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The
Premier Rose Diamond
Did you know that For reasons of security, the news
of the finding of the diamond was not released for
two months? After it had been disclosed, the press
quickly began speculating about possible
destinations for the eventual polished gem. Prince
Rainier of Monaco was obliged to deny reports that
he was planning to buy it as a wedding present for
his daughter, Princess Caroline, who was getting
married soon; another European royal family was
rumored to be interested; Emperor Bokassa of the
Central African Empire, who had already spent
£20,000,000 on his coronation, was said to have made
an offer. In the end the Johannesburg firm Mouw
Diamond Cutting Works purchased it, naming it after
Mrs. Rose Mouw. The Mouws then contacted their
American partner, William Goldberg, who promptly
purchased a share in the diamond. When he set eyes
upon it, Mr. Goldberg exclaimed, "A lot of people
are going to be interested -- this is an unusually
exciting diamond."
The Premier Rose was mined in March 1978. The
diamond was purchased by Mouw Diamond Cutting in
Johannesburg in partnership with William Goldberg of
New York. The diamond was marked for bisection by
Rose Mouw, the spouse of Jacob Mouw, the founder of
Mouw Diamond Cutting.
The Faceting of the Premier Rose
Did you know that the Premier Rose collection ranks
among the finest polished gems in the world and
became the benchmark in symmetry and proportions for
large fancy cut diamonds? The diamond was cut into
three separate gems and was known as the “Premier
Rose” family. The cutting was done in South Africa.
The largest diamond among these three is still
popular by the name Premier Rose. The two other
comparatively smaller diamonds were known as “Little
Rose” and “Baby Rose”. These diamonds weighs 31.48
carat and 2.11 carat respectively.
The cutting was carried out in South Africa and
produced three gems which became known as members of
the Premier Rose family. The largest, which has
retained the name Premier Rose, is a pear shape
weighing 137.02 carats, cut with 189 facets (most of
which I believe are around the edge of the stone --
I think it is a standard pear shape with a faceted
girdle) and measuring approximately 43.40 by 23.20
by 18.93 mm. It was submitted to the Gemological
Institute of America for certification where it
received a D-color and Flawless clarity grade. It
took 385 hours to cut, which due to the size of the
finished stone is fairly quick -- the time amounts
to about 16 straight days. At the time it was then
the largest stone of this caliber to have been
certified by the GIA. The weight of the Premier Rose
makes it the fifth largest pear-shaped diamond in
existence: the Star of Africa being the first at
530.20 carats, the Millennium Star being the second
at 203.04 carats, William Goldberg's unnamed
200.87-carat golden yellow pear being third, and the
brownish-yellow Star of Peace at 170.49 carats being
the fourth.
The William Goldberg Diamond Corporation of New York
handled the sale of the gems. The Premier Rose was
sold in 1979 to an anonymous buyer for about
$10,000,000; the sale of the two smaller diamonds
followed shortly after. Recently, Robert Mouawad has
added the Premier Rose to his great collection of
important diamonds. The stone is now valued at over
$10,000,000.
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...
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Many have been associated with famous names - the likes
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World's Famous Diamond Mines
The
oldest and most famous diamond mine in North America is
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Murfreesboro, Arkansas. In 1906, diamonds were found
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He noticed two small stones in the bottom of the bucket
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Diamonds being easily transportable and being of high
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The history of diamonds. Before the Medieval era Diamonds were worn
rough, or cut and polished only on their upper surfaces. It was in this form
that diamonds used to ornament temples, goblets, reliquaries, and crowns. The
history of cutting Diamonds dates back to the beginning of the 1400's in Paris.
Diamonds became popular in jewelry and from this time the history of diamonds
accelerated and many famous diamonds were cut. Read on the history timeline of
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Internet has made the world a small place. Beautiful
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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
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Diamonds and De Beers - The Story of the
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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
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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
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Information Summary...
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World's Largest Diamonds - The Premier Rose
