The Largest Diamonds

The largest diamonds have generally been found in mines in India and South Africa and one resembling a hen's egg was found to weigh 250 carats.

Diamonds of large size have always been extremely rare, even in India itself. Tavernier asserts that before the opening of the Coulour mine, about the year 1550, the largest ever found weighed only from 10 to 12 carats. This statement cannot, however, be accepted in the face of distinct evidence to the contrary. De Laet informs us that, "in the mines some, but extremely rarely, are found of 100, 130, and even 200 carats; more numerous are those of 8, 9, 10, and 15, while those of lesser weight are far more abundant." So also Adrian Toll, editor of De Bool, says, "In Bisnagar, diamonds are found weighing 140 carats, such as Monard says he himself had seen." He also declares that he heard from trustworthy authorities of one weighing 250 carats, and that it was the size of a small hen's egg. The recently-discovered South African diamond fields are no doubt remarkable for the relatively large number of good sized stones which they have yielded. But even here the absolute number of such specimens is small, so that the statement of Mawe, writing early in the present century, still holds good that although small stones are sufficiently abundant to be within the reach of a moderate expenditure; yet those of larger size are, and ever have been, rare. He adds that of the most celebrated for magnitude and beauty the whole number in Europe scarcely amounts to half a dozen, all of which are in possession of sovereign princes.

This statement must be considered from a Koh-i-Noor stand-point, and is, no doubt, true, if those gems only be taken into account which weigh 100 carats and upwards. But the number must be increased 10 times if we include all weighing 30 carats and upwards. John Murray, writing in 1838, remarks that the number of diamonds of the weight of 36 carats and above, known to exist in Europe at that time, "do not really amount to more than 19." Since then the number has been considerably increased, especially by the yield from the South African fields. How many of this size there may be in the Portuguese treasury, the richest in Europe, is not fully known. But it is in evidence that at the sale of the late Duke of Brunswick's effects in Geneva, the list of diamonds included no less than seven weighing from 37 to 81 carats. As little was known of these stones till attention was called to them on this occasion they should probably be added to the 19 referred to by Murray in 1838.

All things considered, the actual number of diamonds over 30 carats in weight now existing in every part of the world cannot safely be estimated at much more than 100, of which probably about 50 are in Europe, and the remainder in Persia, India, and Borneo. This number may no doubt be subsequently increased by fresh discoveries in Brazil, South Africa, India, Borneo, Australia, and elsewhere. While the number of small-sized gems will go on accumulating, those of very large magnitude will probably remain, to a great extent, stationary; their intrinsic value will tend to grow rather than diminish, and apart from the romance of their history, the interest felt in the world's most famous gems will be enhanced as the development of national wealth adds to the ranks of those who are rich enough to compete for their possession.

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