From ancient rubies to emeralds with a troubled past, here are 10 of the biggest gemstones
ever to be found…
10.
The Cullinan Diamond (530 Carats)
The Cullinan Diamond was discovered in Gauteng, South Africa, in 1905.
The large blue-white stone was just 30 feet from the surface and was extracted by a miner
with a pocket knife.
Easy peasy!!
He took it to the office to have it measured, and it weighed 3,106.75 carats, about 621
grams, which made it by far the largest diamond to have been found at the time.
Named after the owner of the mine where it was found, the Cullinan diamond was given
to King Edward the seventh in 1907 and eventually cut by a company in Amsterdam.
From this stone, they created nine major stones, 96 brilliants, and 9.5 carats of unpolished
pieces- with the largest ones being the Great Star of Africa, weighing 530 carats, and the
Lesser Star of Africa, weighing 94 carats… both of which were returned to the King and
became a part of the crown jewels.
9.
The Golden Jubilee (545.67 Carats)
Weighing in at 545.67 carats, the Golden Jubilee diamond is the largest cut and faceted diamond
in the world.
From images, it looks to be a golden orange color, but it's actually graded as a fancy
yellow-brown stone.
It was discovered in 1985, and in its original form was considered quite ugly- simply being
called the unnamed brown diamond.
It has several inclusions and deep cracks within it, so took 2 years to be cut in a
specialized underground facility to avoid any vibrations from affecting the process.
Now valued at around 12 million dollars, the Golden Jubilee was purchased in 1995 by a
group in Thailand who, after getting it blessed by the Pope, the Supreme Imam, and the Supreme
Buddhist Patriarch… gave it to King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand in honor of his 50th
birthday.
After all that, now it would most likely command a much higher price if it ever went to auction!!
It’s kept in the Royal Thai Palace, as a part of the crown jewels, and is occasionally
displayed at exhibitions around the world.. under very tight security!
The ugly duckling turned into a swan!
8.
Star of Adam (1,404 Carats)
In 2016, the world’s largest blue sapphire was unearthed in Sri Lanka, weighing in at
a massive 1,404 Carats- which is the equivalent to almost 10 ounces.
It came from a mine in the southern city of Ratnapura- a place that is known as the “city
of gems” because of the large numbers of precious stones that are found there.
Still, this was a major find- the Sri Lankan gem industry is thought to be worth about
103 million dollars annually, but this one was valued at more than 100 million dollars
just by itself!!
Now known as the Star of Adam, as in Adam and Eve.
It is named after the Muslim belief that Adam went to Sri Lanka after being banished from
the garden of Eden.
This blue sapphire has the distinctive mark at the center that's seen in all stones of
this type.
It's a popular gem for jewelry, and has increased even more since Prince William proposed to
Princess Kate with his mother, Princess Diana’s ring she had received from Prince Charles.
Her ring is 12 carats, and the Ceylon Sapphire caused some controversy as it was from a catalogue
and not exclusive.
Luckily for her, the stone does not weigh over 1,000 karats like the Star of Adam or
she would need a cart to help her wear it around!
And now for number 7, but first if you are a returning subscriber, welcome back!!
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7.
The Rajaratna Ruby (2,475 Carats)
The Rajaratna ruby was first unveiled in 1986 and, at the time, was thought to be the largest
ruby in the world.
It's had an eventful history, and was thought to have originated in either one of India's
two well-known ruby and sapphire regions during medieval times- Kalinga and Kalpur… or Mogok
in Burma- places synonymous with discoveries of large gems.
The ruby’s first known owners were the Kings of Vijayanagar, a prosperous south Indian
empire, where it was dedicated to worship the god Shiva.
After the civilization fell, the ruby passed through various hands before being found again
in the '80s.
The 2,475 Carat gem has been valued at up to 200 million dollars- that’s almost 80,000
dollars per carat, which makes it one of the most valuable gems in the world.
It’s no surprise that it’s regularly moved between secret locations around the world,
and kept under tight security until new owners are found.
Hmmm I wonder where it is??
6.
The Pearl of Puerto (75 lb)
In 2016 the world’s largest pearl was found in the Philippines in the most unlikely of
places- underneath a fisherman’s bed, where it had been for at least 10 years.
According to the man, he had found it while out fishing when his boat’s anchor had become
tangled with a giant clam, and he had to swim down to dislodge it.
The pearl is one foot wide, 2.2 feet long, and weighs 75 pounds- which means it could
be worth as much as 100 million dollars!
This value, though, depends on the authenticity of the pearl.
They only attain such prices if they are naturally formed from a giant clam, as opposed to being
created in a farm under unnatural conditions.
Tests are made to determine this and, in the case of the pearl of Puerto, it was found
to be genuine.
What are you supposed to do with a 75 pound pearl??
5.
