Miners have unearthed the largest diamond ever pulled from Canadian soil. Taken from the De Beers Victor Mine near Attawapiska, the rough diamond weighed in at 35-carats. Vancouver-based diamond manufacturer Crossworks Manufacturing purchased the diamond and will carve and polish this precious gem before assessing its value. In comparison, the Hope Diamond weighs more than 45 carats.
via De Beers Canada
Jewelers will carve the diamond down to about 15 carats and shape the gem in the Crossworks “Ideal Square” design, which features an attractive “hearts and arrows” pattern. Promoters will then present the diamond on an international tour to promote Ontario diamonds. Jewelers cannot assess the value of the giant gem until it has been cut and polished but the price tag could be as high as a million dollars.
The ideal square cut
The Victor Diamond Mine
The Victor Diamond Mine is in northern Ontario in a remote part of the province, about 55 miles west of James Bay. Opened in February of 2006, the Victor Diamond Mine is the first diamond mine in Ontario and DeBeer’s second mine in Canada. It is a 15-hectare open-pit mine that usually uses a centrifuge to separate heavy diamonds from lighter soil, loosened from the earth through explosions and carried away in front end loaders and 100-ton trucks.
via The Sudbury Star
Today, the mine produces about 600,000 diamonds each year. Mine operators expect the mine to continue operating until about the year 2020. The Victor Mine is world-renown for producing high-quality diamonds but large gems are quite rare there. Two diamonds from this mine are now set into the ceremonial mace at Queen’s Park, carried in to officially open Legislative Assembly of Ontario proceedings.
Crossworks Manufacturing intends to take this diamond on a world tour. Contact your local jeweler for more information on how you might be able to see Canada’s largest diamond after it is cut and polished. Who knows? Maybe you can even own it someday.
