats (194.2 g). It was
ultimately cut into ten stones weighing from 13 to
68 carats. (2.6 to 13.6 g). Immediately after its
discovery the news spread around the world.
The Excelsior which means "higher" This large
diamond was found on the evening of June 30th, 1893
by an African mine worker. He picked it up in a
shovel of gravel which he was loading into a truck.
The diamond was discovered in the Jagersfontein mine
in the Orange River Colony. It is not only one of
the worlds largest diamonds it is the second largest
diamond ever found. It is about one third the size
of the Cullinan. It originally weighed 995.2 carats.
The diamond was cut into ten pieces, the three
largest weighing 158, 147 and 130 carats. These
pieces were then cut into 21 gems ranging from 70
carats to less than 1 carat. An African mine worker
found the diamond as he was loading his truck, he
kept the find secret until he could safely turn it
over to the mine manager who rewarded him with some
money, a
received a horse and saddle, and a sum of money. In
its rough state the Cullinan weighed 3,106.75
carats. It now forms part of King Edward's sceptre
and is in the Tower of London.
Read more about World's Largest Diamonds
The largest faceted diamond in the world is the Golden
Jubilee, weighing 545.67 carats. It is a Fancy Brownish-Yellow color and
"fire rose cushion cut." It is unusual also because it has a certain
type of rare color banding. The second largest faceted diamond in the
world is the Star of Africa, also known as the Cullinan I. It weighs
530.20 carats and is a pear shape with 74 facets. The third largest
diamond in the world is the Incomparable. It is a golden yellow-orange
color, pear shaped, and weighs 407 carats. The fourth largest faceted
diamond in the world is the Cullinan II. It was cut from the same stone
as the Star of Africa - aka Cullinan I. It weighs 317.40 carats and is a
cushion cut...
World's Famous Diamonds
Passion. Murder.
Insanity. Intrigue. Envy. A mere hint of the fascinating
stories behind the world's most remarkable diamonds.
Many have been associated with famous names - the likes
of Napoleon … Sultan Babur … Lady Astor … Shah Jehan …
Queen Victoria … Catherine the Great … Elizabeth Taylor.
Others have inspired awe and legend on account of their
size, origins or unique qualities. Since nearly the dawn
of time, diamonds have encrusted the armor of great
warriors,...
World's Famous Diamond Mines
The
oldest and most famous diamond mine in North America is
the Crater of Diamonds which is just south of
Murfreesboro, Arkansas. In 1906, diamonds were found
after John Wesley Huddleston bought the land to farm.
He noticed two small stones in the bottom of the bucket
of cattle feed. The stones were sent to Little
Rock jeweler who sent them to Tiffany's in New York and,...
World's Renowned Diamond Cutting Centers
Diamonds being easily transportable and being of high
value allows them to be moved to the most efficient and
economic locations for further processing. The several
factors that are considered in determining the location
of a diamond cutting facility...
A Diamond is Forever
De Beers launched a multi-million dollar "A Diamond is For Ever" advertising
campaign to rekindle the demand. With N.W. Iyer, its U.S. advertising agency, it
had developed aggressive campaign to promote sales of diamond anniversary rings
and jewelry for men... ...
Read more...
Buying Jewelry from Online (Internet) Stores
Internet has made the world a small place. Beautiful
jewelry from many countries and much more variety and
beauty ever imagined is available on online stores. If
you can get very good quality jewelry at lower prices
with more variety in designs, then online jewelry stores
are always a better choice. And this is true with many
renowned online jewelry websites! Online jewelry
buying.....
Read more...
Diamonds and De Beers - The Story of the
Diamond Cartel
When a gang of thieves with a stolen bulldozer plowed into London's
Millennium Dome in November 2000 to steal a 203-carat diamond from a
display sponsored by De Beers, Nicky Oppenheimer, De Beers's chairman,
hailed the botched heist as wonderful publicity:
"If only we could do
this once every six months. We could do away with the advertising
department altogether."
For more than 100 years, the name De Beers has
evoked all glamour and mystery radiated by a diamond. Through shrewd
marketing and careful manipulation of the market, the South African company
has parlayed these pieces of crystallized carbon into
multi-billion-dollar-a-year business empire. De Beers has truly a family
affair. Built around the twin pillars of De Beers Consolidated Mines Ltd.
and Angelo American Corporation of South Africa, the Oppenheimer dynasty
controls most of the world's diamond mining and trade and is one of the
biggest multi-nationals. They are the world's leading diamond producers...
Read more...
Read about Diamond History,
Diamond Trade, Buying Tips and more...
The Romans believed that diamonds brought
courage and bravery during battle. Jewish high priests used diamonds to
decide the innocence or guilt of the accused: A stone held before a
guilty person dulled and darkened; a stone held before an innocent
person glowed with increased brilliance. The Hindus believed that this
brilliant gem was created when....
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World's Largest Diamonds - Excelsior