Sergio Diamond (3,167 Carats)
While it’s not worth as much as other diamonds that have been found, the Sergio Diamond is
something quite special- and is thought to have been the largest rough diamond to have
ever been discovered.
It was found in 1895 in the state of Bahia in Brazil and weighed 633.4 grams, or 3,167
carats.
This makes it 61 carats larger than the Cullinan diamond when it was found 10 years later.
Now, you might be wondering why the Sergio diamond looks more like charcoal, and that's
because it's an extremely rare form of the stone that's known as a black carbonado diamond.
It's not actually very clear how these types of rock form, but it's thought to be a process
that involves asteroids.
The theory goes that they are formed during a supernova, and are produced as a result
of radiation-induced fission of thorium and uranium….
Before being subjected to extreme pressures and heat as they traveled through space and
collided with the earth during its formation.
These black diamonds, while receiving little attention for aesthetic purposes, are the
toughest types of diamond that have ever been found- so are in high demand for use in industrial
machinery- which is what the Sergio carbonado was eventually used for.
Jewelry was not in its destiny!
4.
Olympic Australis (17,000 Carats)
Australia is undoubtedly the home of opals, and in 1956, at the ‘eight-mile' mining
field in the town of Coober Pedy, miners found the largest ever to be discovered.
It was dug from a cavity about 30 feet beneath the surface, and they couldn't believe their
eyes when they realized what it was.
Weighing a massive 17,000 carats, it's 11 inches long and 4.5 inches high.
At the time, it was the biggest known opal, a record that has since been broken- but this
one, known as the Olympic Australis, is still the most valuable, because of its quality.
It’s worth around 2 million dollars.
Unlike other famous gems, this one isn’t at a museum- instead, it’s proudly on display
at the Altman and Cherny showroom in Sydney.
The company is a well-known opal dealer, and with such an impressive specimen on show,
they attract tourists from around the world who, hopefully, will purchase a smaller gem
for their own collection.
3.
125West Ruby (18,696 Carats)
Rubies are a type of corundum mineral- given their name because of their deep, rich, red
hue.
They come in a variety of colors, though, with red ones always being called a ruby,
and other types being called sapphires.
They are the second hardest known minerals, after diamonds, so great care has to be taken
when turning rough stones into polished pieces.
The largest rough ruby to have ever been found is known as the 125West Ruby, which weighs
a whopping 18,696 carats, which is the equivalent to 8.2 pounds.
It's semi-translucent to opaque, and is suited to being cut in a number of different ways,
depending on what final result the owner wants.
The ruby exhibits a strong red fluorescence when exposed to long wave ultraviolet light,
and would need quite a large jewel box to keep it in- it measures 4.8 inches, by 4.5,
by 5.2!
2.
The American Golden Topaz (22,892 Carats)
Topaz is well known for its ability to form huge crystals, but the even the miners of
Minas Gerais in Brazil were surprised in the early '80s when they dug up some particularly
amazing stones.
In this photo by Chip Clark for the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, the two
stones on either side of the little girl in this picture weigh 70 pounds and 111 pounds
respectively.
They were originally planned to be cut up for use in scientific instruments.
They look like they have gas bubbles inside them, but these have been formed by albite
crystals that grew against the back surfaces.
Large topazes are often seen in museums because they were not regarded as being worth cutting,
but in recent years this has changed because of the ability to turn them into blue topaz
by exposing them to radiation and heat.
Nonetheless, the most amazing example of a cut topaz is the stone in the center of this
image, known as the American Golden Topaz.
It's 22,892 Carats in weight, and was faceted over a period of 2 years in the late '80s
from a 26-pound stream-rounded topaz cobble.
The finished piece has 172 facets, and is 6.9 by 5.9 by 3.7 inches in size.
1.
The Bahia Emerald (1.7m Carats)
And of course no list of giant stones would be complete without this big guy!
This is the biggest rough gemstone that has ever been found- the Bahia Emerald.
It was found in a mine in Bahia, Brazil, in 2001, and is a rock that contains 9 crystals-
one of which is the largest single emerald crystal to have ever been discovered.
In total, the Bahia rock is thought to contain at least 1.7 million carats, and is estimated
to be worth up to 400 million dollars.
Despite its notoriety, the Bahia Emerald has had an interesting story since it was discovered.
It was smuggled to the United States, where a number of attempts were made to sell it
to private buyers- a process that faced hurdles because of disputes over the ownership.
It was eventually seized from a gem dealer in Las Vegas while authorities heard the claims,
which involved numerous people who had paid millions of dollars for it.
In the end, a judge decided on the rightful owner in 2015, but even then, they weren’t
allowed to do anything with it, because it was subject to forfeiture in Brazil as a result
of originally being stolen from the country.
The case is still on-going, but once it's finally resolved it will likely become one
of the largest and most beautiful gemstones ever to be cut.
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